Captain Falcon Guide: Matchup Chart and Combos

This is a guide to Captain Falcon in the game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Everything about Captain Falcon, including how to unlock them, bread and butter combos, frame data, alt costumes and skins, as well as Captain Falcon matchups and counters, can be found here.

Captain Falcon Tier and Overview

Stats and General Info

Captain Falcon
Game Series	F-Zero
Smash Bros. Debut	Super Smash Bros. (64)
Fighter Number	11
Unlock Order	11
Number of Jumps	2
Weight	104 Units (22/87)
Dash Speed	2.552 (2/87)
Air Speed	1.218 (12/87)
Fast Fall Speed	2.984 (8/87)
Special Attributes	Wall Jump

Tier List Placement

Tier

A fast and flashy brawler

Much like in previous installments, Captain Falcon has very high mobility, with one of the fastest dash speeds in the game. Falcon can rush down his opponents and use one of his many combo starters (Dash Attack, Gran, Aerials, Side B, etc) to land combos and rack up damage fast. Captain Falcon can use his quick smash attacks or the sweet spot of his forward aerial to KO opponents after racking up enough damage.

His greatest weakness lies in his recovery, which is rather predictable. He is thus rather prone to getting edgeguarded. Additionally, he lacks a projectile and is easy to combo, so Falcon players will need to take advantage of his superior mobility to avoid trouble.

See Our Tier List Here!

Captain Falcon's Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths	・Excellent mobility ・Several strong attacks that can be used out of dash (Grab, Dash Attack, Aerials, Side Special) ・Very powerful aerial attacks
Weaknesses	・Mediocre recovery ・Easily comboed by other characters ・Lacks a projectile

Captain Falcon Matchup Chart

Matchup Chart

-2
-1
0
+1
+2

Notes About Matchup Chart

1. -2 = Disadvantage. -1 = Slight Disadvantage or Even. 0 = Even. +1 = Slight Advantage or Even. +2 = Advantage.
2. The matchup chart was based around both the opinions of professional players of each character, as well as our own experience through playing Captain Falcon.
3. Characters within each tier are unordered
4. Pokemon Trainer's individual Pokemon (Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard) as well as Echo fighters with no significant difference than their regular counterpart are not shown.
5. For other characters who are not shown here, we are still investigating the matchup.

Captain Falcon Combos

Beginner Combos
D-air→Jump→F-air
N-air (1st hit only)→Jump→Forward Air
Advanced Combos
Up Air→F-air
Grab→Down Throw→Up Air→Forward Air
Grab→Down Throw→Dash→N-air→Dash→N-air

Captain Falcon Beginner Combos

Captain Falcon Advanced Combos

Captain Falcon Frame Data and Moveset

Best Out of Shield Options

Move	Frames
Neutral Air	10 Frames
Shield Grab	10 Frames
Up Air	10 Frames
Back Air	13 Frames
Up B	14 Frames

Captain Falcon's out of shield options are somewhat limited, as the fastest options he has are all 10 frames, which isn't quick enough to punish safe moves. If a move is punishable, usually grab is the best option, as it can provide the biggest reward. Up special can work too, if you predict your opponent will shield after their attack, but 14 frames is pretty slow for a punish, so in most cases, you'll just need to try and reset neutral instead.

Jab (Neutral Attack)

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Jab 1 (A)	1.8	3	1	14
Jab 2	1.8	5	1	13
Jab 3	6	6	2	25
Rapid Jab (Multi-Hit)	0.72	5/7/9/11/13 /15/17/19	1	14/12/10/8 /6/4/2/0
Rapid Jab (Finisher)	3.6	6	2	42

Jab

Captain Falcon's jab has quick startup, and has two variations: a 3 hit combo by pressing holding the attack button, or a rapid jab by quickly inputting it three times. The full rapid jab combo does pretty good damage, so it is a good whiff punish option for moves with low endlag.

Dash Attack / Tilts

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Dash Attack (Regular) （Dash ＋ A）	12	7	3	28
Dash Attack (Late)	7.2	10	7	21
Forward Tilt (Angled Up) (← or → + A)	12/10.8/10.8	7	4	19
Forward Tilt (Normal)	10.8/10.8/9.6	7	4	19
Forward Tilt (Angled Down)	12/10.8/10.8	7	4	19
Up Tilt (↑ + A)	13.2	17	4	19
Down Tilt (↓ + A)	12	11	2	22

Dash Attack

Dash Attack has a long hitbox, so it is good for apporaching, covering a ledge getup, or whiff punishing. It can catch landings and even lead into combos, but it is unsafe on shield, so don't overuse it. At high percents, it can KO.

