Who is Best Girl in Classroom of the Elite? Characters Ranked

Kikyou Kushida is Class 1-D's idol. Pretty, friendly, and endowed with a nice figure, she is liked by both girls and boys in and outside her class.

Kushida ranks pretty low in this list because beneath the qualities that would make one deserving of the Best Girl title, there is a cautiously hidden darker side to her, which may or may not be her real personality.

Despite her carefree and sociable demeanor, Kushida actually is calculative and manipulative, consciously putting herself in situations where she's sure to come out as the poster nice girl she is presenting herself to be.

In other words, everybody likes Kushida not because she's truly kind and sweet, but because they all have fallen for the facade she religiously puts on.

Only the protagonist Ayanokouji Kiyotaka has seen this dark side of Kushida's, and even he is unsure of which Kushida is the real deal.

Class 1-C's Mio Ibuki is a relatively minor character in Classroom of the Elite, playing a somewhat key role in Season 1.

But although she isn't as plot-significant as any of the other girls on this list, Ibuki is deserving of this spot because of her mental, emotional, and physical strength.

Ibuki isn't only smart, she is also known to be skilled in various kinds of martial arts. The anime has effectively shown her emotional strength with how she didn't even think twice about betraying Class 1-D even as they had taken care of her and given her food on the uninhabited island.

Although this choice is morally questionable, it is a show of her determination to end up as the winner, even at the expense of those who have shown her kindness.

This is also probably why Ibuki trusts no one. She always expects to be betrayed by others since she would have no problem betraying anyone if it meant putting herself or her interests first.

Ibuki is openly cold and consistent, and these traits are exactly what earned her this place in the ranking.

Related: Classroom of the Elite's Points System Explained

Arisu Sakayanagi is believed to be the most elite girl in their grade, seeing as she is Class 1-A's class representative.

Personality-wise, Arisu appears to be calm and carefree, as unbothered as anyone with such a level as hers would be. She is always smiling, although not kindly, but as someone who thinks herself superior to others.

These characteristics would normally make Arisu a hated character, but since she does have a lot to show for her arrogance, she is instead forgiven and even praised for her demeanor.

Although small in stature, Arisu is able to confidently command authority over others, and she goes through no struggle getting anyone to respect her.

Related: Is Arisu from the White Room in Classroom of the Elite?

Airi Sakura is a student of Class 1-D. With her shy and self-conscious personality, she likes to stay in the background and keeps her head down in class.

But Sakura was secretly an internet-popular gravure idol, a kind of model who wears provocative clothing and does racy poses. To avoid being recognized as Shizuku (her internet persona), she used to wear fake glasses and put up her hair a different way.

In Season 1, Sakura was rescued by Ayanokouji when she was assaulted by a stalker. This caused her to later develop feelings for him.

Although Sakura liked the attention she got from uploading sexy pictures of herself on the internet, she was never quite comfortable with her body. This is most likely why she chose to go by a whole other persona altogether.

With Ayanokoji's advice and encouragement, Sakura slowly gained confidence in her real self, and she stopped being a gravure idol and ceased wearing her fake glasses.

Sakura is a sweet, shy girl. Her kindness is authentic, and this is why she earned the 4th Best Girl spot on this list.

Related: 5 Big Differences Between the Classroom of the Elite Light Novel and Anime

Kei Karuizawa is another classmate of Ayanokouji's in Class 1-D. As Class D representative Yousuke Hirata's fake girlfriend, she is regarded as the leader of the girls in their class.

At the start of the series, Karuizawa was shown to be a shallow, spoiled girl who only did things that benefited her.

However, as recent anime developments have shown, Karuizawa is actually a deeply thinking girl. As it turns out, she actually has a pretty valid reason for wanting to selfishly protect herself.

If we strictly go by what the anime has shown so far, it's not yet very clear why Karuizawa is considered Best Girl by those who've read the light novel, although Season 2 Episode 3 has started paving the way to revealing the reasons.

Ayanokouji fans joke about our MC treating others as his tools, and it looks like Karuizawa has just found her place in his toolbox.

With Ayanokouji's recent declaration to protect Karuizawa, will she possibly become more than just one of his tools?

Find out here: Who Does Ayanokoji Kiyotaka End Up With in Classroom of the Elite?

Honami Ichinose is a class leader from Class 1-B. Genuinely kind and just, she is quite the rare type within the series.

Ichinose doesn't treat other students according to their class' rankings. She is kind to anyone, and is even willing to set aside differences she has with people she's had prior disagreements with in order to peacefully work with them.

Ichinose is the kind of person who only chooses to see the best in people, even though she had seen the worst things people with ill attitudes can do. However, she doesn't hesitate to give people a piece of her mind when needed.

This firmness isn't a contradiction to Ichinose's kind personality. In fact, it is a quality that makes her the perfect character. Too good to be true, maybe, but that's just what she is.

Like many other students from lower classes, Ichinose has a quite public wish to graduate as a Class A student. But she chooses to do things honestly and without the use of any malicious methods to achieve this, as demonstrated in the stance she took in the Planets Exam.

Honest, generous, kind—the world isn't ready for someone like Honami Ichinose.

Related: Do Any of the Students Reach Class A in Classroom of the Elite?

Suzune Horikita is a highly intelligent girl who is somehow stuck in Class D. Standoffish and always ready to say things as they are, she doesn't have the best relationships with the people around her.

But Horikita has strong tsundere tendencies. She appears really eager to get into Class A, and it seems to have something to do with gaining his older brother, Manabu Horikita's approval.

Horikita was also likely the first person to notice that Ayanokouji might be smarter than he lets people believe. Her relationship with Ayanokouji is one of transactional partnership and complete trust, at least on her end.

So why is Horikita Best Girl, at least at the moment?

Horikita is actually quite relatable. Even if she is distant from her classmates, it's more of a direct result of her goal-centered trait and less of just wanting to make enemies.

Even if Horikita believes that she doesn't need anybody's help to achieve her goals, she had come to respect Ayanokouji and trust in the things he says and does, possibly even already seeing him as her friend.

It is because of this friendship that Horikita has slowly opened up to her other classmates, acknowledging that she doesn't have to always be this difficult character.

All in all, Horikita is Best Girl so far because of her wits, strong sense of self, and the mere fact that she was almost instantly aware of Ayanokouji's strengths. Plus again, she has strong tsundere vibes that not many can get enough of!