Top 20 Greatest WWE Wrestlers of All Time

This former member of The Shield is nothing if not versatile. Seth Rollins’ offense balances impressive high flying acumen with a believable toughness in the ring. This varied ring knowledge has benefitted Rollins as a heel and face, although if we’re being honest? We love to hate the guy. It speaks to one Colby Daniel Lopez’s ability to get real heel heat, despite displaying every notable talent in the ring. Seth Rollins’ ever-evolving character work is also great, as evidenced by his current “Freakin’” persona as a weirded out drip-fashion plate.

Mrs. Foley’s baby boy has transcended generations to enjoy a place as one of the best to ever do it. We admit that we’re particularly partial to Foley’s “Cactus Jack” persona that he cultivated during the late ‘80s, and into the ‘90s. It was here where the man’s reputation as a hardcore wrestling legend was secured, but wait - Mick Foley wasn’t finished. He also took two of the deadliest bumps ever seen in the business, and was able to consistently reinvent his pro wrestling persona. Mankind, Cactus Jack, Dude Love…take your pick. They’re all faces of Foley: a wrestling icon that, in giving his all, became a legend.

It was one of the loudest pops in WWE history. That 2002 return from injury for Hunter Hearst Helmsley on “Monday Night Raw.” Not too shabby for a wrestler who predominantly played heel, yet whose dedication to the business was respected by just about everyone. It’s true that The Cerebral Assassin did primarily work his best magic within an antagonistic head space. Triple H was able to be both physically intimidating and mentally dominant; a master manipulator and heel strategist. He may currently lead behind the scenes, but many fans will never forget how Triple H ruled the locker room back in the day.

The prodigal son returned to the WWE in 2023, in a move that you either saw coming a mile away, or never guessed in a million years. His feud with Drew McIntye was particularly spectacular, proving that Punk could indeed still roll with the big boys. His promo skills, meanwhile, are as sharp as ever, and Punk has also largely retained his rabidly loyal fan base. What can we say? He’s certainly Hall of Fame material, and will probably always be tethered to those moments when professional wrestling stops feeling scripted…and starts feeling real.

Sometimes, you need to bet on yourself in order to prove your worth to others. Cody Rhodes made history when he departed the comparative safety of a WWE paycheck to co-found AEW in 2019. He made himself a mega-star in the process, proving that this grandson of a plumber could make it as a main event singles star. He returned to the WWE a conquering hero, somebody who could represent the company while also proving himself in the ring, day in and day out. He also plays a proper babyface, with just enough throwback nostalgia to connect wrestling’s past to its future.

There’s no telling when “The Viper,” Randy Orton, is going to strike. He may be winding down his career somewhat in the modern day, but this generational talent has certainly done his father and grandfather proud. There’s no shadow whatsoever to block out Randy Orton’s talent as a WWE superstar. He looks great, works well in the ring, can cut promos and possesses one of the finest finishers in the business. Randy Orton is another wrestler who tends to work best as a heel, but we’d be lying if we didn’t cop to being fond of his RK-Bro partnership with Matt Riddle. He’s like the ultimate “create-a-wrestler” in a video game with maxed out stats. In other words: the real deal.

Professional wrestling isn’t always a world of legitimate tough guys, but “Rowdy” Roddy Piper just has to be one of the coolest outliers. He helped redefine the prototypically unhinged heel with a charisma that was equally undeniable. Piper could be loathed or loved, but he always delivered in the ring with a rough ‘n tumble style. Hot Rod’s innate toughness also translated into the world of movies, with flicks like “They Live” and “Hell Comes to Frogtown” serving as great examples of Piper’s versatility as an entertainer. “Rowdy” Roddy Piper may have dominated the “Rock and Wrestling” era of the 1980s, but his legacy within the industry will live on forever.

Some professional wrestlers are keen to ride a single gimmick throughout their whole career. Then, there’s GOATs like Chris Jericho, that have consistently reinvented themselves over the years, often to wondrous effect. It’s not just gimmicks or clothing that’s changed with Jericho, however, but often his move set, as well. This legend has incorporated everything from strikes and submission holds to inventive high flying offense over the years. Chris Jericho has remained relevant through it all, however, from his WWE tenure to his current stint in AEW. Here’s hoping that The Ayatollah of Rock and Rollah will consider sundowning that career back home in the big W.

Sure, it may have taken a while, but The Roman Reigns Experiment is officially complete. Fans soundly trounced the babyface version of this former Shield enforcer back during the 2010s. Yet, all it took was a vicious heel turn and one EPIC run as Head of the Table to turn that all around. Now, this Original Tribal Chief is cheered on his own merit, while also existing as a solid gold pro wrestling attraction. Roman Reigns’ wrestling talent was never in question, but that heel run allowed for a character to emerge, and for captivating storytelling to take hold. And today? Well, Roman Reigns is basically untouchable, and we acknowledge him.

It’s almost criminal how quickly this Olympic champion took to professional wrestling. Kurt Angle’s natural athleticism was certainly working in his favor back when he debuted in the WWE in 1998. We all know that physicality is only part of the formula for pro wrestling success. You also need to entertain, and Kurt Angle learned how to do that in shockingly quick fashion. As a result, he was pretty much perfect: a physically threatening ringer that could play heel or face with convincing ease. Angle was funny when he needed to be funny, and absolutely vicious, seemingly out of nowhere. Oh, and he definitely did NOT “suck.”

