The United States has the most advanced multirole fighter jets. The F-35 is considered the world’s most superior multirole fighter jet, while the F-22 Raptor (now a multirole fighter to some extent) is considered the best air superiority fighter. Meanwhile, China is rapidly developing advanced multirole fighters like the J-20 and J-35. Other extremely capable multirole fighter jets include the F-15EX, Eurofighter, Rafale, F/A/18 Super Hornet, Su-57, and others.

Some aircraft, like the F-15, were originally designed for a specific role, but evolved to be multirole fighters. Others, like the F-35 and Rafale, were designed as multirole fighters. Dassault even describes the Rafale as the world’s only ‘omnirole’ fighter. This article will focus more on the fighter jet’s stealth, sensors, and proven battlefield performance and less on aerobatic performance like Cobra Maneuvers and the ability to supercruise.

What Is A Multirole Fighter

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To answer the question of what the most superior multirole fighter is, one must first establish what a multirole fighter is. A multirole fighter is a fighter jet able to carry out multiple roles, e.g., air-to-air combat, electronic warfare, SEAD (suppression of enemy air defenses), air support, ground attack, and others. Historically, fighter jets were typically designed for one or two primary missions, such as the F-4 Phantom II, which served as both a fighter bomber and an interceptor.

These days, almost all modern fighter jets are multirole, at least if they have received upgrades. The F-15 Eagle and the F-22 Raptor were both designed as air superiority fighters, but now they can be considered multirole fighters. The F-22 Raptor is now able to carry JDAM bombs for ground attack missions. Naval fighters with “F/A” (fighter/attack) designations, like the F/A-18 Super Hornet and planned F/A-XX, are also multirole fighters, their designations notwithstanding.

Some fighter jets are not multirole fighters. For example, the iconic A-10 Thunderbolt “Warthog” is a ground attack aircraft, as is the Soviet Sukhoi Su-25. Old Soviet-era fighters in the Russian Air Force, like the Su-24 Fencer and MiG-31 (the fastest fighter jet), are also not multirole fighters.

What Is A Superior Fighter Jet Anyway?

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Another question is, what does it mean to be superior? The F-22 Raptor may be the best air dominance fighter in the world and has some ability to carry out ground attack missions, but it is not as optimized for ground attack as the F-35 or F-15. The F-35B is capable of STOVL operations, which is something no other modern fighter is capable of (the Harrier is no longer modern). However, STOVL capabilities come with trade-offs like reduced range and payload.

The F-35 Lightning II is the world’s most advanced and capable all-around fighter jet, but the F-22 is still considered superior in the air dominance role. As Israel demonstrated in Iran, the F-35 is able to penetrate enemy air defense and dismantle them, partly thanks to its stealth. But maintaining that stealthy profile means the aircraft needs to carry its munitions internally, which limits how much it can carry.

The F-22 was the most superior air dominance fighter, but it was so expensive that it was canceled early, leaving the Air Force with a limited number. At the end of the day, the best fighter is the one available, not the one that had the best specs but was too expensive to buy. One of the great strengths of the US F-35 and the Chinese J-20 is that they are produced in massive numbers. This means they are available in large numbers, and it ensures there is the investment to constantly upgrade them and keep components in production.

Most Superior In The Air Superiority Role

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If one limits the criteria to air superiority, then the F-22 Raptor has proven itself for decades now in exercises as the best air superiority fighter. The rare occasion it loses in an air-to-air exercise is sometimes reported as news, proving it’s the exception that proves the rule. As the United States continues to pour untold billions into the F-35 program, progressive upgrades like the latest TR-3 refresh program are seeing them become ever more capable in the air superiority role, narrowing the gap with the F-22.

After these two aircraft, it’s unclear which aircraft is more capable in an air superiority role. The new F-15EX, updated tranches of the Eurofighter Typhoon, and the French Rafale are also very capable. The Eurofighter was built to overmatch the Soviet and later Russian jets of the time. The Chinese J-20 and possibly J-35 are also likely very potent and capable in the air-to-air role.

