You can either watch the video below, or continue reading after. Your choice.

A-Tier

#18. Lucia – There’s some 70s police chase music mixed in with some Final Fight 3 verses in this peppy New York cop waifu’s theme.

#17.Gill – SF5’s rendition of his SFIII Nile theme works here. Chillax yet pulse-pounding at the same time.

#16. Alex – Good rendition of his NYC theme in SFIII. The original is still better though; it’s not much of an improvement.

#15. Rashid – The chorus saves it from being a B-lister and relegated as a typical electronica fighting game track. The build-up here is totally worth it.

#14. Birdie – Straight outta a Sonic game. And all the better too.

#13. Zeku – Jazzy & funky; just like how a Capcom ninja’s theme should be. Note the Strider start theme injected midway in the track.

#12. M.Bison (Dictator) – Infernal techno with Skrillex influences. Very menacing and fitting as a final hurrah for the dictator.

#11. Kolin – Creepy yet angelic at the same time, this semi-chill fighting game tune is like creeping icy death.

#10. G – Lo-fi dramatic music with some smooth jazz going on via muted trumpets.

#9. Ryu – the iconic theme gets some acoustic guitar-strumming and licks. It totally adds to the pathos and intensity of this world warrior’s anthem.

#8. Balrog (Boxer) – This stands side-by-side with his original Street Fighter 2 theme. This track is a sinister and dramatic rendition that works with this character’s “redemption arc”. I especially dig the choir at the chorus of the theme.

#7. F.A.N.G. – Crappy character to use, awesome bossa nova theme.

#6. Zangief – The Red Cyclone’s iconic theme gets a slow brass anthem that does him proud. Loving those Zac Zinger jazz brass and horns.

S-Tier

#5. Urien – How to make an already menacing SFIII theme better? Just add orchestra, war drums, and badass boss vibes.

#4. Vega (Claw) – Spanish guitars and sexy violins make this iconic theme all the more fitting for the narcissistic ninja psychopath.

#3. Ibuki – The best version of Ibuki’s SFIII theme Slow Moon. Just up the tempo and add in inventive acoustic licks.

#2. Guile – The iconic Guile theme gets a snazzy electric guitar makeover with some new chords here and there.

#1. Karin Kanzuki – Four seasons and a ton of character and stage tunes later, the ojou laugh mistress’ theme still beats everything here. All hail the queen of SF5’s character music because it’s jazzy, peppy, energetic, and retains the good bits of her monotonous Alpha theme.

I honestly don’t mind getting my ass kicked by godlike Karin players because I get to hear the theme while playing.

For a visual reference, here’s the pictured tier list from Tiermaker.