Top 10 Best N-Strike Elite Nerf Guns

The new N-Strike Elite line was introduced in 2012, replacing the N-Strike series. Which of these new blasters is the best?
The Top Ten
1 Nerf N-Strike Elite RapidStrike CS-18

In my opinion, this gun is the best to use in a Nerf war. Apart from the sound it makes while firing, there aren't really any other negatives. The rate of fire is amazing, and personally, it's a really comfortable gun to use. It's not too heavy, and the stock can be adjusted.

However, one of my favorite aspects is the railings. It has two on the top, one on the bottom, and two on the sides, where I easily attach my custom torch and laser. Overall, if you're looking to buy a gun for Nerf wars, I would recommend this one 100%.

This gun is one of the best ever built, but there are some points for improvement that Nerf could address. For starters, when you put barrel attachments on it, they tend to wobble. Moreover, the Longstrike barrel won't fit at all. It's also too wide to accommodate the Stampede blast shield. I would have also preferred it if the gun was stock-compatible and didn't weigh as much. Other than that, it is a beast, and I'd love to have one. For now, however, I'm stuck using the one my friend owns. Oh well!

2 Nerf N-Strike Elite Retaliator

This gun is my favorite Nerf gun because of the exciting sneak attacks. I love this gun and have used it in many Nerf wars, winning 60% of the time. I'm not going to lie. It does take some getting used to in terms of loading and it sometimes jams. However, what stock or clip Nerf gun doesn't jam once in a while? It works really well, whether you're a Nerf fan or a newbie. This is a great gun to buy, and I highly recommend this blaster. Five stars!

The Retaliator is the fifth Nerf gun I have ever purchased and is by far my favorite. The reload is amazing, capable of firing two bullets in a second. Its tactical rail and upgrades make it superior to many others. It also has an amazing range. Overall, it's a great blaster. I once went up against two people - one with the Firestrike and the other with the Sharpfire - and won with this blaster. I highly recommend this great Nerf weapon.

Powerful, easy to handle, and with a nice dart capacity. Also, if you have a Nerf bandolier or tactical vest, it becomes extremely easy to reload. The only problem is that the blue Retaliator jams very commonly. So, if you're considering getting a Retaliator, my advice is to get a white one. It fixes the jamming problems. Nonetheless, the white one is the best Nerf rifle.

3 Nerf N-Strike Elite Rampage

This is the best gun ever and should be ranked #1. It's a great primary weapon. I recommend using the 18-dart clip and not the 25, because the 25 makes it feel awkward, and the 18-dart clip can still spray someone down. You can shoot the full 18-dart clip in under 15 seconds. It's easy to move around with, and it's also a good camping gun.

I use it for every battle, and I have almost every Nerf gun. You can easily run into a room with a team of five when they least expect it and take all five of them down. This gun should definitely be #1, and you should definitely buy it. Also, it has never jammed in the time I've had it, and I've had it for about two years. It still shoots like it's brand new. It's a very accurate gun and can shoot at least 40 feet. If you put the most accurate Nerf bullet in it, it's even more incredible. However, it is still impressive with a regular Nerf bullet.

This is the best gun ever. The 25-dart drum allows for easy reloading and maximum capacity. You prime it with the handle, so the handle acts as both a forearm grip and primer (unlike the Retaliator). Unlike other fast-firing guns, this one doesn't require any batteries. Using slam fire, you can shoot up to about two darts per second, which is more than enough in a Nerf war.

The jam door is really cool. You just open it, fix the jam, and then slide it back. It very rarely jams, making it great for frontline firing. This is the best Nerf gun of all time.

4 Nerf N-Strike Elite Strongarm

I don't recommend this as a primary weapon, but as a secondary, this thing is a beast. You can easily pull back the gray primer to prime the gun. You can also slam-fire, which is great if you need to use your secondary in a Nerf war. It holds six darts at a time, which is great for a pistol. There's a cool button that allows the barrel to fall out for easy reloading. While reloading, if you spin the barrel, it makes an awesome clicking noise, which I thought was really cool. When I shoot it at someone from up to 15 feet away, it hurts - a lot. It's a great secondary gun.

By far the best. It's basically a Maverick on ultra-insane steroids. It has slam-fire, decent capacity, good range, and accuracy. It has more sling adapters than the Maverick, better tactical rail placement, and jams less. Other guns like the Retaliator and Rampage have their cons, whereas the Strongarm has none that are noticeable.

As with most Nerf guns, the accuracy is not great due to the holes on the side of the darts. However, it's very powerful and small enough to carry around without getting in your way. Plus, it has slam-fire! Overall, it's a very good gun and easy to modify, which is a bonus.

