The S Tier

Cream of the crop, the best of the best; these Jobs excel at what they do (and what they do is outstanding DPS). While other Jobs are capable of at least competing for top spots with the ones featured in our "S" tier, they fall a bit short on average. If you are looking for top performers, here they are. 

Black Mage is a Caster DPS Class that wields the power of elements in battle. He is able to scorch his enemies with fire, just to freeze and shatter them with potent Ice-based spells seconds later. While he suffers from "caster issues" a bit (rather low defenses and mobility problems caused by cast times - you can't move while casting), his unbelievably high Damage output easily overshines them. To master the Black Mage, you have to learn the encounters; otherwise, you will lose a lot of DPS by being forced to relocate before your current cast is finished. 

Black Mage is one of the more complicated-to-play DPS Jobs in FF XIV. In fact, performing "perfectly" in any encounter that forces you to change positions is almost impossible. The fact that his rotation is more intricate than the average one does not help either. Despite this, Black Mages still top FF XIV DPS Tier Lists which shows you how strong they really are currently. If you are looking for a challenge, here it is - as a Black Mage, you will be competing against your previous results, not against other damage dealers in your group. 

Samurai is a melee DPS with a very dynamic and satisfying-to-perform building/spending rotation. He feels smooth during combat, as his resources are generated organically while he performs his combo. Because Samurai's rotation is rather straightforward, he is one of the strongest Jobs for beginners who want to contribute DPS-wise. This Melee DPS can dish out unbelievably high amounts of Damage if RNG is at its side. The main (and pretty much the only) role of Samurai is topping the DPS charts as he brings close to none group utility to the table. This "selfishness" might sound detrimental, but Samurai's DPS more that makes up for it. 

Samurai's simplicity (that results in even below average players to perform well as this Job), and the ability to out DPS pretty much any other Job, earns him a spot in the S Tier. If you want to top FF XIV DPS Rankings, without breaking a sweat, this is the job for you. 

Machinist is definitely one of the more interesting DPS Jobs in FF XIV. This engineer-like ranged damage dealer uses Guns and various technological inventions, like Turrets and Automatons to shred his enemies from a considerable distance. While Machinist's flavor is quite unique and interesting, he plays out as a standard ranged DPS which means that players used to such classes will have no problems adjusting. The Shadowbringers expansion has brought a major rework to the Machinist; many things were adjusted, RNG elements were removed, and his ammunition resource was replaced - these changes have left Machinist in a great spot. 

Machinist easily outperforms other Physical Ranged Damage Dealers, and many FF XIV DPS Rankings are a testament to that. He also brings some utility to the table (but not a lot of it) and outperforms any other Job when it comes to switching targets rapidly (Machinists are the best add-killers currently, which makes them extremely valuable in encounters that feature multiple targets that have to be disposed of quickly). His DPS capabilities and overall versatility easily earn him a spot in the S Tier of our list. 

Good

DPS Jobs, placed in this Tier, are great performers and can easily compete for the top spots on any FF XIV DPS Tier List, especially if they were to receive some minor adjustments. As it stands, the following 4 Jobs have fallen just a bit short of the "S" Tier, however, the situation can easily change with future patches as the game's balance is very solid currently and differences are surprisingly minor. 

Micromanagement is a name of the game for Summoner; Pets, Damage over Time effects, Job-Specific Resources, and Job-specific mechanics have to be closely monitored and managed at all times (if you want to play the Summoner at top levels that is). While the Summoner is "a bit" complicated to play, he is also very rewarding when mastered and offers a lot of group utility (including the resurrection spell). 

Summoner is one of the most mobile Jobs and his Damage over Time effects make him great in multi-target encounters. While the Shadowbringers expansion has tuned him down a bit, he still remains one of the strongest Damage Dealers in the game. His mobility allows him to perform well in any encounter, and the versatility of his offensive toolkit allows him to keep his DPS up in pretty much any situation. If you are looking for a great performer that has an answer for every combat situation, Summoner is a great choice. The only reason why the Summoner is in the "good" tier instead of "S" is the Black Mage being a bit better (and we didn't want to place 2 Caster Jobs on top). 

Dragoon is one of the flashiest DPS Jobs in the game. His rotation revolves around jumping around (a lot) and executing some of the longest combos in the game. Dragoon's playstyle is very satisfying and dynamic, but some of his skills have positional requirements. While His jumps look great, they are also Dragoon's main drawback - being caught in the boss's AoE attack while mid-air can be detrimental to one's life... Overall, Dragoon's combos feel very impactful and are extremely rewarding if executed properly. On the utility side, the Job is also very solid - Dragoon provides very nice DPS buffs to all group members. 

As far as pure damage output goes, Dragoon is definitely competitive but has some minor skill-related problems. Mainly, in some encounters, he will not be able to perform at his top level because of fight-specific mechanics (which mainly include AoE attacks that have to be avoided - using Dragoon's jump attacks during these can lead to a swift death). Despite this drawback, Dragoon is still a great performer, especially if we count the group-wide DPS boost he provides. 

