17 Harry Potter Professors, From Worst To Best

    They can't all be McGonagall.

    by
    Casey Rackham
    by Casey Rackham

    BuzzFeed Staff

    ,
    Farrah Penn
    by Farrah Penn

    BuzzFeed Staff Writer

    Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a magical place filled with wonderful (and not so wonderful) professors.

    Warner Bros.

    And because we haven't been able to stop talking about Harry Potter since 1997, here is a ranking of the most notable Hogwarts professors (sorry, Silvanus Kettleburn):

    17. Dolores Umbridge

    Warner Bros.

    What she taught: Defense Against the Dark Arts

    Why she landed here: It's probably no surprise that Umbridge is actually the worst professor at Hogwarts. What makes her so terrible is that she truly believes she's trying to do good. Like, her idea of detention was self-harming students with magic, not to mention all the Educational Decrees — which ranged from banning speaking about certain topics to student organizations. She a power-hungry, ruthless toad who's awful-ness knows no bounds.

    16. The Carrows

    Warner Bros.

    What they taught: Muggle Studies and Dark Arts

    Why they landed here: These two siblings are straight-up soulless Death Eaters, but they rank right above Umbridge because...honestly, can you even call them teachers? They were basically just wardens. And, also, we just really, really hate Umbridge.

    15. Gilderoy Lockhart

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Defense Against the Dark Arts

    Why he landed here: Gilderoy Lockhart is kinda the worst because he built his entire persona on lies, taking credit for heroic deeds others performed. He also literally had no idea what he was doing. Remember when he let loose the cornish pixies and then just, like, dipped out and had his students clean up his mess? Yeah.

    14. Sybill Trelawney

    Warner Bros.

    What she taught: Divination

    Why she landed here: Professor Trelawney is too fucking dramatic. Sure she made two actual prophecies, but she can't recall making them — which might be why all she cares about is having her students predict the doom and gloom of the future. The darker the better. Sweet lady who we love dearly...but, come on.

    13. Quirinus Quirrell

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Muggle Studies and Defense Against the Dark Arts

    Why he landed here: So, we're just talking about teaching skills here...so we're gonna have to kind of glide past the fact that Quirrell literally carried Voldemort on the back of his head in attempt to lure and kill Harry. But, even ignoring that, he's not all that great: his lessons were "a bit of a joke" and his classroom smelled like garlic. Lose-lose-lose situation here.

    12. Severus Snape

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Potions and Defense Against the Dark Arts

    Why he landed here: Say what you will about Snape and his loyalties to Dumbledore, but he's a bully of a teacher...he was literally an adult picking on an 11-year-old boy who'd tragically suffered the loss of his parents! And don't forget about the fact that he played favorites to a fault, which resulted in a totalitarian teaching style where students were in constant fear. He might have known potions like the back of his hand, but since when has brilliance been the only qualification for being a good teacher?

    11. Rubeus Hagrid

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Care of Magical Creatures

    Why he landed here: I know, I know. Hagrid is truly fantastic as a PERSON, but maybe not so much as a professor. He always believes the best in people — and creatures. Which means he doesn't quite see the danger in handling dangerous creatures in front of students. Prime example: Blast-Ended Skrewts.

    10. Cuthbert Binns

    Pottermore

    What he taught: History of Magic

    Why he landed here: Though Professor Binns isn't the most enthralling teacher at Hogwarts (he's so boring he puts students to sleep), he does do his job. And that has to count for something in a place where Lockhart somehow gets a job teaching impressionable young minds.

    9. Firenze

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Divination

    Why he landed here: Firenze is loyal as hell to Hogwarts (like, when he took over for Professor Trelawney when Umbridge got her fired, which resulted in him being banned from his colony in the Forbidden Forest). Even though he spent most of his time talking in circles, he did seem to genuinely care about teaching his students.

    8. Rolanda Hooch

    Warner Bros.

    What she taught: Flying/Quidditch

    Why she landed here: Madame Hooch may be a bit cutthroat, but her whip-smart attitude and fair calls were what kept Quidditch games as fair as possible. Plus, she stayed cool and calm when Neville fell off his broom.

    7. Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank

    Warner Bros.

    What she taught: Care of Magical Creatures

    Why she landed here: She might not have been as passionate at Hagrid, but it kind of really seems like she at least knew how to go about teaching young adults. Unicorns will win anyone over!

    6. Horace Slughorn

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Potions

    Why he landed here: OK, yeah, Slughorn is a bit of an elitist with his Slug Club, but he really knew his stuff with Potions. He even offered students incentives, like Felix Felicis to the student who brewed the best Draught of Living Death.

    5. Mad-Eye Moody/Barty Crouch Jr.

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Defense Against the Dark Arts

    Why he landed here: Even when Barty was posing as Mad-Eye Moody, he was actually, uh, a really good Dark Arts professor. Sure, he taught the Unforgivable Curses to the class, but, in his defense, he gave students the option to leave if they didn't want to learn it. And, honestly, it's better than Umbridge not even touching the subject, right? At the end of the day, he taught his students A LOT...even it was *technically* illegal.

    4. Filius Flitwick

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Charms

    Why he landed here: To be honest, Professor Flitwick is just an awesome professor. He's a master of charms, and he was always been patient and understanding when teaching students new charms — even when the end result ignited them on fire.

    3. Remus Lupin

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Defense Against the Dark Arts

    Why he landed here: Lupin was a pretty fantastic professor, despite having to go on leave every month to control the werewolf in him. His curriculum was filled with everything from hinkypunks to Red Caps to Boggarts, and his end-of-year exam for his students was so exciting! On top of that, he was always there outside of class to help students out.

    2. Pomona Sprout

    Warner Bros.

    What she taught: Herbology

    Why she landed here: Listen, without Professor Sprout knowing her shit, Hermione would still be petrified. As an instructor, she is firm but knowledgable, and she isn't afraid to let her students get hands-on.

    1. Minerva McGonagall

    Warner Bros.

    What she taught: Transfiguration

    Why she landed here: Professor McGonagall is a badass, albeit a fair and just badass. I mean, even when Malfoy was turned into a ferret by Professor Moody, she was like, hey man, I know he's a dick, but you can't do that. And, at the end of the day, isn't the best professor the one that helps not only as teacher but also as a mentor?

    Bonus: Albus Dumbledore

    Warner Bros.

    What he taught: Transfiguration

    Why he landed here: We never really got to see what he was like as a professor since we only knew him as a headmaster. But, one thing we know for sure is that he really cares about the well-being of his students...except Harry sometimes. But that's a whole other discussion.

    Don't agree with our ranking? Let us know in the comments SO WE CAN TALK ABOUT HARRY POTTER FOREVER.