NetflixThe final season of the one of the biggest pop culture phenomenons is finally here, so it’s time to look at the best Stranger Things characters as the Netflix show comes to an end.
The streamer has really made the most out of the final batch of episodes, spreading it from November 26 all the way until New Year’s Eve on December 31. In the three years since Season 4, Stranger Things fans have been desperate to find out how the Hawkins gang will stop Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) from turning our world into the Upside Down.
Of course there have been plenty of theories along the way, including an idea about who Eleven’s real father is, and what the eyebrow-raising title of the finale actually means.
But until we have all the answers, here’s our ranking of the best Stranger Things characters.
13. Joyce Byers
NetflixPlayed by: Winona Ryder
First appearance: Season 1 Episode 1: ‘The Disappearance of Will Byers’
Who they are: Will Byers’ mother who desperately tries to find her son.
Why we like them: Joyce’s determination to find her son proves how fierce she is, and although it’s clear she has always tried to work hard for both of her boys, her strive to bring Will home and also get justice for him afterwards shows us exactly who she is as a person.
She might not get the most flashiest moments in the series but Joyce’s journey is equally as important as anyone else. Plus, it’s so easy to want her and Hopper to figure out whatever strange, dysfunctional relationship is so clearly there.
12. Robin Buckley
Netflix Played by: Maya Hawke
First appearance: Season 2 Episode 1: ‘MADMAX’
Who they are: She works with Steve at Scoops Ahoy! in Season 2 and at the Family Video Store in Season 4.
Why we like them: Robin is just as zany and weird as the rest of the kids in the show, so it’s no wonder that she fits in perfectly with the fight to stop the Upside Down. Her friendship with Steve is one of the show’s most underrated moments.
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But the moment that really shines is when she opens up to him about her sexuality, and there’s just a moment of acceptance for who she is and the things she’s already been through. After that, her identity doesn’t define her story and she gets far more to do than just be a token queer character.
11. Eddie Munson
Netflix Played by: Joseph Quinn
First appearance: Season 4 Episode 1: ‘The Hellfire Club’
Who they are: The leader of the Hellfire Club who is framed for Chrissy’s murder in Season 4.
Why we like them: He shreds Metallica’s ‘Master of Puppets’ in the Upside Down to draw the demobats away from the Creel House… That’s it. That’s the reason. Iconic.
10. Lucas Sinclair
NetflixPlayed by: Caleb McLaughlin
First appearance: Season 1 Episode 1: ‘The Disappearance of Will Byers’
Who they are: Lucas is another core member of the Hawkins gang, who later makes new friends on the basketball team.
Why we like them: The final member of the Hawkins AV Club: Lucas Sinclair. He’s arguably the coolest out of the bunch, and it’s clear that he’s conscious of his reputation in school, especially when he joins the basketball team. But his dedication to his friends keeps him on the straight and narrow, although it was touch and go for a minute in Season 4…
If/when Max wakes up from her coma, hopefully they manage to get back together, because they’re one of the most interesting couples outside of Eleven and Mike.
9. Dustin Henderson
NetflixPlayed by: Gaten Matarazzo
First appearance: Season 1 Episode 1: ‘The Disappearance of Will Byers’
Who they are: The Hawkins gang’s funniest member, and a devoted part of the Hellfire Club.
Why we like them: Obviously, Dustin was going to be part of the list! He’s got some brilliant lines and jokes throughout Stranger Things (“You better run! She’s our friend and she’s crazy!”) and he’s never afraid to just be himself.
Dustin’s friendships with the gang, as well as Steve and Eddie, prove just how loyal he is to those around him, and his presence always helps ground the episodes — even when things get cosmic and weird.
8. Billy Hargrove
NetflixPlayed by: Dacre Montgomery
First appearance: Season 2 Episode 1: ‘MADMAX’
Who they are: Max’s step-brother with an inflated ego and deep rooted trauma, who becomes warped by the Mind Flayer.
Why we like them: Billy is introduced as a handsome bully who thinks pretty highly of himself in Season 2 (despite having plenty of issues) and he makes life difficult for Max, the Hawkins gang, and Steve. While he’s there for everyone else’s character development in the second season, it works as a villainous backstory when he becomes possessed by the Mind Flayer in Season 3.
Dacre Montgomery’s tortured performance is excellent throughout the show, especially when Billy finally gets the chance to apologize to Max during the Battle of Star Court Mall… Oof.
