TL;DR
- SMGs aren’t dominating the meta the way Hand Cannons and Pulse Rifles are right now, but several standouts still punch above their weight.
- Yeartide Apex is the best all-around SMG thanks to its rare Heal Clip and Incandescent combo, and it’s now permanently available through the Tenet of Bravery.
- M-17 Fast Talker is the top pick for Stasis builds, creating Stasis Crystals while you fire.
- Submission remains the best Kinetic SMG in the game if you’re willing to farm Vow of the Disciple for it.
- Unending Tempest is the strongest PvP-focused SMG thanks to its wide pool of strong perk combinations.
Where SMGs Stand in the Current Meta
SMGs have always been the close-range bullet hoses of Destiny 2’s sandbox, favoring high fire rate and fast time-to-kill over range. In the current Monument of Triumph meta, Hand Cannons, Pulse Rifles, and Scout Rifles dominate competitive PvP because most Crucible engagements start at mid-to-long range, before an opponent can close the distance. That leaves SMGs and Auto Rifles fighting for relevance at closer ranges and on tighter maps. In PvE, the meta has also shifted toward Hand Cannons and double-Special loadouts, which has pushed SMGs out of the spotlight somewhat.
That doesn’t mean SMGs are bad. It means the ones worth using need to bring something genuinely useful to the table, whether that’s a build-defining perk combo, a rare elemental synergy, or simply being so easy to get that there’s no reason not to run one. The picks below are the SMGs that still earn a slot in 2026.
Best Legendary SMGs
Yeartide Apex – Best Overall SMG
Yeartide Apex is a Solar Lightweight Frame SMG firing at 900 RPM, and it’s one of the only SMGs in the game capable of rolling Heal Clip alongside Incandescent in the same perk pool. That combination heals you on kills while spreading scorch damage to nearby enemies, which is about as good as it gets for sustained Solar add-clear. It also carries access to Chaos Reshaped, a perk originally exclusive to the Salvation’s Edge raid, giving it serious damage potential the longer you stay in a fight.
For PvE, the top roll is Heal Clip paired with Incandescent, which keeps you topped off while setting entire groups of enemies on fire. If you’d rather lean into extended engagement damage, Heal Clip with Chaos Reshaped is the alternative, since stacking Chaos Reshaped twice (24 seconds of continuous combat) drops time-to-kill to an absurd 0.53 seconds, though realistically you’ll land somewhere closer to 0.67 seconds with a single stack in normal play. For PvP, Target Lock is the clear pick in the second column, since Chaos Reshaped’s combat-engagement requirement is hard to maintain consistently in competitive modes.
What makes Yeartide Apex stand out beyond its perks is accessibility. It originally launched as a Solstice 2025 exclusive, but since seasonal events stopped running, Monument of Triumph folded it into the permanent reward pool. It’s now available any time from the Tenet of Bravery vendor in the Tower Courtyard for just 2 Legendary Marks per Solstice Weapon Engram, with no weekly purchase cap. Every copy drops at Tier 5 with a full upgrade path, so you can simply keep buying engrams until you land the roll you want.
M-17 Fast Talker – Best for Stasis Builds
The M-17 Fast Talker comes from activities in the Lawless Frontier added with the Renegades expansion, and it’s built specifically for Stasis builds. Its standout PvE roll pairs Cooling Baubles with Crystalline Corpsebloom, letting the gun create Stasis Crystals as you fire. If your build is already generating crystals through grenades or aspects, Cooling Baubles means you’ll rarely need to manually vent the weapon’s heat, since crystal generation keeps refreshing it automatically.
In PvP, the Fast Talker becomes a genuinely dangerous option with a roll of Delicate Tuning, Tap the Trigger, and Overclocked Heatsink. That combination tightens up its accuracy on opening shots while keeping its heat-based mechanics working in your favor during extended duels, making it one of the better SMGs to bring into the Crucible if you don’t already have an Unending Tempest.
