All 17 Big Brother 25 Houseguests’ Gameplay, Ranked (You Won’t Believe Who’s On Top)

Big Brother 25 was a huge anniversary for the series and with the winner finally being crowned, many are wondering how the houseguests’ gameplay throughout shakes out. With 17 houseguests entering the BB house at the beginning of the season, week by week the number dwindled down as the BB 25 cast turned against each other. While the BB 25 finale finally named the winner of the competition, the runner-up, and America’s Favorite Houseguest, the way the gameplay styles have shaken out throughout the competition has been fascinating to watch as the season has unfolded. While there were several styles of gameplay, some houseguests did better than others.

The Big Brother 25 cast was a surprising mix of people from all walks of life, including 22-year-old student Cory Wurtenberger and 63-year-old Felicia Cannon. Each of the houseguests came into the game with their strategies, but prepping for the game can sometimes be a detriment to gameplay as most of the time, the twists of the game push strategies out the door. After all is said and done, some of the houseguests are better players than others, and looking at their gameplay as a whole can speak to the season’s quality. Here’s a ranking of BB 25 by gameplay.

17 Big Brother 25’s Luke Valentine

Although he was only in the Big Brother house for the first few days of the game, Luke Valentine was still a part of the BB 25 cast and came in with some sort of strategy for his game. Luke had created multiple alliances on his first few days in the house, and it appeared he was trying to establish social connections instead of trying to be physical in his gameplay. Luke was expelled from Big Brother 25 after using a racial slur and breaking the BB code of conduct.

16 Big Brother 25’s Kirsten Elwin

Although she was only in the Big Brother 25 house for a week, Kirsten Elwin was a memorable part of the season as she started playing the game as quickly as possible. The main criticism of the house against Kirsten, and their reasoning as to why she was evicted, was that Kirsten was trying to create multiple alliances. Everyone in the BB house was doing the same, but because Kirsten was caught in her gameplay, it was hard to get out of. Kirsten’s strategy was smart, and her gameplay likely would’ve worked for a while longer if she were able to do it stealthily.

15 Big Brother 25’s Reilly Smedley

Although she was evicted early on in the game, Reilly Smedley was a competitive threat to the rest of the house quickly on BB 25. Reilly was quick to try her best to win the first Head Of Household competition, which gave her a different type of power than the typical HOH has, but kept her immune from eviction for the first week. During that time, she developed many alliances and tried to get herself set up for the following week, but Reilly wasn’t able to account for the other side of the house winning HOH during week 2. Physically adept, Reilly didn’t have time to establish a social strategy.

14 Big Brother 25’s Bowie Jane

Bowie Jane made it further in the game than some typical floaters, but her gameplay style was a classic BB floater game nonetheless. Bowie followed the power structure in the house and tried to play as loyal to them as possible, moving week-to-week to keep herself safe. While Bowie was pulled into several alliances throughout the game, her only true allegiance was to Jag and Matt Klotz, which made it easy for her to skate by in the second half of the game. While she was in power for some of the most important moves in the game, Bowie was never actually in control, which is exactly what she wanted.

13 Big Brother 25’s Red Utley

Red Utley was a player who didn’t have too much time to establish his game in the house, but what was seen made it seem like Red could play both socially and competitively. Winning a power of veto competition early in the season, Red had the physical ability to play the game, but his strategy to align with Cameron made him a bigger threat than he would’ve been otherwise. While Red tried to align with Cirie, Felicia, and Izzy early on in the game, their allegiance wasn’t towards him. Red’s inability to make social connections that would keep him safe was ultimately his downfall in the BB house.

12 Big Brother 25’s Mecole Hayes

While Mecole “Meme” Hayes had all the makings of a great player, she wasn’t successful when she was in the Big Brother 25 house. Mecole stayed loyal to her alliance with Felicia, Cirie, and Jared, but didn’t attempt to make many other connections within the game. Great at navigating a conversation and dispersing information to her benefit, Mecole was too quiet and too hands-off in her approach. After winning a competition and making it clear she wasn’t as unskilled as it appeared, Mecole hardly fought to stick around during her eviction week and ultimately refused to make any deals to try and save herself.

11 Big Brother 25’s Cameron Hardin

As one of the favorites among casual Big Brother viewers, Cameron Hardin has been praised for his gameplay throughout the season, but he wasn’t as incredible as he seemed. Cameron was able to win his way out of nearly any situation, but it was quickly obvious that he was unable to make moves when he wasn’t in power. Cameron’s social game wasn’t good in practice, though it seemed interesting in theory. Doing his best to cause chaos within the power structure, Cameron used his limited social capital to make big moves, and eventually was able to fight his way back into the game, but couldn’t make it to the end.

10 Big Brother 25’s Felicia Cannon

As one of the most outspoken houseguests Big Brother 25, Felicia’s place in the game has always been interesting. Early on in the season, Felicia was in with Cirie Fields and thus stayed protected for weeks on end. After being nominated for eviction against Izzy Gleicher, Felicia felt backstabbed by Cirie, who was campaigning to get rid of Felicia. She began to be more vocally against Cirie behind her back while trying to pledge loyalty to her face, which carried her far in the game. Playing for herself, Felicia made moves that seemed sloppy and uncontrolled to Big Brother viewers, but did ultimately work for a long period time.

