The Vampire Diaries Characters Ranked

There are only 50 characters ranked, I know there are a lot more

I might anger a few fans, we'll see...

Does contain spoilers*

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50. Julian

If the vampire diaries was attempting to make the most bland and awful villain? They succeeded. Julian was not only a horrific person, let's not forget kicking Valerie's unborn child to death, he was just plain boring. Julian didn't care about anyone, not even 'the love of his life', all he did was use people for protection.

He brought down season seven for sure, there are so many better bad guys in this show and I will get into those eventually.

49. Penny Ares

If you look up the word 'forgettable' in the dictionary, a picture of Penny will appear underneath. I'm still not really sure why they brought her into the show, but she is a character I always forget about, she wasn't a bad person at all, she was kind and she loved Matt but we only saw that for a few episodes, she just didn't leave a lasting impression.

48. Valerie Tulle

I almost feel bad for this one.. but not entirely. Valerie Tulle is the main reason that season 7 is my least favourite season, and that's heartbreaking. To start off with, she came in between my most beloved couple, Steroline, which is a unforgivable. I found her character pointless, at least the other heretics brought drama and wit with them but Valerie just sat there, waiting for Stefan. However in no way did she deserve what Julian did to her, that was monstrous and my sympathies did go to her.

47. Finn Mikaelson

I think we can all agree that Finn was slightly too obsessed with his mother, I mean he was willing to sacrifice himself and all of his siblings just to please her, sounds like cult behavior to be honest. He was the most boring of his siblings, I understand why he was there but at the same time he brought nothing to the table. I really want to say something positive about him but I just cant find the words.

46. Esther Mikaelson

Esther Mikaelson wasn't a bad character but she definitely knew how to take things too far.. like trying to sacrifice her children. She also turned Alaric into a super Original vampire which was extreme to say the least. She had a bit of complexity going on, she loved her children but I'm not sure she showed them that.

45. Annabelle Zhu

This might be an unpopular one, but I found Anna extremely annoying, I'm not even sure I can pinpoint what it is about her that annoys me so much, she just bugs me. I have more sympathy with her later on though, she just wanted to be reunited with her mother, and she didn't deserve her untimely end.

44. April Young

April was boring and super naive. She trusted Rebekah without any knowledge of who she really was, and there were a million red flags there. I get why they brought her character into the show, she tied in with the farm explosion, being the pastors daughter, and the producers wanted a new girl to feature, but she was just unmemorable.

43. Rayna Cruz

I actually felt pity for Rayna, she didn't ask to be a huntress, her father brought her up to be that way as he was in the brotherhood of the five, and she had to follow in his footsteps. It must have been horrific to have all those images in her head telling her who to kill, not being able to have a day off either, constantly having to run after vampires. That being said I don't believe that she brought much to the show, she was only really in half of season 7.

42. Mikael

Mikael was quite a good villain for saying he was only in 5 episodes of The Vampire Diaries, he definitely made a lasting impression. However, he was a terrible person in general, he hated and mistreated Klaus just because he wasn't his own flesh and blood. At the beginning of season three, Mikael was described as ' A vampire that hunts other vampires' which sounded really interesting. But when we finally get to see him, we understand that he is only really after killing his vampire children, and maybe snacking on a few. Not as scary as he was made out originally.

41. Isobel Flemming

Isobel was quite a cold character, she only thought of herself, in the beginning that is. We find out that all she really wants to do is keep her daughter, Elena, safe. I think that Isobel became a pawn in other peoples games, especially Klaus's, which sadly ended in her death. Isobel wasn't a bad person, but she was a complicated one.

40. Beau

There isn't much to say about Beau, because he was mute the entire show. From what you could see, he seemed really sweet and loyal, always there for his family, even helping save Alaric's babies. It's just a shame we didn't get to know him as well as the other heretics.