The "Macho Man's" intense promos were one-of-a-kind, and his matches with the likes of Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat the stuff of pro wrestling legend. Savage shined during an era of giant performers and slow, lumbering matches, bringing to WWE his accelerated work rate, infectious charisma and a character which could work gangbusters as both a babyface and a heel. The "Macho Man" was truly one of the greats.

Sure, "Big Match John" has been accused of burying up-and-coming young talent numerous times over the course of his illustrious career, but that doesn't take anything away from the natural magnetic energy of Cena as a performer. John's early career signified the dawn of WWE's "Ruthless Aggression" era during the early and mid-2000s, where Cena earned his stripes as a promising rookie saddled with an awkward but fun gimmick. As the rapping "Doctor of Thuganomics," Cena put on good matches while honing his craft, working up the ranks to eventually become the WWE's most recognized star. Today, he's used that star power for good, doing charity work for the Make a Wish Foundation, while remaining a future WWE Hall of Famer.

8: Daniel Bryan

Whether you know him as Bryan Danielson or The American Dragon, there's no denying that Daniel Bryan made his initial mark within the pro wrestling indie circuit. Bryan was already an underground star before jumping to WWE, but it wasn't a foregone conclusion that he would enjoy the same success in the big leagues. It took years of poor booking and forcing backstage hands for Bryan to emerge as one of the company's biggest stars, thanks mainly to their desire to keep him down in the mid-card. The "Yes Movement" couldn't be stopped, however, and Daniel Bryan has since managed to overcome injury and destiny to become a multi-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

What more can we say about "Latino Heat" himself, Eddie Guerrero? The much-missed superstar has proven to be an influence upon countless performers in the years since his passing, with young talent around the world studying Guerrero's incredible career. He came from a wrestling family, and cut his teeth performing in Mexico, as well as with ECW and World Championship Wrestling. Eddie was already a star from that promotion's cruiserweight division, and he managed to use this momentum into a transition with friends Dean Malenko, Perry Saturn and Chris Benoit over to WWE. Furthermore, Guerrero was able to overcome personal demons with a triumphant WWE Championship win over Brock Lesnar at No Way Out 2004, cementing his legacy in front of the entire world.

There are many wrestling fans out there who will argue that Ric Flair is THE greatest of all time...and they're not wrong. It should be said, however, that Flair didn't NEED the WWE to make him a star, because he was already stylin' and profilin' in the AWA and NWA long before he made his WWE debut in 1991. That doesn't mean that Flair didn't have some amazing matches during his time in the company, however, such as the time he won the 1992 Royal Rumble after debuting at number three, or his association with the Evolution stable. Plus, his iconic "retirement" match with Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XXIV in 2008 was a true classic; a "must see" for anyone interested in the pathos of pro wrestling as a legitimate art form.

Out of all the wrestlers on this list, there's just one who truly seems to personify WWE as a brand. Mark Calaway, a.k.a. The Undertaker, has managed to reinvent himself numerous times, while remaining a homegrown WWE stalwart and a locker room leader. The Undertaker has evolved from a mystical, monster heel into a conquering dark babyface, from a demonic cult leader to a badass biker, all the while capturing the imaginations of the WWE Universe for generations. The Dead Man has delivered countless classics with the likes of Triple H, Shawn Michaels and Mankind, the latter of which made world headlines after 'Taker infamously tossed him off a cage during Hell in a Cell '98. Often imitated, but never duplicated, there will only be one Undertaker.

The "Excellence of Execution" had wrestling in his blood, with the Hart Family siring a multi-generational brood of professionals and performers in the industry. His quick and technical style helped define the WWE's "New Generation" era, where the big and burly performers of old were being replaced by a younger and more fast paced breed of performer. The "Hit Man" always delivered the goods, whether as a tag team with brother-in-law Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, to his singles success as both Intercontinental and WWE Heavyweight Champion. Body slams and clotheslines may have defined the business in the 1980s, but Bret Hart helped mark professional wrestling as a technical exercise with real athleticism and charisma.

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is an international name today, but it was with WWE where the former Rocky Maivia honed all of the talents which would make him a certifiable superstar. The Rock made an art form out of the pro wrestling promo, where a performer delivers a monologue to further the storyline of their character. Johnson could talk and ad lib with the best of them, and this enabled his character to mature from a generic babyface to The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment. Was Rocky a great technical wrestler? No, but he delivered where and when it counted, and transcended his industry to become a worldwide icon.

Just as The Rock was a genius at delivering promos, so too was Michael Shawn Hickenbottom, a.k.a. Shawn Michaels, adept at another one of the pro wrestling basics: selling. The term basically just means to "sell" your opponent's offense, in order to achieve the proper level of drama and physicality for the match. Shawn Michaels could sell a car with no wheels to your local auto dealership without batting an eye, so innate was his skill as a performer. Sure, Shawn's reputation as a backstage politician is legendary, but no one's perfect, and the man has delivered so many five star matches over the years, that it's easy to forget any of the negatives. "The Heartbreak Kid" is a true WWE legend.

He was, for many, the performer who personified WWE's lucrative "Attitude Era," a period where the business was as violent, crude and adult-oriented as television would allow. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin had audiences eating from the palm of his hand from the moment where that iconic, shattering glass sound hit, and his music filled the arena. Austin was an accomplished and believable badass on the mic, and an underrated performer in the ring, selling his opponents' offense while delivering his classic "Stone Cold Stunner" finisher to pop crowds around the world. If there's any one WWE performer who can be labeled as "genre defining," it just might be "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.


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