Ninja is one of the best Jobs you can pick up for the Raid content. While his personal DPS isn't the highest, it is definitely competitive and the utility that he brings to the table is simply outstanding. The staple skill of Ninja, the Trick Attack, is often enough to secure him a spot in every group - Trick Attack increases the Target's Damage Taken which makes everyone look much better in FF XIV DPS Rankings. Mechanically, Ninja is quite difficult to master, but also very rewarding to play. 

If you are looking for a job that is not only about personal Damage output but also about boosting your group's performance, Ninja is the way to go. His personal DPS is solid; he suffers a bit from being a melee Job, however - performing mechanics while keeping up DPS and staying in melee range can be quite tricky sometimes. Utility-wise, Ninja is way ahead of the pack - His Trick Attack is one of the strongest damage increases in the game and the rest of his utility kit is very solid as well. 

Dancer is a Ranged Physical DPS Job that focuses on group support more than on anything else. His combo mechanics are quite interesting and enjoyable to perform, but also quite random and frustrating at times. He has access to some interesting buffs that make him, and a selected teammate (so-called "dance partner"), more effective in combat; The effectiveness of this buff is comparatively minor in Raid groups, as it affects just 2 players - in small dungeon groups, it is extremely good, however. If you are after a Job that "looks" good, you will definitely like Dancer, as his skill animations are among the most eye-pleasing in the game. 

As far as the damage output goes, Dancer falls behind most melee and caster DPS Jobs; If not for his great utility kit, he would fall into the "average" tier. When playing solo, Dancer can feel a bit underwhelming, but he gets much better while in a group - this is why we recommend this DPS Job for players who main Healers and want to switch into DPS (Dancer's utility kit will make Healers feel at home while his DPS rotations will allow them to learn how damaging Jobs play out). 

Average

The last Tier on our List is dedicated to DPS Jobs that are outshined by the others or simply lack something that would make them "optimal". Now, please note that the following three Jobs are still perfectly viable* for all types of current content, they are just not "the best" choices DPS-wise. 

*In current days, many players mix up the word "viable" with the word "optimal" which makes them think that only the strongest jobs/classes are worth playing. They are wrong. In FF XIV every Job is perfectly viable for the eng-game content and brings a unique flavor and playstyle - you can play any job you want and stay competitive as long as you understand the mechanics and don't make too many major mistakes. 

This is, most likely, the most controversial spot on our list... Red Mage is one of the best starting Jobs as he deals solid damage and, at the same time, is rather straightforward to operate and very easy to learn; there are also not too many downfalls that have to be avoided. Utility-wise he is solid as he is one of two classes with access to the resurrection ability. The main problem with the Red Mage is... the fact that both Black Mage and Summoner fair better as Caster-type damage dealers. 

Overall, the Red Mage is a very solid Caster DPS Job, especially after the recent changes, and he floats somewhere between good and average tiers (we might bump him up a tier very soon). Despite the current placement, we recommend the Red Mage to all players who like to play as a Caster but are looking for something easier than Summoner or even a Black Mage. 

Other Jobs need weapons to do damage; the monk doesn't - his whole body is a weapon. Monk is a melee DPS job that can seem quite easy to learn but is, in fact, rather confusing as it features some convoluted combo abilities - these force you to stay on your toes and pay attention... which would be a good thing if it followed the scheme all other Jobs use for their rotations. If you're new to the game, you will have no problems learning how to play as a Monk. If you are an FF XIV veteran, however, you might find his mechanics rather frustrating and unintuitive. 

If not for his confusing mechanics that make a lot of players struggle, we would place Monk in the "good" tier. As it stands, Monk is a solid performer that feels off because he's "different". This is the Job that needs a rework the most, in our opinion at least. 

Bard is one of the more mobile DPS Jobs (thanks to his instant-cast abilities, he can execute his combos while on the move), but his overall damage output is nothing to boast about. Luckily, he's not only about damage; he is also great at supporting his allies in combat. Thanks to the Song mechanic, Bard can apply various powerful buffs to himself and his teammates. These buffs range from hit rate increases, through damage taken reductions, to healing taken boosts. Mechanics-wise, Bard is surprisingly easy to learn and thus well-suited for brand new players. 

Bard is one of those Jobs that are not that great while playing solo but get much better while in a group. Sadly, in the current patch, Bard's utility is not enough to make up for his lackluster damage performance, so we have decided to place him in the "average" tier (the main determining factor was the fact that he fills the same role as Dancer and Dancer fairs a bit better overall). 

END NOTE

Remember that although we have tried to stay as neutral as possible when compiling this list, there might be still some biased opinions involved. If your personal experience/opinion about certain FF XIV DPS Jobs varies from the one pictured on our list, don't hesitate to let us know. We will take another look into it, and rethink our ranking, based on your suggestions.