39. Wes Maxfield

Dr Wes Maxfield was a good villain for sure, he definitely aided in the success of season five. Here is what I believe made him such an interestingly chaotic character. For starters, he wanted to eradicate the entire vampire species, many people did, but Wes actually tortured vampires or 'experimented' on as he would say. He forced Jesse to become a vampire for his own research. Wes definitely had an interesting story line that worked well with the plot of Elena and Caroline's rocky start to college, it all tied in perfectly.

38. Lilllian Salvatore

Lily Salvatore is middle ground, I don't hate her, and I don't like her either. Lily was a bit clueless, to Kai, who she let manipulate her, and she was blind to Julian and his horror show antics. She did however go through a lot with her first husband, who beat her, Damon and Stefan, and I'm sympathetic towards that situation. What we saw quite a bit with Lily was that when things didn't go her way, she retaliated, and this made her deadly. It was obvious she loved her sons, but it was too little too late, I do however think that in her final moments she redeemed herself.

37. Meredith Fell

Meredith was hands down one of the most helpful characters in season three, she was always helping people out, especially the vampires. She could handle a lot, she took on the task of being a doctor and trying to save every supernatural being. We all love a strong female. Let's not forget that she was there for Alaric during his whole vampire hunter alter ego thing, even after he tried to kill her.

36. Emily Bennett

Emily was a really loyal character, she never compromised her morals, she was always good over evil. She even resurrected Jeremy just to help her ancestor Bonnie. It's a shame we didn't get to see more of Emily, and discover who she was other than a powerful witch.

35. Hayley Marshall

Hayley is one of my favourites in The Originals, not as much in The Vampire Diaries, but her pregnancy changes her character and that is something we don't get to see in The Vampire Diaries. She made some pretty insane decisions, like how she was willing to sacrifice 12 hybrids just to gain information on her family, and there was no guaranteed knowledge that they were even alive. So her morality scale wobbles here and there. Hayley was a rather hostile character in the beginning but like I said before, motherhood changed her.

34. John Gilbert

I will admit I despised John when he first arrived, he still isn't someone that I love, but hes an intricate character. Hes rude and obnoxious which is his downfall, not to mention his obsessive hatred for vampires. But that was only a small part of John Gilbert, he was also a caring father. He loved Elena and that was made clear when he sacrificed himself for her, so that she could be brought back to life.

33. Mary Louise

Out of Mary Louise and Nora, I think its obvious who was the least interesting of the pair. Mary Lou was so insecure that I would either feel bad for her or I would be really irritated. She only cared about Nora, she was so self involved that no one else mattered. Although her love for Nora I did find to be rather admirable, they had a really powerful bond. I do however hugely blame Lily's death on Mary Louise, if she hadn't have been so blind to Julian, she would've helped to kill him, and everything would have worked out.

32. Qetsiyah

Who doesn't love a spiteful queen? The other side is one of my favourite Vampire Diaries plots, and for that I have to commend the creator of it. Qetsiyah literally produced a whole supernatural purgatory just so her cheating ex would suffer, either rotting in a tomb or by taking the cure and being stuck on the other side, I loved her bitterness. To me she makes quite the lasting impression, for saying she was only in 4 episodes. I think she was a really good addition to season five.

31. Pearl Zhu

Pearl was the peacekeeper of the tomb vampires, she never wanted revenge, all she ever wanted was a peaceful community between the vampires and the humans. She wanted a world that was safe for her and her daughter (Anna) to be able to live in. Pearl was a caring and nurturing woman and it was a sad thing to see her character die.

30. Aaron Whitmore

I liked Aaron, he wasn't the most fascinating character in the show but he was a kind person. He was a good friend to Elena whilst she was adjusting to college and dealing with everything that comes with vampires (unknown to Aaron at the beginning). He was just an unlucky guy being from the Whitmore family, and for crossing paths with an emotional, recently dumped Damon.

29. Carol Lockwood

I don't think Carol was anybodies favourite character but I do think she tried her best. I did dislike her in the beginning of the show but she did evolve into a more likable person. She became more caring towards Tyler and his needs, and she really showed how much she loved him, and wanted to protect him. Carol definitely did not deserve to die the way she did, it was a sad loss.

