Does a good rating mean the same thing for a defender and a striker?
Every guide quotes one number for a good rating. Measured by the position actually played, the same rating puts a defender in the top one per cent and a forward barely in the top ten.
Measured hereUpdated 4 August 2026 · from 415 archived players
The same rating puts a forward only in the top tenth of forwards. One number for everybody marks every defender down for playing the position.
The same rating, three different meanings
Every guide quotes one figure for a good rating. Measured by the position somebody actually played — from stored match rows, not from what EA lists them as — the distributions do not line up.
| Better than | Build defender | Build midfielder | Build forward |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50% of them | 7.33 | 7.52 | 7.38 |
| 90% of them | 8.00 | 8.31 | 8.46 |
| 99% of them | 8.84 | 9.05 | 9.22 |
Players with at least three full matches of stored history, bucketed by the position they spent the most minutes in. Rebuilt daily.
What this costs a defender
The median defender averages 7.33 and the median forward 7.38. A defender holding the forward median is not average — they are well inside the top half of defenders, and any table that ranks the two together will never show it.
EA has never published the formula, but the shape of the data says what it weights. Goals and assists move a rating more than anything a defender does, and interceptions, positioning and clearances are either uncounted or counted lightly. A defender playing well tops out below a forward having an ordinary night.
What to do with it
Compare yourself against your own position and nothing else. Every percentile on this site is measured that way — a centre-back is ranked among centre-backs, not against the midfielders who touch the ball twice as often.
The defender figures rest on 180 archived players.
Questions people ask
- Is a good Pro Clubs rating different by position?
- Yes, and by more than most people expect. The median defender averages 7.33 and the median forward 7.38. Judging both against one number marks every defender down for playing the position.
- What is a good rating for a defender in Pro Clubs?
- Among archived defenders the median is 7.33. 8.00 is the top tenth and 8.84 is the top one per cent — a figure a forward would need only to reach the top tenth of forwards.
- What is a good rating for a striker in Pro Clubs?
- Among archived forwards the median is 7.38 and 8.46 is the top tenth. Forwards rate highest of the outfield positions, because scoring moves the rating more than anything else EA measures.
- Why do defenders rate lower in Pro Clubs?
- EA does not publish the formula, but goals and assists move the rating more than anything a defender does. Interceptions, positioning and clearances are either not counted or counted lightly, so a defender playing well tops out lower than a forward having an ordinary game.
Measured from 106,022 players and 43,460 matches, kept since 17 September 2026. EA returns the last ten. Look up your own club and see where you land.
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