Unending Tempest – Best for PvP
Unending Tempest drops from the Crucible and earns its spot here through sheer perk pool depth. While it’s primarily a PvP weapon, it’s flexible enough to work in PvE as well depending on the roll. Two combinations stand out: Demolitionist paired with Headstone is excellent for Stasis builds, especially those leaning on Glacier Grenades or the Hunter Exotic Renewal Grasps, since every kill both refunds grenade energy and freezes nearby ground. For more general PvE use, Attrition Orbs with Chaos Reshaped is the better pick, generating Orbs of Power on top of its built-in damage scaling, which benefits the whole fireteam’s ability uptime.
Submission – Best Kinetic SMG
If you want the strongest Kinetic-slot SMG in the game, Submission is the answer. It’s one of the only weapons that can roll both Kinetic Tremors and Chaos Reshaped together, a combination that punishes sustained fire on groups of enemies with escalating area damage. It doesn’t have the longest range in its class, but in most PvE encounters range matters less than raw add-clear consistency, and Submission delivers that in spades.
The catch is getting it. Submission only drops from the Vow of the Disciple raid, one of the harder raids in Destiny 2’s history, so you’ll need a competent fireteam to farm it. It’s worth the grind if you want a true Kinetic workhorse, since most of the other strong SMG options sit in the Elemental slots instead.
Burning Ambition – Best for Solar Builds (Reprised)
Burning Ambition originally came from the Ghosts of the Deep dungeon and was a solid, if unremarkable, pick at launch. Its reprised version, released as part of the final season, is significantly better. It can now roll Burning Ambition itself in its third perk column alongside Incandescent in the fourth, which is one of the strongest scorch-stacking combinations currently available on an SMG. If you don’t want to farm Ghosts of the Deep specifically, or you’d rather have a faster-firing Solar option, Yeartide Apex remains the easier alternative, but Burning Ambition’s reprised perk pool makes it worth chasing if you already enjoy the dungeon.
Whatchamacallit – Best Burst-Frame Option
Whatchamacallit arrived with Monument of Triumph as an Arc SMG built around an unusual four-shot Aggressive Burst Frame. The burst itself fires extremely fast with a short delay between bursts, which gives it real damage potential if you can control its recoil pattern. It’s not the easiest gun to master, since both its PvE and PvP god rolls are built around reining in that recoil while maximizing damage against a wide range of enemy types, but in the right hands it hits noticeably harder than most standard Adaptive Frame SMGs.
Are There Any Strong Exotic SMGs?
Right now, the Legendary SMG pool is deeper than the Exotic one. Most of the strongest current options, Yeartide Apex, Submission, and the reprised Burning Ambition, are Legendary weapons with rare perk combinations rather than Exotic-locked mechanics. If you’re building a loadout around an Exotic in another slot, like an Exotic Heavy for boss damage, pairing it with one of these Legendary SMGs in your Primary or Special slot is currently the more efficient route than chasing an Exotic SMG specifically.
Which SMG Should You Use?
For most players, Yeartide Apex is the easiest recommendation since it’s free to farm from a vendor, drops at Tier 5 every time, and performs well in both PvE and PvP. If you’re deep into a Stasis build, M-17 Fast Talker or Unending Tempest with Demolitionist and Headstone will serve you better. PvP-focused players should prioritize Unending Tempest, and anyone chasing the strongest possible PvE add-clear in the Kinetic slot should put in the work for Submission. Pair whichever SMG you land on with a strong Primary from the best Auto Rifles guide to round out a flexible close-to-mid range loadout.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best all-around SMG in Destiny 2 right now?
Yeartide Apex is the best overall pick thanks to its rare Heal Clip and Incandescent combo, easy availability through the Tenet of Bravery, and strong performance in both PvE and PvP.
What is the best SMG for PvP?
Unending Tempest is the strongest PvP-focused SMG due to its deep perk pool, including Demolitionist and Headstone for Stasis builds.
Is Submission still worth farming?
Yes, if you want the best Kinetic-slot SMG in the game. Its Kinetic Tremors and Chaos Reshaped combination is excellent for PvE, though it requires clearing the Vow of the Disciple raid.
How do I get Yeartide Apex?
Purchase Solstice Weapon Engrams from the Tenet of Bravery vendor at the Tower for 2 Legendary Marks each. There’s no weekly cap, so you can keep buying engrams until you get the roll you want.