7. Vecna
NetflixPlayed by: Jamie Campbell Bower
First appearance: Season 4 Episode 1: ‘The Hellfire Club’
Who they are: The overarching villain of the show who’s origin story is intricately tied to Eleven.
Why we like them: Come on, he’s a gooey nightmare that calls back to the likes of Freddy Krueger and Pinhead, what’s not to like?! It says a lot that he left such an impression on fans back in 2022 after being introduced as the overarching big bad of the whole series.
It helped that there’s a twist in his backstory by revealing him as Henry Creel/001 — the orderly that was kind to Eleven when she was living in the lab. The mythology surrounding Vecna is fascinating, so he easily earns a place on the list.
6. Max Mayfield
Netflix Played by: Sadie Sink
First appearance: Season 2 Episode 1: ‘MADMAX’
Who they are: She’s another social outcast who winds up joining the Hawkins gang in Season 2.
Why we like them: Max joined the show as the guarded, spiky new kid on the block — but over time she has secretly become a big softie (at least where her friends are concerned), while also providing the boys the kick up the backside they often need.
Putting her at the heart of the story in Season 4 was a smart move from the writers, as it allowed Sink to explore Max’s own trauma and resilience leading up to that incredible ‘Running Up That Hill’ scene and beyond.
5. Will Byers
NetflixPlayed by: Noah Schnapp
First appearance: Season 1 Episode 1: ‘The Vanishing of Will Byers’
Who they are: Will is the reason the show even happens when he gets kidnapped by the Demogorgon.
Why we like them: Will was a tricky character for audiences to get to know because he spent most of the first season away from his friends and family in the Upside Down.
But his experiences in there, and the ramifications he has to deal with as a result, have made him a complex key to the battle in stopping the Upside Down from tearing the real world apart.
4. Mike Wheeler
NetflixPlayed by: Finn Wolfhard
First appearance: Season 1 Episode 1: ‘The Vanishing of Will Byers’
Who they are: He’s one of the main heroes who starts the hunt for Will when he goes missing in Season 1.
Why we like them: Mike is the de facto leader of the group, and he’s the one who pushes everyone around him to help find Will when he’s kidnapped into the Upside Down. He’s fiercely loyal to his friends, even when they argue or irritate each other, and his dynamic with Eleven is equally sweet.
3. Chief Hopper
NetflixPlayed by: David Harbour
First appearance: Season 1 Episode 1: ‘The Vanishing of Will Byers’
Who they are: Hopper is the (former) police chief of Hawkins, who winds up becoming Eleven’s adoptive father.
Why we like them: Hopper is a gruff, no-nonsense police chief through-and-through, which makes him the perfect straight man against the zany comedy of the kids throughout the show. He’s also handy with a weapon, which certainly helps when you’re fighting demogorgons, Russian prison guards, or anyone else that stands in his way.
Thankfully, the show also takes the time to explore Hopper’s own trauma: the loss of his daughter and the resulting breakdown of his marriage. While he still grapples with his inner demons, he’s well equipped to use those issues to battle some real ones.
2. Eleven
NetflixPlayed by: Millie Bobby Brown
First appearance: Season 1 Episode 1: ‘The Vanishing of Will Byers’
Who they are: She’s a child raised by Martin Brenner who was experimented on before unlocking her telekinetic powers.
Why we like them: While the rest of the Hawkins crew are the heart of the show, Eleven takes a monumental journey throughout the previous seasons. While she begins as a scared little girl who just wants to be safe, she learns to step up and protect those around her, becoming a fully fledged hero by the end of Season 4.
Sure, Will’s story might have kicked things off, but it’s Eleven’s character that kept us all invested.
1. Steve Harrington
NetflixPlayed by: Joe Keery
First appearance: Season 1 Episode 1: ‘The Vanishing of Will Byers’
Who they are: One of the popular kids at Hawkins High School who starts the show as Nancy Wheeler’s boyfriend.
Why we like them: Steve takes the top spot because of his growth as a character over the whole show. He starts out as a popular teenager who acts more like a bully than a nice person.
But because he gets to know the kids and help fend off the Upside Down he completely changes his outlook on life and accepts people for who they are, not who he wants them to be. Plus his dynamic with the gang (and Dustin) in Seasons 2 and 3 is absolutely adorable.
If he dies in Season 5, we riot.
If you’re hunting for something to watch after binging Stranger Things, why not check out our list of the other Netflix shows you need to watch? Also, take a look at the best shows of 2025.