5 Nerf N-Strike Elite Stryfe

A fantastic gun, it's a small fly-wheel, cup-fed blaster, which is nice. It has an amazing rate of fire and excellent range. The blaster features two tactical rails, one on the top and one on the bottom, as well as a barrel and stock extension. It's very light and excels in wars, with its accuracy being particularly impressive. Equipped with a Retaliator stock, muzzle brake, Retaliator stick grip, and a red dot sight, this gun is amazing. Given its great price of about $20, I believe it's the best.

This flywheel blaster is a must-get if you participate in Nerf wars. I just got mine a few weeks ago, and I'm already in love with it. It's very maneuverable and lightweight, which is an advantage if you're playing as a scout or can't handle the weight of blasters like the RapidStrike. It's a great gun, but I recommend getting a bigger clip. You'll empty out a 6-round magazine in around 10 seconds.

A fantastic gun. I especially love the amazing rate of fire it has, as it fires much faster than any other flywheel blaster except for the Raven. It is excellent for moving across open spaces and is considerably more lightweight than something like the RapidStrike.

6 Nerf N-Strike Elite Alpha Trooper CS-12

The best gun on this list might be one of the newest releases like the Raptorstrike, which has supreme accuracy due to its darts. However, this is definitely one of the best guns as it has long range. Compared to the Rampage, it jams less frequently for me. In the Rampage, the magazine sticks out awkwardly to the side, while this one doesn't get in the way. This is the best gun by Nerf and, when compared to other weapons, it's more like a real gun in capable hands.

Brilliant gun overall. I don't know why people prefer the Rampage, as this has better range and aesthetics, and the magazine isn't in an awkward position. With slam fire, this gun rules and can fire faster than any other gun in capable hands. It's easy to modify, with simple internals and kits readily available. The Elite Alpha Trooper is a lightweight, efficient killing machine.

Easily the best for a number of reasons. Range and accuracy come first and foremost. Second is the volume of fire. With extended magazines and easy magazine changes, you can put out more darts more accurately than anyone else in the room. This gun is actually less likely to jam when using slam fire. It's nothing fancy, just simple and effective.

7 Nerf N-Strike Elite Roughcut

I recently acquired this gun and agree with those who suggest it should be a secondary weapon. This gun is unpredictable and often experiences jams. The range and accuracy can vary with each shot, which does give you an advantage because the enemy will have to guess where the two bullets will go as they fly at them at different speeds and patterns. In my opinion, this gun is worth it.

Incredible gun! Especially when you run out of ammo, this gun is unique. Unlike any other, it holds 8 darts and is ridiculously easy to reload. It doesn't matter how you put the darts in. It will shoot one from each vertical barrel. If you pull the trigger halfway, it will shoot one dart at a time, as opposed to both barrels - ideal for the Zombie edition. This gun has exceeded all 20 other guns I've had.

This gun is more of a secondary weapon in my book. It's pretty reliable and has considerable accuracy and speed. It can fire one or two shots at a time, which is interesting because you can adapt to a situation where you need to save ammo or unleash a flurry of bullets. Overall, it's a reliable and decent secondary weapon.

8 Nerf N-Strike Elite Demolisher Two-in-One

Got this for my nephew's birthday. I wish Nerf guns in my day looked this cool and were semi-automatic. All I had was a Ballzooka. Yeah, wow, fun. Anyway, it's a semi-automatic shooting above elite ranges with a grenade launcher for when you're out of darts. Battery consumption is reasonable for this big flywheel spitting out darts from the cool banana clip.

So what else can you ask for? Oh yeah, that giant-sized bullet can hurt if you get one really good pump. Definitely don't aim that at the face!

Pretty great blaster. The semi-auto functions are great. However, since the grenade isn't actually explosive (obviously not like literally explosive with gunpowder or whatever), it probably wouldn't earn a high place on the ranking. It's like a Stryfe with a stock, but with a handy foam rocket that you can shoot at people. It isn't the best for actually hitting people, but you can shoot it at your opponent as a brief distraction before you send a hail of darts at them.

9 Nerf N-Strike Rhino Fire

Very amazing gun! We had a very large Nerf gun "war" at our church, and this thing didn't jam once! I loved it! Now, on to the bad stuff. It is not very accurate. For instance, if you were aiming for individual targets like a "Nerf Sniper" would, this gun would not make for a pleasing experience.

It is also very bulky. You would need a table or something to hold it up. Although the gun has no accuracy whatsoever, it does have a slight advantage. If a large group of people came in, you could just keep firing your gun. It is automatic, so it may jam. Overall, I had a great experience with this gun and would recommend it to a friend. I would have to warn them about its bulkiness and lack of accuracy, though. Overall, an 8/10! Very good gun!

I got this Nerf gun for my 12th birthday, and I love it! My whole family loves it. My brother says it's the best Nerf gun ever, and I agree. It has never jammed once. It shoots 50 darts quicker than any other Nerf gun we have.

