![[Panel 1] Rose begins her critical art in a battle at the Marina of Fortune. Street Fighter 5. [Panel 2] Sakura unleashes her Sakura Rain attack in a battle at the Kasugano Residence. Street Fighter 5. [Central overlay] Chun-li and Cammy's tag-team pose from Street Fighter X Tekken (edited with a duotone mask). Custom Image. TheGamer.](http://static1.thegamerimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Street-Fighter-Best-Female-Fighters-Feature-Image-TheGamer.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1140&h=&dpr=1.5)
launched in arcades in 1991 and pioneered the traditional 2D fighting game genre. The series has showcased some of the most remarkable women in 2D fighting, starting with the Interpol agent, Chun-li.
But in a series with so many notable female Street Fighters, who is the best? While we can't speak for everyone, we have distinct choices across the game's multiple iterations. Our top list represents fan favorites and more obscure characters who ꦺhave all significantly impacted t🙈he Street Fighter universe.
Updated July 12th, 2023, by Chris Sanfilippo: Our latest update adds another popular Street Fighter 6 addition, Marisa. We also decided to honor one of our favorite Street Fighter Alpha characters, R Mika. Finally, we made several quality-of-life adjustments for better readability on mobile devices.
15 Kimberly
When Street Fighter 6 launched its first beta, Kimberly made a massive splash in the Fighting Game Community. With her fast moves and killer combos, this stealthy computer prodigy was the one to beat!
It makes sense that Kimberly is such a badass. After all, she is a student of Guy, the Bushinryu ninja from Final Fight and the Street Fighter Alpha series. However, her spr𓃲ay-painted twist on the Bushinryu style transforms it into her own.
Kimberly is poised to become one of the highest-tier fighters in the series!
14 Marisa
Street Fighter 6's new female characters are some of the best in the series. These new contenders have distinct fighting styles with personalities to match. One female fighter who won us over in this installment was Marisa, the muscular pankration master with a heart of gold!
Don't let her intense combat skills fool you; Marisa is the most loving female in Street Fighter. Everything she does, whether raising her pet lion, bashing in skulls, or crafting designer handbags, is done with a deep sense of care. Her love extends beyond gender, as displayed in her r🔯omantic sub-miss💛ion in World Tour mode!
Marisa isn't the only LGBTQ+ Street Fighter character. After all, the series includes Eagle, who is canonically gay, and Juri, a heavily implied bisexual woman. Still, she's one of the most positive and visible examples of a queer character in Street Fighter's history!
13 Menat
Street Fighter 5 introduced plenty of unique fighting styles into the series. One example is Menat's, whose crystal ball, the Left Eye Of The Lion, grants various zoning strategies, including space control and unpredictable mix-ups!
Menat is Rose's apprentice with plenty of her own merits. First, she's gone toe-to-toe with G, the president of Earth. Second, her crystal ball originates from the country, Alanbird (Sangypt in English) from Red Earth.
12 Kolin
We first met Kolin in Street Fighter 3, assisting Gill and the Secret Society. He gave Kolin cryokinetic abilities, including turning her hands into ice blades and generating ice fields around her.
Kolin played a vital role in Street Fighter 5's story mode, A Shadow Falls. One of her most significant impacts was resurrecting Charlie Nash from the grave! (So we'd argue she's the best female necromancer in Street Fighter!)
11 Lucia
Street Fighter 5 gave us a deeper look into Metro City, with returning faces like Cody (the city's new mayor) and Abigail. Another Final Fight inductee was Lucia, the upstanding, driven cop who speaks with her fists, first seen in Final Fight 3!
If you pay attention to Lucia's storyline, you'll notice she absorbs knowledge like a sponge. She's self-taught in kenpō and combines it with other techniques, including her flaming ki, which she discovered training with Mike Haggar.
Lucia's can-do attitude keeps her sharp. She can act impulsively sometimes, but her impulses stem from a desire to protect the city she loves. If any woman in Street Fighter knows how to get stuff done, it's Lucia!
10 C Viper
We'll say it, C. Viper is an underappreciated female Street Fighter. This fan-favorite made waves with her spy-gadget abilities introduced in Street Fighter 4. She became so popular that Capcom included her in the long-awaited Marvel Vs. Capcom 3. Yet, with all this momentum, she didn't return as a playable character in SF5. Honestly, we're shocked (Pun intended.)
This sly C.I.A. agent dons a battlesuit that amplifies her combat to the extreme! Her metal-knuckled gloves conduct electricity, shocking opponents. And her boots contain propulsion jets that help her jump higher. So step aside, Inspector Gadget, because Street Fighter has one of the best female gadgeteers around!
9 Juri
The only other Street Fighter 4 inductee on this list is Juri. This fighter has made a considerable impression since her first appearance in Super Street Fighter 4. That's likely because of her killer-kicking move set and divisive personality.
Like many characters in the series, Juri seeks to defeat M. Bison. However, rather than dethroning him to pursue justice, like Chun-li, she wishes to kill him out of revenge for murdering her parents as a child. This attitude of blood-thirsty dominance bleeds into everything she does.
What's most striking is her left eye, which harbors the power of the Feng Shui Engine. This weapon, created by S.I.N., emits powerful ki, arguably making her the deadliest woman in Street Fighter lore. According to the SF4 OV♚A, even gunned officers ꦗwere no match to her murderous attacks!
8 Makoto
One can best describe Makoto with "ikken hissatsu," a traditional karate term that translates to "annihilate with one blow." Compared with Ryu and Ken's supernatural Americanized martial arts, the Street Fighter 3 team wanted Makoto to embody traditional Japanese martial arts' simple, direct, and potent qualities.
Makoto's competitive spirit is a significant draw for many fans. Her no-nonsense fighting style and tomboy appearance made her popular during location tests of SF3: Third Strike in America and Japan.
Competition is in Makoto's D.N.A. Her fighting style emphasizes fast, aggressive techniques that result in ferocious combos. Plus, fellow Street Fighters recognize her fighting spirit and note her high proficiency. Despite her young age, Makoto is arguably Street Fighter's most formidable woman!
7 Elena
There are many reasons to love Elena! She's claimed many firsts for the series, including the first capoeira fighter and the first African contender. Furthermore, she is the first Street Fighter character with a move set that exclusively utilizes kicks. Oh, and she's the first princess in the series!
Elena's backstory contains several noble acts, cementing her status as the most charitable woman in Street Fighter lore. In Super Street Fighter 4, she enters S.I.N.'s tournament to protect her tribe from a hidden evil preying among them. Furthermore, Elena is a healer who performs medical duties for her tribe.
Fighting game history fans will also appreciate the story behind Elena's original sprites in Street Fighter 3. Having introduced the CPS-3 arcade board, Capcom was eager to show off its improved visuals with this series. As a result, Elena's are the most stunning female sprites in Street Fighter history!
6 Rose
Rose is another female Street Fighter trailblazer since she's the first Italian contender and the first female cast member of the Street Fighter Alpha series. She's confronted M Bison multiple times. Moreover, her soul power and M Bison's psycho power come from the same source, making the two forever intertwined.
There's something so sleek and distinguished about Rose. Maybe it's her killer fashion sense? Or the way she wags her finger after a match? Maybe it's how her soul power flows so effortlessly from her scarf? We're not entirely sure, but we stan.
We're not the only ones who look up to Rose. Various characters call her obasan (Japanese for "aunt"). Indeed, we agree. She's the cool aunt anyone would want! Considering how many look up to Rose, including her apprentice, Menat, we can add the best female mentor in Street Fighter to Rose's many accolades.
