Are you sure you’re carrying the best shotgun in the game?

Don’t you fret my friend, even if you don’t know your way around shotguns. I’ll make sure by the end of this article you know what to pick.

Fortnite has been changing every season without fail. This means every season we get a bunch of new weapons and some old ones get unvaulted. This frequent change of guns can leave you a bit confused and lost. Especially when it comes to guns like shotguns, which are vital for each fight and ultimately the victory royale.

Players may underestimate how crucial shotguns are to winning in Fortnite. A player has a mere 200hp at max. Having a gun that can deal more than half that damage in one shot sounds terrifying, doesn’t it?

Hence I picked out the top best shotguns that you should have in your inventory. So that the next time you pull up to an opponent, they’re already shaken by your weapon choice. The weapons I’ll list below will be of one rarity (gold), to get the most accurate comparison.

5. Prime Shotgun

Gun display

See Prime Shotgun in action

The prime shotgun is a semi-auto shotgun that’s only viable at shorter ranges. This cool-looking gun has a futuristic appearance and sounds even cooler than it looks. It has a bit of a wider spread and this is why it’s inconsistent with damage.

After firing the first shot, the headshot multiplier of the gun goes up to 1.65x from 1.5x and it deals 50% more damage. It has a small chamber size of 4 and reloads one bullet per time. Try to upgrade this shotgun if it’s the only one you find because the inconsistent damage can be a pain.

Prime shotgun review - why it’s good:

• High headshot multiplier: The already good headshot multiplier becomes better after firing the first shot.
• Low recoil: You can still keep your aim on the enemy since the recoil is very minimal.
• Damage: The body shots and headshots if connected hit for decent damage.

Prime Shotgun stats:

• Damage: 92
• Fire Rate: 1.05
• DPS: 96
• Magazine Size: 4
• Reload Time: 4.5s

4. Auto Shotgun

Gun display

See Auto Shotgun in action

The Auto Shotgun is a fast shooter with damage that’s not too shabby. The mid-tier damage is compensated by the fast fire rate of this gun. To put it into perspective, if you and your enemy are at face level, this gun will shred and come out on top every time. As the other person shoots you and waits 2 seconds to get another shot in, you’d have already shot 3 times and finished the job.

This is what this shotty is capable of. I’d tell you to jump into boxes if you have the auto shotgun but do so at your own risk. Don’t blame me if you get boxed like a fish in the process.

Auto shotgun review - why it’s good:

• Fast fire rate: The shotgun fires very fast in comparison to other shotguns.
• Reload: This shotgun reloads two pellets together so you have two quick shots at every reload.
• High DPS: Auto shotgun has a very good DPS due to a fast fire rate matched with decent damage.
• Tight spread: The bullet spread is tight which makes it better for closer range.
• Magazine size: This gun can hold a good amount of bullets.

Auto Shotgun stats:

• Damage: 103.2
• Fire-Rate: 1.5
• DPS: 154.8         
• Magazine Size: 8
• Reload Time: 5.13s

3. Ranger Shotgun

Gun display

See Ranger Shotgun in action

The long-snouted Ranger Shotgun is a one-shot firing, long-range shotty with good damage. This shotgun has an insanely tight spread which allows you to deal high damage on longer ranges too. The bullet spread is very constricted in the little reticle this gun provides.

This weapon sounds too OP right? Well, the only downside to this shotty is that it has only one bullet in the chamber. Even though it has a fast reload time, you still need to reload after every shot. So you need to make sure you hit your shot. Because if you do, the fight is yours.

Ranger shotgun review - why it’s good:

• High body damage: This shotgun deals insanely high damage for even body shots.
• Tight spread: Ranger shotgun has a very tight spread which means it deals consistent damage even on longer ranges.
• Range: This shotgun can deal great damage even when the enemy is at medium range.
• Fast reload: The gun reloads fairly very fast.

Ranger Shotgun stats:

• Damage: 134.1
• Fire rate: 3
• DPS: 402.3
• Magazine size: 1
• Reload time: 1.35s

2. Lever Action Shotgun

Gun display

See Lever Action Shotgun in action

Lever action shotgun is a close-range shotgun that resembles the OG pump in the way it shoots. Lever action has a mid-tier spread which can be brought closer by ADS. This gun hits for good damage and shoots in a pump-like manner. This shotty has a very cool mid-shots animation.

It’s best to run alongside an SMG or an AR to follow up in very close-up fights. A high-damage headshot paired up with an SMG to clean up is one of the most deadly combos in this game.

Ranger shotgun review - why it’s good:

• High damage: This gun hits hard when you connect your shots and will surely turn the fight in your favor with one shot.
• Good magazine size: This shotgun has 6 shots in the chamber.
• Decent spread: The spread isn’t spaced far apart.

Lever Action Shotgun stats:

• Damage: 114.3
• Fire Rate: 0.95
• DPS: 108.6
• Magazine Size: 6
• Reload Time: 5.4s

1. EvoChrome Shotgun

Gun display

See EvoChrome Shotgun in action

This is the newest gun in Fortnite as it was added in the most recent season (4). EvoChrome has a very sick design and looks like it’s carved out of crystals. This shotty has no vertical spread but horizontally the spread is wide apart. The spread gets tighter as you go up the rarity.

Upgrading the rarity of this shotgun is done by dealing damage to players or wildlife. A meter fills up and once you reach the threshold, you can press reload to upgrade your weapon. This is a very OP gun and if you find this shotgun at any stage of the game, stick with it and you’ll have a beast in your hands. This will get stronger with every fight and kill you get.

EvoChrome shotgun review - why it’s good:

• High damage: This shotgun deals very high body damage.
• Fast fire rate: The fire rate on this bad boy is fairly very high.
• High DPS: The DPS on EvoChrome is very high and gets insanely high when the gun is upgraded to mythic.
• Large magazine size: It has 8 bullets in the chamber.

EvoChrome Shotgun stats:

• Damage: 94
• Fire Rate: 1.5
• DPS: 141
• Magazine Size: 8
• Reload Time: 5.1s

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