10 Nerf N-Strike Elite Hail-Fire

The effectiveness of a semi-automatic rifle plus the huge capacity of a machine gun equals an awesome Nerf gun for Nerf wars! Right out of the box, it's not that good, but give it eight 12/18-dart magazines, and it should be in third place on this list. If you like to use your gun as a shield, keep that plastic disc on. If you prefer to be mobile, just take it off. It's not needed to work well in Nerf wars.

This blaster has the highest capacity of any Nerf gun for now. It not only has a 144-dart capacity but also has a nice rate of fire. Warning: I would not strongly recommend voltage mods, as this blaster can easily burn out, even with stock AA batteries.

I just went out on the battlefield a few minutes ago, and I had the Hail-Fire with me. Suddenly, two players came for the flag (a recon barrel), but I got both of them with a 25-dart drum before they could take it.

The Contenders
11 Nerf N-Strike Elite Firestrike

This pistol is by far the best pistol Nerf has ever made. It has a fantastic laser, shoots extremely far, and has spots for two more darts. The laser only takes two AAA batteries, which are super cheap. I would recommend this gun to absolutely everybody. I'm not sure which is better, this or the Retaliator. WARNING: This thing stings - a lot.

I vote for this one simply because of power, power, POWER! It's very powerful, although not the best for accuracy. The laser is nice, and it's also cheap. It's pretty good for a sidearm. I didn't vote for the Rampage because it jams so much. People who say it doesn't jam very much don't know what they're talking about.

My first gun, and it's great when it comes to accuracy and weight. However, it has a very long reload time and small dart capacity - I'm talking five seconds per dart. It's a good secondary sidearm.

12 Nerf N-Strike Elite Triad

This tiny pistol has a lot more power than its looks suggest. It's easily the best sidearm choice out there since it can shoot powerfully, accurately, and with a decent range. When dual-wielding with a sword in one hand and this pistol in the other, I dominate the battlefield! With just the pistol, as long as you're a little athletic, you can outpace even rapid fire, due to its ability to shoot so well.

Don't judge by its looks. This little sidearm is very misleading with its size-to-power ratio. If you think this is a pee-wee blaster with no kick, you'll be surprised when the person shot by this is left with a mark. It's smart, compact, and can compete with or destroy some of the other elite guns in comparison. And lastly, it's dirt cheap.

Of all my Nerf experiences, this gun turned out to be the best. Although it's small, it has a massive amount of power compared to many other guns. This includes large guns, small guns, fancy guns, and many more. So, in my opinion, this has probably turned out to be one of the best Nerf guns of all time.

13 Nerf N-Strike Elite Stockade Blaster

The trigger on this is super easy to pull, and it's the most compact model behind the Stryfe. However, it holds more in the barrel and 10 more in the detachable stock. But it's somewhat difficult to attach things to the tactical rail. Other than that, it's a great little gun and highly recommended as a first buy.

Awesome gun, but it sometimes jams. You need to pull hard on the cocking mechanism so the kinetic energy will cause the spring to detach, which will then fly, causing the bullet to jam in the wrong place in the gun.

Good fun and easy to use against anyone in a Nerf gun war. It has good firepower too. I shot my brother a few times, and he had red dots on his arms for weeks.

14 Nerf N-Strike Elite Mega Centurion

This gun looks epic, and as soon as I saw it, I bought the Sonic Ice version. I have to say, it can shoot insanely far, but it isn't very accurate past 15 meters. It also hits hard. Since it is designed for long range and my Nerf war area is pretty small, I basically only use it for shooting targets. Seriously though, this thing can make a grown man cry!

This gun had a good concept, but its performance was what made me prefer the Hammershot over this. It shoots as far as some small pistols and requires one to pull the cocking mechanism far back. Though it may be the best sniper so far, the Longshot was worse.

This Nerf blaster is very cool, but honestly, it's impractical. First of all, it's overpriced, bulky, and way too big. It doesn't actually fire 100 feet, and its capacity is limited.

15 Nerf N-Strike Elite Cam ECS-12 Blaster

I only bought it for the camera. It shoots similarly to the Rapid-Strike but comes with six fewer bullets. I don't know, but it was kind of a waste of $80 AUD. It only holds 3 hours of film but is good because it can hold about 2000 snapshots. Pretty cool!

Pretty cool. It's similar to the Rapid Strike in many ways, but I would just buy a Rapid Strike as they are three times as cheap. Then, I'd just add a GoPro to my Rapid Strike.

Amazing range, an instant-view camera, and more! Amazing!

16 Nerf N-Strike Elite HyperFire Blaster

Glad it's on the list. I'm unhappy it's not in the #1 spot. This beast trashes all others attempting to almost tie with it. In fact, it's so good that some Nerf wars I'm in ban it!