28. Nadia Petrova

I admired Nadia's love for Katherine, the mother she had not even met, it was sweet to see how much she wanted to be reunited with her birth parent. I liked her charisma, it was engaging. But putting Katherine inside Elena's body as a passenger was really irritating so I wasn't too sad to see her character get bitten and die, although her death was very touching when Katherine did come to say goodbye.

27. Lucas Parker

Luke was a good addition to the show alongside his twin Liv, the problem was that he was shadowed by his sister. I thought Luke was kind, and funny, he even sacrificed himself by merging with Kai, to save Liv. He cared so much, it was just a shame his character was overlooked.

26. Silas

Silas is an important character, without him none of the events in The Vampire Diaries would have happened, since he was the original immortal being. Silas was pure evil which did make a change from previous or future villains who did have redeemable qualities, I think that Silas was a fun inclusion to the show.

25. Mason Lockwood

Mason probably deserved better than what he got in the show, including Damon ripping out his heart. He had such charm and charisma that it was easy to look past him working with Katherine. All Mason ever wanted to do was protect and help Tyler, he proved this alive and in death, when he came back as a spirit and didn't get revenge on Damon, he just wanted to help his nephew and redeem himself.

24. Vicki Donovan

Vicki is likely to be in the top 5 most complicated characters on the show. She had her demons, she was extremely messed up and I really sympathised with her. Becoming a vampire (Damon's fault) only made her feel and behave worse, she wouldn't have made it as a vampire I don't think, her emotional state would be heightened and she would have never been able to cope. It was so sad when she died, it was the first moment on the show when you knew any character could be next to go.

23. Kol Mikaelson

Kol was the misfit of the Mikaelson clan, I liked him but I didn't adore him until I watched The Originals. I think Kol is a lovable, funny guy. He could be quite intimidating when he wanted to be, probably second to Klaus in that department. He was an unpredictable, violent rascal to be honest. And he has a soft side, deep, deep down, you just have to push through the malevolence.

22. Tyler Lockwood

I don't like Tyler that much if i'm being honest. He was a complete jerk in the beginning, that did lessen when he became a werewolf, his morals changed for the better. I did think he was funny sometimes, and cared about his friends. But he put Caroline through so much that I physically can't understand people that liked them together. He loved her, that was clear, but he did not deserve her and did not try hard enough for her. I did however admire the way he stood up to Damon in his final moments, and showed no fear towards his impending death.

21. Elijah Mikaelson

It took me a few times re watching to like Elijah, I thought he was a bit boring at the start. It was afterwards I realised how kind and compassionate he was. There was no one who believed in family more than Elijah, he would do anything for his siblings. And he still brought action to the show, whether it was ripping out hearts or cleaning up after Klaus's messes, still remaining calm and collected at the same time.

20. Nora Hildegard

Nora was the most fun and interesting heretic, she definitely had the most personality. I liked her pluckiness, and how cruel she could be, she made for a perfect mean girl. Unlike Mary Louise, she became more compassionate towards other people, she changed her morals and was therefore more likable.

19. Rebekah Mikaelson

I didn't like Rebekah at first but she grew on me. Underneath all that hostility is a girl who wants a normal life and is a softy at heart. Life threw all sorts at Rebekah and she always fought through it, she made it out on the other side, maybe damaged but stronger. She was petty at times (especially with Elena), and acted like a brat but she changed for the better later on in the show, and her growth continues into The Originals. She helped her family in difficult times, always being there for them, even when they might not have been for her. It's hard to say a bad word about her.

18. Olivia Parker

Liv was the more memorable twin, with the most personality. She was introduced in season five and made a great addition, she was funny, caring and was brilliantly sarcastic. She loved and cared for her brother Luke more than anyone, it was sweet. Liv was also a really powerful witch, she was strong, let's not forget the time she pretty much used up all of her power to bring back everyone she could from the other side, it almost killed her. And the time she sacrificed herself so that Tyler could live, i'm sure that broke every viewers heart. I think her character deserves more praise, and more love.

