All Warframe damage types, ranked

You can use several different damage types in Warframe, some of which are stronger than others. Each of them has a unique trait to them, making them ideal for different situations.

Every Warframe damage type ranked

Warframe's 55th frame Qorvex. — Know your damage types. Image via Digital Extremes

There are seven standard damage types in Warframe and six combined damage types when you use combinations of the standard ones. That makes 13 damage types in Warframe, which are ideal for multiple situations.

The primary backbone of many Warframe builds are the Impact, Puncture, and Slash physical damage types. The same goes for the four primary elemental types, Cold, Electricity, Heat, and Toxin. When you pair certain combinations together, they will become Blast, Corrosive, Gas, Magnetic, Radiation, and Viral. Your weapon damage comes from the primary damage type of your weapon and then the type of element it uses.

Best physical damage types ranked in Warframe

There are only three physical damages in Warframe, but every weapon has one of these three attached to its stats. These lay the foundation for any build. These are the best physical damage types in Warframe, ranked from best to worst.

Warframe Damage Type	Status Effect	Damage Ranking
Slash	Causes bleed on a target, which can deal True damage to a target, with unlimited stacking.	Slashing is easily the best Warframe damage type because of how much Bleeding can stack, and how effective it is in cutting through enemies.
Impact	Causes a target to stagger, and it increases the health threshold for a Parazon finisher.	Impact is a significantly lower damage type than Slash, but it does have its uses, entirely based on the type of mods you use on your Warframe.
Puncture	Reduces the damage dealt by a target, and increases the chance for a critical hit to land on a target.	Puncture can be exceptionally good for landing Critical Hits against a target, but it’s on the lower ranking of damage types in Warframe because of the usefulness of Slash. However, it’s perfect for building loadouts with high critical chances.

Best elemental damage types ranked in Warframe

There are four Elemental damage types that you can give your weapons in Warframe. These damage types provide an additional status effect to a target. They are superb at causing additional damage to a target, especially if you quickly take down multiple targets, or one exceptionally powerful one. These are the best elemental damage types in Warframe, ranked.

Warframe Damage Type	Status Effect	Damage Ranking
Heat	Deals heat damage as a status effect for several seconds, and strips armor by 50 percent for two seconds, which has unlimited stacks.	Easily one of the best elements you can add to a weapon, especially against more difficult targets with high armor.
Toxin	Deals toxin damage over several seconds, and bypasses shields against a target, with unlimited stacks.	A superb elemental damage type if you’re trying to cut through multiple targets that have shields protecting them.
Electricity	Deals electricity damage over several seconds, and stuns the affected target for three seconds.	A solid element if you need to nail down a target, and deal damage to multiple foes protecting it. Pairs exceptionally well with Gas, and is great in the early game of Warframe.
Cold	The fire rate, attack speed, and movement speed of a target are cut in half for several seconds while cold.	One of the lesser-used elemental types, but it’s a good choice if you need to help influence a particular mod; Cold can work decently well.

Best secondary elemental damage types ranked in Warframe

Adding a second element to a weapon in Warframe causes a Secondary Elemental effect, transforming into something different, and becoming stronger. These are a great way to deal even more damage to a foe, especially if you use the correct combination. There are six unique combinations you can create with your weapons. These are the best Secondary elemental damage types in Warframe, ranked.

Warframe Damage Type	Status Effect	Damage Ranking
Viral	Increases damage done to health by 100 percent per stack. Can have a total of 10 stacks, for +325 percent damage.	One of the most frequently used secondary damage types in Warframe given how effective it is in taking down any type of opponent, regardless of the game mode or playstyle.
Gas	Creates a small area of effect that deals 50 percent base damage of Gas, and stacks up to 10 times.	A strong secondary elemental damage type to use in Warframe, especially if you’re dealing with large groups of foes, and need to deal with crowd control.
Magnetic	Any damage dealt to a foe’s shields increases by 100 percent. Can have a total of 10 stacks, for +325 percent damage.	Whenever you’re dealing with heavy shields, Magnetic is a great way to take them down, especially if you want to prevent a foe from regenerating their shield.
Corrosive	Reduces a foe’s armor by 26 percent for eight seconds, and stacks up to 10 times for a total of 80 percent reduced armor.	When fighting heavier foes, Corrosive is a great way to reduce their armor, although it is a rather plain damage mod that could be swapped out for Heat or Viral.
Radiation	Hits an enemy for 100 percent bonus damage to allies. Also applies 100 percent of damage dealt to allied unique, stacking up to 10 times for 550 percent increased damage against allied units.	Radiation is a good way to deal damage to several targets that are bunched up, but there are other secondary elemental choices that can be used far more effectively, such as Viral or Gas.
Blast	Reduces accuracy by 30 percent for six seconds. Stacks up to 10 times for a total of 75 percent accuracy lost.	Blast is seldom ever used in many late-game Warframe builds, as there are several other elements that can benefit you far more in taking out an enemy.