Best Primary SMGs and Auto Rifles in Destiny 2

There are a lot of different weapon classes that you can use in Destiny 2, such as SMGs and Auto Rifles. SMGs are versatile, compact weapons that are best used at close range. If speed and effectiveness are your strategies, I believe SMGs are the way to go. However, if you prefer to attack from long range, you'll do quite well with an Auto Rifle. Below, I've listed the best Primary SMGs and Auto Rifles you can use in Destiny 2.

Top SMGs, Auto Rifles, and God Rolls in Destiny 2

Best Primary SMGs in Destiny 2

When I talk about Primary SMGs here, I mean SMGs that are good for both PvP and PvE. This is so you don't have to swap your loadout every time for different scenarios.

5. The Immortal

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Rangefinder and Target Lock
  • PvE: Perpetual Motion and Hatchling

The Immortal is a Legendary, Strand SMG with an Aggressive Frame. This means that it has high damage at the cost of higher recoil. This is easily fixed with the proper Rolls, though. You can get The Immortal in the Trials of Osiris by winning seven matches without losing.

4. Osteo Striga

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Hand-Laid Stock and Accurized Rounds
  • PvE: Short-Action Stock and Fluted Barrel

Osteo Striga is an Exotic, Kinetic SMG that poisons and easily takes out low-health targets in bulk. In addition, it has a pretty decent range. To get this SMG, you will need to complete The Witch Queen campaign and unlock the crafting pattern.

3. Shayura's Wrath

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Tunnel Vision and Kill Clip
  • PvE: Perpetual Motion and Adrenaline Junkie

Shayura's Wrath is a Legendary, Void SMG with Precision as its Archetype, making its recoil more stable and predictable. You can unlock Shayura's Wrath by focusing Engrams on Saint-14 in the Trials of Osiris.

Related: How many people play Destiny 2 in 2023?

2. Tarrabah

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Extended Barrel and Hand-Laid Stock
  • PvE: Extended Barrel and Armor-Piercing Rounds

Tarrabah is one of the most powerful SMGs in Destiny 2—some players might even call it meta. The only reason I placed it second on my list is that you need the Forsaken Pack to get it. Otherwise, you might as well swap this entry with number one. Tarrabah is an Exotic, Solar SMG that unleashes the Ravenous Beast and deals continuous damage. With an Extended Barrel, Armor-Piercing Rounds, and a Hand-Laid Stock, this SMG is quite fun to use. You used to be able to get Tarrabah by completing the Crown of Sorrows raid, but you can't do that anymore. Instead, you have to buy it from the Exotic Archive at the Monument to Lost Lights.

1. IKELOS_SMG_v1.0.3

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Perpetual Motion and Rangefinder
  • PvE: Voltshot and Feeding Frenzy

IKELOS_SMG_v1.0.3 is, in my opinion, the best SMG in Destiny 2. Every version of the IKELOS SMG has been some of the best in the game, and v1.0.3 lives up to that. It's a Legendary, Arc SMG with an Aggressive Frame that focuses on high damage. The IKELOS_SMG_v1.0.3 is a weapon that's in the World Loot Pool, which means that you can get it for free whilst playing the game, without any DLCs. However, the caveat is that since the World Loot Pool is so big, it can take forever to get. If you'd rather just craft it, you're going to need five Deepsights to unlock the pattern.

Best Auto Rifles in Destiny 2

Auto Rifles are good weapons for players who like to pick their shots and utilize the range between themselves and their target. The Auto Rifles I'm listing below are good for both PvP and PvE.

5. The Last Breath

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Rangefinder and Dynamic Sway Reduction
  • PvE: Subsistence and Adrenaline Junkie

If you're looking to expand your collection to include the best weapons in a class, The Last Breath is where you should start. It's a Legendary, Kinetic Auto Rifle with high enough stats to have you covered through all kinds of gameplay. To get The Last Breath, you need to complete the second encounter in the Prophecy Dungeon.

5. Scathelocke

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Tunnel Vision and Eye of the Storm
  • PvE: Subsistence and Adrenaline Junkie

Scathelocke is a Legendary, Kinetic Auto Rifle. It's a versatile, well-rounded weapon, so you can use it however you want. No matter what kind of fight you get into, the Scathelocke will have you covered. You can get it by playing the European Dead Zone from Devrim Kay

3. Rufus's Fury

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Polygon Rifling and Target Lock
  • PvE: Reconstruction and Hatchling

Rufus's Fury is a Legendary, Strand Auto Rifle with a Rapid-Fire Frame Archetype that gives you both speed and efficiency when taking targets down. Rufus's Fury, when paired with the appropriate Rolls, is a powerful weapon to use. You can get it by completing the third encounter in the Root of Nightmares.

Related: Destiny 2 – Feeding Frenzy, Explained and Guns List

2. Chroma Rush

• God Rolls:
  • PvP: Moving Target and Kill Clip
  • PvE: Feeding Frenzy and Adrenaline Junkie

As we reach the top of the list, the stats on these weapons just keep getting better. Chroma Rush is a Legendary, Kinetic Auto Rifle that not only serves you damage and stability through your gameplay but also looks good while doing it. With the Rapid-Fire Frame Archetype, it's a weapon that you can rely on to consistently deliver damage whenever you need it to. You can get Chroma Rush in a few different ways: by completing the Override activity, decrypting Umbral Engrams, opening Splicer Reputation packages, or simply by doing Weekly Challenges whenever they are available.

1. Gnawing Hunger

Having tested it myself, Gnawing Hunger is the best Auto Rifle in Destiny 2 by far. It's a Legendary, Void Auto Rifle with the Adaptive Archetype, which is good for both PvP and PvE. With an impressive speed stat, Gnawing Hunger is one of the fastest-firing Auto Rifles in Destiny 2. Your only chance to get it comes from Banshee-44 by ranking up his Engrams, but with Destiny 2, other ways of obtaining weapons will always turn up in the future.

There are a lot of SMGs and Auto Rifles in Destiny 2 you can use; the game has more than 700 weapons you can use in total. Every kind of gameplay has a different kind of weapon you can use, some better than others. The best weapon is always the one you have the most fun playing with!

While we're talking about the best Destiny 2 weapons, be sure to check out the Most Used Weapons in Destiny 2 (August 2023) here on Pro Game Guides.