The Chengdu J-20 has been designed as an air superiority fighter with the range to take out the AEW&C and tanker aircraft supporting the F-35 and F-22. This means it could potentially beat those jets, without engaging them directly. The new Russian Su-57 Felon has not proven itself at all in Ukraine, despite operating there for most of the conflict. The Felon may be impressive at air shows, but it is not known to have downed any Ukrainian jets or suppressed and destroyed Ukrainian air defense.

Most Superior All-Around Fighter

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The most superior all-around fighter jet is the F-35 Lightning II, hands down. There is a reason why almost every country that has a need for a high-end fighter and has been given permission by the United States to see its classified capabilities has also purchased it. Two notable outliers are Sweden and France, as they choose to invest in their own fighter jets as a political decision.

The F-35’s development was peppered with issues. It was developed to be the Jack of all trades, replacing everything from the A-10 to the Harrier jump jet. This caused it to have a large number of sub-optimal design compromises, not least its need for the F-35B’s LiftSystem. To win the contract, Lockheed Martin also promised the jet would have many cutting-edge capabilities that were not yet available. This meant that the airplane is only now receiving some capabilities promised by Lockheed.

But mature it has. Now, the sheer weight of hundreds of billions of dollars invested, coupled with more than a thousand jets delivered, and numerous examples of real-world combat, has seen the F-35 become the world’s most capable fighter. Not only that, but the F-35’s advanced stealth, networking, and sensors mean it is able to greatly enhance the effectiveness of other fourth-generation fighters like the Eurofighter, F-16, and F-15.

The All-Important Fighter Jet Enablers

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Fighter jets are not stand-alone machines; they are part of a much larger network of systems contributing to form an effective strike package. Other vital systems in the loop include AEW&C aircraft (like the E-3 Sentry or E-7 Wedgetail), electronic attack aircraft (like Compass Call and EA-18G Growlers), aerial tankers (like the KC-46A Pegasus), satellites, radars (including those found with Patriot SAMs and the Navy’s Aegis system), and more.

In all of these areas, the United States excels. No country has answers to the United States’ level of electronic attack capabilities, its vast network of satellites, and other ISR capabilities. Importantly, the United States is home to around 75% of all the world’s military tankers. This gives the United States and its fighter jets a crushing ability to project power. Other countries like China, the United Kingdom, and Russia only operate token fleets of tankers.

In other words, the fighter jets in US service are going to be, on average, more capable than the exact same fighter jets (e.g., F-35As) in other air forces. Adversary fighter jets, like the rare Su-57, not only have the disadvantages of having inferior computers, sensors, sensor fusion, numbers, stealth, and R&D development. The Felon’s disadvantage is amplified by the dearth of available tankers, AEW&C aircraft, and other force multipliers.

The United States Has The Most Superior Fighters

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The United States has the world’s most superior fighters thanks to the F-35, F-22, and F-15EX, as well as upgraded variants of the F/A-18 and even the F-16. These jets are, on average, superior when used by the United States than by other air forces due to the USAF’s many force multipliers and ability to constantly update the jets with the latest systems.

The Israeli Air Force has proven itself repeatedly to be incredibly lethal and is able to keep its F-35s, F-15s, and F-16s at the cutting edge. Israel is able to leverage each fighter jet type’s strengths to deliver formidable strike packages. The European Eurofighter and Rafale are also highly regarded as very capable multirole fighters. The Russian Su-34/30/35 is also a family of capable large fighters, although limited by things like having a very easily detected radar beam.

China is another air force with an extremely capable and growing fleet of multirole fighters. However, it is difficult to assess the true capabilities of its fighter jets as there is an export ban on the J-20, and the J-35 has not yet been exported. Neither of the Chinese 5th-generation fighter jets has been used in combat. The J-10C fighter jet in Pakistani service reportedly performed well in its 2025 skirmish with the Indian Air Force, although this is very complicated and nuanced, as The War Zone goes into depth explaining.