Forward Tilt

Falcon's forward tilt is fast and has pretty good range. It will move Captain Falcon slightly forward after using, so it can be used to control spacing.

Up Tilt

Captain Falcon's uptilt has a meteor hitbox on it, making it an effective edgeguarding tool. If you stand near the ledge when an opponent is offstage, and time the attack right, it will spike them as they try to recover.

Down Tilt

Down Tilt has somewhat slow startup and decent range. Like ftilt, using it moves Falcon forward a bit, so you can use it for microspacing. It also has high knockback, and can be used for poking, as well as edgeguarding.

Smash Attacks

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Forward Smash (Angled Up) (← or→ + A)	24	19	4	37
Forward Smash (Normal)	22.8	19	4	37
Forward Smash (Angled Down)	24	19	4	37
Up Smash 1 (Smash ↑ + A)	8.4	22	1	23
Up Smash 2	16.8	28	1	17
Down Smash 1 (Smash ↓ + A)	16.8	19	2	28
Down Smash 2	21.6	29	2	18

Forward Smash

Although it has a pretty slow startup (19 frames), it can sometimes be hard for an opponent to make out, so it is somewhat easy to hit for a smash attack. It can be useful as a mixup by running away from an opponent, then quickly changing direction with it. It can be angled up or down to hit opponents of different sizes. Whiffing it will usually lead to a punish, however.

Up Smash

Captain Falcon's up smash is good for racking up damage, and can even combo into aerials at certain percents. However, it has very low endlag, making it hard for opponents to punish, especially if used from under a platform.

Down Smash

While it is probably the least useful of his smash attacks, down smash can still be used to catch a roll, and even KO at higher percents. The back hit is stronger than the first one, so try to hit opponents with the second hit. Like up smash, it has very little endlag, and can be hard to punish.

Aerials

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Neutral Air (Hit 1) (A + no direction while airborne)	4.8	7	2	31
Neutral Air (Hit 2)	7.2	13	2	25
Forward Air (Hold ← or → in the direction you are facing + A while airborne)	26.4/7.2	14	1	31
Forward Air (Late)	3.6	15	16	15
Back Air (← or → Opposite of the direction you are facing + A while airborne)	15.6	10	2	24
Back Air (Late)	9.6	12	4	20
Up Air (↑ + A While Airborne)	12/10.8	7	5	20
Up Air (Late)	10.8/9.6	12	2	18
Down Air (↓ + A While Airborne)	16.8	16	3	26

Neutral Air

Neutral air comes out fast, and is a great combo starter if fast falled, as it can lead into another neutral air, or even a forward air. It is also a good follow up for a down throw.

Forward Air

The sweetspot of forward air will deal massive damage and knockback, making it a great combo finisher and KO option. The sweetspot also deals significant shield stun, so can be used for pressuring opponents. If the sourspot or late hitbox hits, it will deal very little damage and knockback, so it is important to learn the timing.

Back Air

Back air is quick, and -5/-7 on shield, making it good for applying pressure. It will send opponents horizontally, making it great for edgeguarding.

Up Air

Captain Falcon's up air is used as a combo extender. If you get familiar with how it hits an opponent, it can be used to combo into forward air.

Down Air

Captain Falcon's down air has a meteor hitbox, so it can be used to spike opponents offstage. On stage, it can also combo into forward air for a powerul kill confirm.

Specials

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Neutral Special (Ground) (B)	30	53	5	46
Neutral Special (Ground, Reversed)	33.6	62	5	51
Neutral Special (Aerial)	26.4	53	5	46
Neutral Special (Aerial, Reversed)	30	62	5	51
Side Special (Ground, Search) （←or→+B）	0	10	16	46
Side Special (Ground, Hit)	12	6	3	20
Side Special (Aerial, Search)	0	19	17	-35
Side Special (Aerial, Hit)	12	5	1	-5
Up Special (Command Grab) (↑ + B)	6	3	-2	16
Up Special (Release)	15.6	2	1	40
Down Special (Ground) （↓+B）	18	15	3	53
Down Special (Ground, Late 1)	13.2	18	8	45
Down Special (Ground, Late 2)	8.4	26	10	35
Down Special (Aerial)	18	16	2	41
Down Special (Aerial, Late 1)	14.4	18	8	33
Down Special (Aerial, Late 2)	10.8	26	4	29
Down Special (Landing)	10.8	1	2	33

Neutral Special (Falcon Punch)

Falcon Punch is an extremely powerful move, but has very long startup and endlag, making it hard to make use of. If you press the stick in the opposite direction during its startup animation, you can reverse the direction to deal even more damage. Its main application is as a shield break punish, or as a hard read for a stylish punish.

