As most people learned in high school, being the best doesn’t always mean someone is a winner. The finest example of this truth is best exhibited in Survivor, where the most popular Survivor players have more important strategies—and certainly more entertaining—than coming out on top.
Survivor has been one of the most popular and longest-running reality competition television shows in history and for many good reasons. Most long-time viewers will admit their favorite parts always involve the most famous Survivor players creating alliances, secret backstabbing schemes, and the tears/blood/sweat poured into the player’s experiences.
There’s nothing quite like sitting at home, drinking a glass of wine, and enjoying an unexpected scheming plot from the comfort of your couch. So grab that wine and dive into the ten greatest Survivor contestants of all time, ranked by gameplay.
10. Sarah Lacina
Season(s): Cagayan, Game Changers, Winners at War
# Of Wins: 1 (Game Changers)
Why They Made The Cut:
One of the most popular Survivor players, Sarah Lacina, showed up in Survivor: Cagayan, ready to tackle whatever was thrown her way. As an American police officer, she brought various skills and training to the experience. When asked on the show why she felt she would win Survivor, Lacina said, “…I interview people on a daily basis and get confessions. I will destroy this game.”
What Lacina should have mentioned was her ability to grin with a hidden agenda. Every season she competed in, Lacina was quick to befriend those around her, while also conspiring to ruin their chances. Her interview skills did help her peg Tony Vlachos as a fellow cop, cultivating an alliance based on mutual backgrounds. After helping organize several blindsides and solidifying better social connections, she was awarded Sole Survivor in Survivor:Game Changers.
9. Earl Cole
Season: Fuji
Wins: 1
Why They Made The Cut:
Earl Cole is best known for his friendly disposition, but a little-known factoid is that Cole knew nothing about Survivor before showing up to film. He might be one of the most famous Survivor players, but he showed up only two days before filming began, almost entirely unprepared for what was to come.
It was refreshing for viewers to watch Cole experience the challenges with an untainted perspective. Perhaps this lent to his popularity because he is also the first Sole Survivor to receive every jury vote. Despite his lack of experience, Cole also became the first Black Sole Survivor and the first player to play a Hidden Immunity idol. While Cole has declined to participate in further Survivor shows, his success is still a fond memory in the franchise’s history.
8. Rob Mariano (aka Boston Rob)
Season(s): Marquesas, All-Stars, Heroes vs. Villains, Redemption Island, Winners at War
# Of Wins: 1 (Redemption Island)
Why They Made The Cut:
Enter stage left is someone fans consider one of the best survivor players, with his duplicitous schemes and wickedly smart tactics. Rob Mariano, the series’ first five-time contestant, brought his A-game to each season, starting with Marquesas. He was just feeling out the game in Marquesas because he proceeded to make a name for himself in his second season, Survivor: All-Stars.
While he didn’t win All-Stars, Mariano won at life by allying with Amber Brkich, which eventually evolved into a real-life marriage. True to form, Mariano even proposed to her on the Reunion show, popping the question before the jury results.
All in all, though, Boston Rob holds the record of the most time in Survivor, tallying at a whopping 152 days. That, paired with finding love, one could argue he’s won it all.
7. Yul Kwon
Season(s): Cook Islands, Winners at War
# Of Wins: 1 (Cook Islands)
Why They Made The Cut:
Yul Kwon made a name for himself, not only becoming the first Asian-American to win Sole Survivor, but also because he was the chief strategist in his alliance in Survivor: Cook Islands.
He proved himself by his ability to decipher clues on a compass, which turned out to be the Hidden Immunity Idol.
This wasn’t his only winning strategy though; Kwon is best known for his friendly disposition, making friends with everyone around him. He also showed a level of sincerity that charmed even the most hardened Survivor fan. Some say he even successfully went through his entire first season without making anyone angry. Most people can’t even achieve that on a normal day.
6. Jeremy Collins
Season(s): San Juan del Sur, Cambodia, Winners at War
# Of Wins: 1 (Cambodia)
Why They Made The Cut:
In an unlikely twist from the start, Jeremy Collins—a hunky, muscular firefighter—began his adventure in Survivor: San Juan del Sur with his wife, Val Collins. Despite showing up together, they were immediately split. Not one to prescribe to the age-old idiom, “happy wife, happy life,” Jeremy decimated his wife in their first head-to-head challenge, sending her to Exile Island.
In Winners at War, Collins revealed towards the end that not only was his wife pregnant again, he was playing for his beloved family. Insert sighs of appreciation here.