It's the world's fastest-shooting Nerf gun, and you can put two together. Isn't that awesome, everyone?

Great gun! It shoots fast and is very accurate. I win a lot of wars with it! If you're looking for an assault gun, then you should totally get this!

17 Nerf N-Strike Elite CrossBolt Blaster

This Nerf gun is the ultimate weapon for a Nerf war! It smoothly takes the darts and has a clip system for practically unlimited firepower. It shoots way farther than the advertised 90 ft and is super accurate too. It's a must-have for any Nerf collection and also looks epically intimidating to others.

This is the best Nerf gun I've ever got. It's so awesome. It hardly ever jams and shoots more powerfully than some guns.

Accurate, powerful, long-range - this is an overall epic Nerf gun. It comes with a 12-dart clip, so it's a great clip size! I would definitely recommend this.

18 Nerf N-Strike Elite Mega Lightning Bow

So cool! The best primary you will ever have, and the darts pack a punch! It is super accurate, and when combined with the Thunder Bow and Lightning Bow, it sounds cool - Thunder and Lightning!

19 Nerf N-Strike Elite Jolt Blaster

So, the Retaliator and I don't get along, but I tried to fight with it anyway, knowing it didn't like me. I had this Jolt Blaster as a secondary. To get straight to the point, the Retaliator jammed. I used the Jolt instead and somehow sniped with it. It became my primary weapon for that battle only. Using it as a primary forever is just idiotic.

This gun has awesome range with amazing accuracy, and it is best when you are running out of ammo and want a gun that you can fire single-handed. I love this gun, but the Triad is just too awesome.

I got this gun 5 years ago when it was brand new, and after many battles, this gun still works like new. I would recommend this gun to anyone for any purpose. This gun makes a mighty fine secondary.

20 Nerf N-Strike Elite Rayven

Good gun. It jams frequently with old, over-used darts, causing the spring to move slightly. This pushes the dart against the gun near the back, folding or wrecking the dart, which causes the jam. What this means is that the spring will sometimes move, pushing the dart to the side out of the actual firing hole, decreasing accuracy.

Rayven is so nice when equipped with a Longstrike barrel, three TrustFire batteries, and a Nerf pinpoint. It will be awesome! However, the accuracy is bad, the trigger is bad, and there are too many locks. Modifications will make this gun a MONSTER HUNTER. The Rayven Elite can't beat the standard Rayven in mods because the standard Rayven doesn't need wiring to feed a 12.6-volt TrustFire battery. Elite Rayven? Haha, do you want to burn two motors to feed a 12.6-volt battery for an 18-dart clip? You'll need to do some wiring for the Rayven Elite.

This gun is epic because it fires so rapidly. You can also single-fire it. All around, it's a cool and the best Nerf gun.

21 Nerf N-Strike Elite Spectre Rev-5 Stealth Blaster

It's a good gun, but I only had it for 2 years before it broke.
It shoots very far and it doesn't hurt at all.

I don't really like the stock much, but the suppressor barrel attachment is cool. The blaster itself is alright, but the Strongarm holds one more dart and is slightly more compact.

I like the Spectre. It shoots far and it comes with cool Nerf attachments. I love it!

22 Nerf N-Strike Elite Alpha Trooper CS-6

It is a great gun. It comes with six darts.

23 Nerf N-Strike Elite Vulcan

Okay blaster. It has a capacity of 25 darts and is fully automatic. However, it does have problems: It's huge and heavy, making it very hard to move. In fact, its tripod often collapses while turning the thing. Also, it uses a chain system. Now, besides a couple of vintage blasters from the '90s, it's the only one to use a chain system. While it looks cool, it makes the blaster jam more often and it cannot take clips.

In the end, while it does have many problems, it is very effective if used correctly. You should use it in a narrow hallway. This means you have total domination of that space. Make parents, pets, and friends alike tremble in fear. Just make sure to have a Triad or Jolt in case your friend sneaks up behind you.

This is the best Nerf gun ever because it has really good accuracy, fires fast, and shoots far. The only problem is reloading, but it's still my #1 Nerf gun.

24 Nerf N-Strike Elite Mega Thunderbow
25 Nerf N-Strike Elite Rough Cut 2x4

This gun in a Nerf war can do serious damage at close range. It's not very accurate and only holds 8 shots. It fires 2 darts per second and packs a serious punch. I'm talking about knocking over Masonite and wood boxes. It's worth it if you are in close range.

This gun is awesome! It's practically a Nerf shotgun with two barrels. However, if you pull the trigger very lightly, only one dart will shoot.

Best gun ever!

Yes, if it gets stuck, you just have to hit it on the upside and it might get smooth again.

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