17. Sheila Bennett

I think we all wished we had a Grams in our lives. She was so kind and caring, the way she nurtured Bonnie was really beautiful, Sheila was always there for her granddaughter, no matter what kind of trouble she was in.

She was strong and courageous, one of the most powerful witches that lived, I think its obvious she passed these traits down to Bonnie. I expect that everyone has the same reaction to Sheila's passing, its one of the most soul crushing scenes in the show.

16. Jeremy Gilbert

Jeremy always seemed to be going through something in the show, whether it was drugs, death or depression, it was heartbreaking to see him suffer so much in his young life.

Jeremy went on a long journey to find himself, he was always lost and couldn't find his place in the world, i'm sure a lot of people can relate to this, myself included. He was a good brother (cousin) to Elena, he would do anything for her and I loved their relationship. Not to mention he was a good friend, boyfriend and overall, a good person.

15. Matt Donovan

I'll be honest, its shocking at all that Matt survived, he was the only human in the group, it's a miracle. I always loved Matt, I thought he was the sweetest guy in the show. He suffered just as much as the other characters, losing Vicki was so tough on him, but it never stopped him from moving on and succeeding in life. However, towards season 7, when Matt becomes a police officer, his character declined, he became more annoying which was really disappointing. But it never stopped him from caring, he still came through for his friends.

14. Niklaus Mikaelson

Let's welcome the most terrifying and powerful villain to the ranks. Klaus was the first villain to really shake things up to an extreme level in the show. He made it even more exciting, everything became unpredictable, and had a new edge to it that was amazingly entertaining. Underneath all the anger and homicidal tendencies, was a genuine guy who just wanted his family to love him, he had a big heart, you just have to do some searching and discover his true self.

13. Jenna Sommers

Jenna really stepped up, even at a young age she coped well and did the best that she could to bring up two teenagers, one of them being a delinquent mess (aka Jeremy). She was a really fun character, full of humour and brightness, one of the most caring people on the show. Jenna did however have awful taste in men, she was a bit naive in that department but I think that's something most people might go through at some point. Her death was a tragedy, a scene that is so raw and emotional, it's hard to not tear up.

12. Malachai Parker

Kai is my favourite villain, he's one of the reasons season six is my most beloved season in the show. He is so charismatic and humorous that it's damn near impossible to hate him, he provided such amazing entertainment that you just can't stop watching. I do have to state the obvious about why he was a villain though, he murdered most of his siblings, not great, then got banished to a prison world for his heinous acts of crime. His death was well deserved, but nonetheless, I was still sad to see him go.

11. Lexi Branson

Lexi made the biggest impression out of all of the guest appearances. She was only in 10 episodes and we all remember her so well. She knew how to have fun, she could control her blood lust. This is what made her such a good friend to Stefan, she helped him with his ripper urges, and was always there for him. Plus, she knew Stefan and Caroline would be perfect together even before he knew so, she's also a genius.

10. Lorenzo St John

Even when Enzo was introduced in season five, I never thought of him as a villain, he was complicated sure, but he wasn't evil. Enzo had a sense of humour that I loved, it was dry and witty, always sharp. What I admired most about him was that he was a survivor, he went through so much in his life, being abandoned by his best friend, and before that, by the woman who turned him. When he started dating Bonnie, that's when you see a major change in him, he cared more about what happens to people, especially her, who he loved more than anyone. And his death? one of the most heartbreaking things I've seen to date.

9. Josette Laughlin

Another amazing addition to season six, Jo. She was kind, compassionate, caring, smart, I could keep going.. (funny too). She was the best thing that ever happened to Ric, it was helpful that she already knew about the supernatural and could be involved with those sorts of problems immediately. It was just a shame that her twin was Kai and that she was doomed from the beginning, as we eventually saw in the saddest event of the season.