Collins is best known for his, “meat shield” strategy though. Because he’s built like a well-oiled wall of granite, he knew how important it was to distract from his physical prowess. He gathered all of the muscular alphas and kept them on as long as possible in order to gain a footing towards winning. Everyone loves a brilliant family man!
5. Cirie Fields
Season(s): Panama, Micronesia, Heroes vs. Villains, Game Changers
# Of Wins: 0
Why They Made The Cut:
Cirie Fields defines the saying “brains over brawn,” starting with Survivor: Panama. A self-proclaimed “couch potato,” the odds were not in Field’s favor. Of course, this continued as she never won Survivor, but there are plenty of reasons she’s still a fan favorite.
Fields might have shown up unable to fend for herself, but she leaned on her analytical skills and friendly demeanor. She also had a hefty helping of resilience, which led to her elimination at the final four.
A common theme in Survivor is the contestant’s stories. Fields is a single mother of six children, so she isn’t a stranger to adversity, which made her a fan favorite as she scraped up to the final four. Not bad for someone who didn’t know how to assemble a tent.
4. Kim Spradlin-Wolfe
Season(s): One World, Winners at War
# Of Wins: 1 (One World)
Why They Made The Cut:
Kim Spradlin-Wolfe’s motto is, “fake it ‘til you make it,” as proven in her Survivor: One World season. Pretending to be incompetent from the start, Spradlin-Wolfe quickly edged her way to the top as the One World season evolved, even winning four out of five immunity challenges. Because she was so sketchy, no one knew where her loyalties lay until she struck like a viper against anyone in her way, claiming the title of the most dominant Sole Survivor of the franchise.
Unfortunately, this is a part of why she didn’t do well in Survivor: Winners at War. Even though she tried to revisit the Little Miss Meekling persona, everyone was up to her gimmick and was voted out at the top eight. Sometimes it’s better to know when to quit.
3. Sandra Diaz-Twine
Season(s): Pearl Islands, Heroes vs. Villains, Game Changers, Winners at War
# Of Wins: 2 (Pearl Islands, Heroes vs. Villains)
Ask any real Survivor fan who one of their (villainous) favorites are, and Sandra Diaz-Twine will most likely be declared. This office assistant showed up to the island using her multilingual skills and basic hunting abilities to her advantage while slowly but surely dominating challenges.
Not only that, but she had no qualms snatching items from opposing tribes like a thief in the night. The entire Pearl Island series was full of Diaz-Twine’s lies, ranging from spilling a bucket of fish (and blaming it on someone else) to swearing on her kids’ lives with her fingers crossed behind her back.
In future seasons, Diaz-Twine was far from finished assaulting Pinocchio, as she continued to skirt between conflicts, secretly turning castmates against one another. Her sneaky social game afforded her two Survivor wins, becoming the first player to ever accomplish such an incredible feat.
2. Parvati Shallow
Season(s): Cook Islands, Micronesia, Heroes vs. Villains, Winners at War
# Of Wins: 1 (Micronesia)
Why They Made The Cut:
If you look up “shameless flirt” in the dictionary, Parvati Shallow would be one solid example. Shallow used her winning smile and flirtatious tactic with the men to keep everyone guessing. Don’t mistake this tactic as a weakness—Shallow was anything but weak. Even when she nearly chopped a finger off with a machete, she was stitched up and returned to win the next Reward Challenge.
Shallow is also best known for keeping things close to the vest, hiding information about idols and impending betrayals. As a cherry on top, Shallow helped develop the Black Widow Brigade, where the women joined together to pick the men off one by one. Girl power, am I right?
1. Tony Vlachos
Season(s): Cagayan, Game Changers, Winners at War
# Of Wins: 2 (Cagayan, Winners at War)
Why They Made The Cut:
Last but clearly not least, Tony Vlachos is one of the most famous Survivor players, even if not the most well-liked. Being a cop in real life, Vlachos used this experience to his advantage. Buckle up, because Vlachos is top dog for a reason, starting with:
Spy shacks. That’s right, spy shacks. Vlachos constructed hidden nooks within the perimeter of the game to eavesdrop on other game players. That’s just the tip of this insane iceberg because his family should be dead considering how many times he swore upon their lives—and didn’t mean any of it.
Even more impressive, he found multiple Hidden Immunity Idols, using them to improve his duplicitous power. Viewers and competitors alike were held in the dark until Vlachos felt it was prudent to share his plans.
There is a reason Vlachos is considered the best Survivor player on this list: the man knows how to survive in all the ways that matter.