Side Special (Raptor Boost)

Falcon's side special has armor before the move connects. It is great to use as a combo starter into up air, etc, but it has significant endlag, so whiffing will lead to a punish.

Up Special (Falcon Dive)

Falcon Dive is mostly just used for recovery. If it catches an opponent in the air, it can be used again, allowing him to counter an edgeguard attempt. It is also a command grab, so it will grab onto opponents who were shielding.

Down Special (Falcon Kick)

Falcon kick can be used for recovery when knocked to a high part of the screen. Its other applications are for getting out of disadvantage (although it should be a mix up, as it can be punish if overused), an approach option, or as a whiff punish.

Grabs and Throws

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Pummel	1.56	1	1	5
Grab (Normal)	-	6	2	28
Dash Grab	-	9	2	33
Pivot Grab	-	10	2	27
Forward Throw (Hitbox) (← or → While Grabbing)	4.2	11	2	20
Forward Throw (Throw)	4.8	13	1	19
Back Throw (Hitbox) (← or → While Grabbing)	4.2	12	2	32
Back Throw (Throw)	4.8	13	1	32
Up Throw (Hitbox) (↑ While Grabbing)	4.8	12	2	24
Up Throw (Throw)	6	14	1	23
Down Throw (Throw) (↓ While Grabbing)	7.2	21	1	18

Forward Throw

Forward throw is mainly used for gaining stage control, or to throw an opponent offstage. At very high percents, it can KO if used near the ledge.

Back Throw

Like forward throw, back throw is used for gaining stage control, or to throw an opponent offstage. At high percents, it can KO if used near the ledge (sooner than forward throw).

Up Throw

Throws an opponent upwards. Doesn't lead to any true opponents, but can be used to try and juggle opponents with poor disadvantage.

Down Throw

Down Throw is Captain Falcon's best throw for combos, so it is typically the go to throw in most scenarios. It can be followed up with a Nair to rack up damage.

Final Smash

Attack	How to Use	Effect
Blue Falcon	Press B after obtaining the Smash Ball	Captain Falcon summons the Blue Falcon, damaging the opponent, then runs the opponent over with it.

Captain Falcon Balance Changes

Version 11.0.0 Balance Patch

	Change
Up Special	Reduced endlag after hitting an opponent.

Version 8.0.0 Balance Patch

	Change
Dash Attack	Reduced vulnerability.
Down Tilt Attack	Extended launch distance.
Up Smash Attack	Extended launch distance of the second attack.
Side Special	Increased attack range forward when used on the ground. Adjusted launch angle when used on the ground. Shortened launch distance when used on the ground. Made it easier to trigger a meteor effect when using the move in the air.
Down Special	Increased attack speed. Extended launch distance when hitting in the high-damage range.

Version 7.0.0 Balance Patch

	Change
Neutral Attack 1	Made it easier to hit multiple times.
Other	Increased shield size.

Version 3.1.0 Balance Patch

	Change
Side Tilt Attack	Extended launch distance.
Up Tilt Attack	Increased attack speed.
Forward Air Attack	Increased the high-damage range.
Back Air Attack	Extended launch distance.
Side Special	Increased attack speed when getting close to an opponent. Increased the durability of the super armor. Extended the time until launched opponents can move again.
Down Special	Extended the time hit detection lasts on the ground and in the air.

Major Changes From Smash 4

	Change
Up Special (↑ + B)	Distance increased. Better recovery = Buff.
Side Special (← or → + B)	No longer useful for KOs. Nerf.

How to Unlock Captain Falcon

Unlocking Via Smash Mode
11th Fighter Unlocked After unlocking Ice Climbers, let 10 minutes pass OR play another battle in smash after soft-resetting OR return to the menu from World of Light
Unlocking via Classic Mode
Clear Classing Mode 1 time using Fox.
Unlocking via World of Light
Raceway

There are three ways to unlock Captain Falcon. Completing any of these, then defeating Captain Falcon when they appear in the “a New Challenger Appears” screen will allow you to use them afterward.

How to Unlock Characters Fast

Captain Falcon Alt Costumes and Skins

Captain Falcon Reveal Trailer

Smash Ultimate Character Guides

List of Fighters
Tier List	Unlocking Fighters

Character Stat Lists

Character Stats
Weights of All Characters	Run Speeds of All Characters
Air Speeds of All Characters	Fast Fall Speeds of All Characters