Tier list, alignment chart or bracket?
Compare · 5 min read
Use a tier list to group items by quality, an alignment chart to place items on two separate qualities at once, and a bracket to force a single winner through head to head rounds.
These three formats get used interchangeably and they should not be. Each answers a different question, and picking the wrong one is why some charts start arguments about the chart rather than the subject.
Quick comparison
| Format | Answers | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Tier list | How good is each item? | 20 to 40 items you can group by quality |
| Alignment chart | Where does each item sit on two scales? | 9 to 16 items with a personality |
| Bracket | Which single one wins? | 8, 16 or 32 items and a definite answer |
Tier lists
One dimension: quality. Everything in a row is being called equal, and the rows go from best to worst. This is the right format when you have a lot of items and the interesting part is which group each one falls into. It is also the fastest to fill in, which is why it is the most common.
Alignment charts
Two dimensions on a three by three grid, borrowed from tabletop role playing games. The classic axes are lawful to chaotic and good to evil, but the format works with any two independent qualities: cheap to expensive against useful to useless, for example.
The catch is that it only holds about nine to sixteen items before the boxes get crowded, and both axes have to be genuinely independent. If your two scales are really the same scale, you have made a tier list with extra steps.
Brackets
A knockout tournament. Items are paired, one advances, and you repeat until one is left. Brackets are the only format that produces a single definite winner, which makes them good for polls and terrible for personal opinions, because the result depends heavily on the draw. A strong item that meets another strong item in round one goes out early.
Which to pick
- Lots of items and no need for a winner: tier list.
- A small set with contrasting personalities: alignment chart.
- You need one answer and you have an audience to vote: bracket.
- The order genuinely matters: none of these, use a numbered list.
You can build the first two here. Start with the tier list maker, or browse the template library for a ready made set. If you are new to the format, start with what is a tier list.