Learn everything there is to know about how the different Apex Legends attachments and Hop-Ups work, and learn which are the best attachments to prioritise while looting! On this page:
Apex Legends attachments explained What are the best attachments in Apex Legends? Hop-Ups Optics Barrels Shotgun Bolts Extended Mags Stocks
Apex Legends attachments explained
Attachments are items that can be looted and added onto specific weapons to make them more powerful. Almost all the attachments in Apex Legends can be found in different colours or rarities, and each is stronger than the last. The weakest is white (common), followed by blue (rare), then purple (epic), and finally gold (legendary). Some attachments only appear at a specific rarity level. For example, there’s a gold Digital Threat optic attachment, but not a purple, blue, or white variant. Each attachment belongs in a specific attachment slot, and is only applicable to certain weapons. You can’t, for example, put a Barrel attachment on a weapon that doesn’t support it; or a Sniper Stock attachment in the Stock slot of a non-Sniper weapon. When you pick up an attachment, it will automatically be added to the first applicable weapon you’re holding. If you want to change attachments, you’ll need to head into your inventory and drag-and-drop the attachment into the right slot.
What are the best attachments in Apex Legends?
There’s not really an objective “best attachment” in Apex Legends, because it depends on the weapon you’re using. Certain weapons have drawbacks which make particular attachments extremely important. There are also Hop-Up attachments which affect only specific weapons, and these often give that weapon a very important benefit. Overall though, I’d say the most important attachments in most cases are the Extended Mags, and the Barrels (or Bolts if you’re using a Shotgun). Accuracy and ammo capacity are the most important weapon traits you can alter with attachments in Apex Legends. But again, it depends on your weapon. Check out our Apex Legends weapon stats page for more information about the different strengths and weaknesses of each gun.
Hop-Ups
While most Apex Legends attachments are limited to a specific category of weapon (such as Sniper Stocks and Sniper Rifles), Hop-Ups are special attachments which only affect one or two weapons. They can only be found in Epic or Legendary rarity, and they offer unique and powerful benefits to the chosen weapon(s).
Optics
Optics attachments cover all kinds of sights and scopes, from 1x sights for SMGs and Shotguns to 6x and 4-10x for Sniper Rifles. Each of these can only be found in a specific rarity/colour. The gold optics are unique in that they provide Threat Highlighting, which highlights enemies in red, allowing you to see them more clearly through Bangalore smoke and Caustic gas or from a distance.
Barrels
Barrel Stabilisers attach to various weapons across different categories, and reduce the recoil of that weapon. As such they are one of the most important attachment types you can find. Barrel Stabilizers come in white, blue, and purple varieties, and they can be attached to the following weapons:
Assault Rifles: G7 Scout, Hemlok, R-301 Carbine SMGs: R-99, Volt LMGs: Devotion, L-Star, Rampage Snipers: Longbow Pistols: RE-45
Shotgun Bolts
Shotgun Bolts, predictably, can only be attached to shotguns. They increase the fire rate of the Shotgun, making them the most important attachment you can find for a Shotgun in Apex Legends. The Shotgun Bolt appears in white, blue, and purple varieties, and each provides:
EVA-8: +8%/15%/18% Mastiff: +10%/15%/20% Mozambique: +15%/25%/35% Peacekeeper: +15%/25%/35%
Extended Mags
Extended Mag attachments increase the magazine capacity of your weapon. The amount depends on the weapon used. There is a type of Extended Mag attachment for each ammo type (except Shotgun or Special ammo). As of Season 10, Extended Mags no longer decrease reload times of weapons. This functionality has been moved to the Stock attachments. Gold Extended Mags were added in Season 8, and provide the same benefit as Purple Extended Mags, plus the ability to automatically reload a weapon that has been holstered for 5 seconds.
Stocks
There are two types of Stock in Apex Legends: one for Snipers, and one for Assault Rifles, SMGs, and LMGs. They both alter various handling stats, such as ADS speeds, and gun raising and lowering speeds. As of Season 10, Blue Stocks also decrease reload time by 5%, and Purple Stocks by 10%. Stocks can be found in white, blue, and purple varieties, and provide the following benefits: Standard Stock:
10%/20%/25% less ADS time 15%/20%/25% less deploy/holster time 10%/15%/20% less raise/lower time 15%/25%/45% less aim drift
Sniper Stock:
10%/15%/20% less ADS time 15%/20%/25% less deploy/holster time 10%/15%/20% less raise/lower time 30%/50%/85% less aim drift 10%/15%/20% slower drift speed
That’s every single attachment in Apex Legends covered, which brings us to the end of this guide. I’d now suggest you head over to our page on the best Apex Legends characters to make sure you’re on top of the current Legend meta.