9 Big Brother 25’s Hisam Goueli

An immediate competitive threat, Hisam Goueli was a tremendous player both physically and socially, though his strategic game needed some work. Winning the Head Of Household title during week 2, Hisam built his initial alliance in the game and tried to ensure he was surrounded by people who would protect him. Aligning with Cirie, Izzy, Felicia, and some of the other older players in the game, Hisam hoped to work with a group of like-minded players. After winning 3 competitions in a row, it was clear he was a competitive threat. Hisam’s alliance turned against him and his lack of social game made it impossible for him to save himself.

8 Big Brother 25’s Blue Kim

As a professional brand strategist, Big Brother 25’s Blue Kim was hopeful she’d be able to use her skills to pull out a win in the game. While Blue did manage to strategize her way far into the game, she was also able to align early on with Jared as the two pursued a showmance. While Jared was a shield for her, he also erased a lot of the moves she was trying to make within the game. Blue’s strategy to share information in any way possible was risky, working sometimes and crushing her down otherwise. Ultimately, she was seen as untrustworthy and threatening, which led to her eviction.

7 Big Brother 25’s Matt Klotz

As one of the final 3 houseguests in the game, Matt’s gameplay was overhyped in the house and by Big Brother viewers. A Deaflympic gold medalist, Matt was seen as a competitive threat even though he didn’t win many competitions. Matt aligned with several different groups within the house, keeping himself safe from nearly every angle and doing his best to share information that would keep other people targeted. While the theory behind Matt’s strategy was sound, in practice it sometimes became clear that he wasn’t making many big moves, instead just floating with the power. By refusing to step outside his comfort zone, Matt cost himself an easy win.

6 Big Brother 25’s Izzy Gleicher

Izzy came into Big Brother 25 as a superfan hoping to find her way into a larger alliance with shields she could use to bring her far in the game. After realizing Cirie and Jared’s secret almost immediately, the 3 chose to work together to try and manipulate the rest of the housegeusts to the end of the game. Izzy was an incredible social player who made bold moves and could create relationships with nearly anyone in the game, opening lines of communication everywhere. Unfortunately, Izzy’s social abilities mixed with her competition strengths along with the fact that she was safe in the power structure proved to be too threatening.

5 Big Brother 25’s Jared Fields

As the son of a reality TV legend, Jared wanted to make his own mark on the world of reality competition. Playing the game as a social and physical threat, Jared may not have made popular moves among Big Brother 25 fans, but he was unafraid of the blowback of making big moves in the house. While Jared may have done some questionable things in the house, like using ableist language against America Lopez and Matt Klotz, he was still a key player in the game. Jared’s social strategy and competitive nature made him a threat and kept him safe, until some overly emotional decisions cost him the game.

4 Big Brother 25’s America Lopez

America had a reputation for not being able to keep secrets during her time in the Big Brother 25 house, but with one of the most adept social games in the cast, the accusations that she was dispersing information out of turn were overly exaggerated. America didn’t have much power in the Big Brother house, but she was able to orchestrate some of the biggest moves of the season with her showmance, Cory, when they were close to the center of the power structure. Playing a hand in Izzy, Jared, and Cameron’s evictions, America used her social ability to get houseguests to open up to her to leverage information whenever possible.

3 Big Brother 25’s Cirie Fields

Coming into Big Brother 25 with a target on her back due to her multiple appearances on Survivor and other reality TV series like The Traitors, Cirie was also playing with a second secret. Her son, Jared, was in the BB house and the two were playing together in secret, doing their best to keep their familial relationship quiet. Cirie has been known for being a master social gameplayer and she did create an elaborate power structure within the game that kept her safe for the majority of the season, but her lack of strategy and difficulty in competitions led to her downfall.

2 Big Brother 25’s Jag Bains

As one of BB 25’s final houseguests, Jag Bains had some of the most interesting gameplay throughout the season. Jag was a competitive threat who was hiding behind a shield for the majority of the game. Jag’s record number of competition wins made him difficult to beat, but he was evicted in a unanimous vote that was later nullified. His competitive success carried him through the game, but his social strategy lacked early on, as he wasn’t good at manipulating strong-willed players until later in the game. While he hid behind others early on, Jag ultimately capitalized on his ability to make bold moves by the end of the game.

1 Big Brother 25’s Cory Wurtenberger

As one of the most strategic houseguests, Cory’s social gameplay was an exciting part of the season. When Cory was able to use his clear, direct communication style to his advantage, he was able to talk nearly anyone in the Big Brother house into anything. Unfortunately, when Cory’s communication wasn’t working for him, he sometimes talked himself into a corner that was hard to get out of. His communication style mixed with his strong alliance with America and the fact that, when necessary, he could be a competitive threat made Cory an asset, but a huge threat at the same time. His gameplay was flawed, but some of the best.