8. Bonnie Bennett

Bonnie had some of the most tragic occurrences happen to her. She had to sacrifice herself over and over to save the ones she loved, she never really got a break. Something bad was always happening to her, losing her magic, being trapped in the past, and lets not forget actually dying. She deserved better as a character, more happiness in her life. Not to state the obvious but Bonnie was so kind, loving and strong.

7. Elena Gilbert

Even if you don't like Elena, she is what made the show what it was, she was the centre of the show, what kept it in orbit. Elena was always helping people, she saw the best in others. After all she went through and all she lost, I'm not sure how she kept going, but she did. It made her stronger. Even though she preferred being a human to a vampire, I thought her vampire self was slightly more interesting, she began to push back and became even more fierce than what she already was.

6. Alaric Saltzman

Alaric was one of the best additions that the show ever made. I couldn't imagine The vampire Diaries without him. Lets get the obvious out of the way first, his love life was crippling to watch, it seemed he could never escape death in that department. What made that so sad was because of what a catch he was. Ric was so smart, so captivating, he made every scene better, never failing to be funny, he was a very witty character in general.

5. Katherine Pierce (Katerina Petrova)

Sorry Elena, but I do prefer your evil doppelgänger. Katherine was a survivor. she had to be after all she went through. Being disowned by her family for having a baby out of wedlock, having to be on the run for 500 years, so not to be sacrificed by Klaus, and never loved by the one she loved most. It's difficult not to become attached to her, once you understand her circumstances. She was so glamorous, I admire her flair, how she would be in heels and still manage to cause all sorts of mayhem, whether that be running from people after her, or Katherine just being Katherine and killing the enemy.

4. Elizabeth Forbes

Sheriff Forbes was the beating heart of Mystic Falls. She was willing to do anything to protect the town, especially her daughter. Her character development was strong, she went from hating vampires, to accepting her daughter as one, and even becoming best friends with Damon. Liz always made me laugh, I thought she was so funny, especially scenes with Damon in. But what I loved most about her, was her persistence to do the right thing, to care for the ones she held close, and being a loving mother. Lets be honest she was the best Vampire Diaries parent. I think her death is actually the one I will always find to be the saddest, to quote her "I have to admit there is a certain amount of peace knowing that I'll be one of the only people in Mystic Falls to die an ordinary death. I'm exceptionally ordinary. I'm okay with that." There is something so sad about her dying of cancer, it wasn't anything supernatural, it was just a cruel disease that killed her, nothing more.

3. Damon Salvatore

Damon is perhaps the most complex character of all. With everything bad that he has done, we can't help but love him. It's true that Elena is what made him a better person, but deep down he always wanted that, he wanted to do better. Damon hated himself for doing bad things but it was just inevitable. His humour is what I love the most, he's so funny, always has the perfect comment lined up, you can always rely on Damon Salvatore to make you laugh.

2. Stefan Salvatore

Stefan really set the bar high for men out there. He was the most reliable, compassionate guy, people could always count on him. There are two sides to Stefan though, his serious, loving side and his evil ripper, care free side. Sometimes you get whiplash from him, but usually he will be headstrong and always there to help. I just adore him.

1. Caroline Forbes

Caroline Forbes, aka the love of my life. I don't even know where to start, there is just too much to talk about. She had the most impressive character development in the show. She went from being shallow and self involved to this strong, powerful woman. Being a vampire really changed her for the better. Caroline was the glue that held the show together, especially when Elena was in a sleeping spell. She brought such charm and charisma that it really is impossible not to love her. Caroline Forbes is what made season six my absolute favourite, her going off the rails after her mother died, and turning off her humanity was the most entertaining thing to watch. I can't talk about Caroline without talking about Steroline too, the couple I adore the most. Once Elena and Stefan split, Caroline became his rock, she was always there for him, and eventually she fell in love with Stefan, and some time down the road he fell for her. They became the most perfect power couple to date.