Using information from this thread, here are the Top 20 Final Fantasy characters, as chosen by VGChartz. In total, 76 characters were chosen (well, 77 if you count Palom and Porom separately) from 15 distinct games and continuities.
Note that Points, not Votes, were the main deciding factor in who got where. This has led to a number of ties, but there are some clear winners and losers to be found. Also note that characters are listed in the Top 20 by their timeline's "main" game. This means, for example, Paine would be listed as being from "Final Fantasy X," despite not appearing in said game.
20. Fran (Final Fantasy 12) - 10 points
19. Terra (Final Fantasy 6) - 13 points
17. Yuna (Final Fantasy 10) and Rydia (Final Fantasy 4) - 14 points
16. Celes (Final Fantasy 6) - 15 points
15. Sephiroth (Final Fantasy 7) - 16 points
13. Zack and Vincent (Final Fantasy 7) - 17 points
9. Rikku, Edgar, Lightning, and Cecil (Final Fantasy 10, 6, 13, and 4) - 19 points
8. Kefka (Final Fantasy 6) - 24 points
7. Squall (Final Fantasy 8) - 27 points
4. Cloud Strife, Tifa, and Zidane (Final Fantasy 7, 7, and 9) - 29 points
3. Balthier (Final Fantasy 12) - 37 points
2. Vivi (Final Fantasy 9) - 52 points
1. Auron (Final Fantasy X) - 54 points
Here is every single vote in a nifty chart!
| Name | Game | Gender | Points | Votes |
| Aeris | VII | Female | 8 | 3 |
| Amarant | IX | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Asche | XII | Female | 1 | 1 |
| Auron | X | Male | 54 | 13 |
| Babus Swain | TA | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Balthier | XII | Male | 37 | 12 |
| Basch | XII | Male | 4 | 1 |
| Blank | IX | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Caius | XIII | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Cecil | IV | Male | 19 | 7 |
| Celes | VI | Female | 15 | 5 |
| Cid | VII | Male | 6 | 2 |
| Cloud Strife | VII | Male | 29 | 9 |
| Cyan | VI | Male | 6 | 2 |
| Edea Kramer | VIII | Female | 3 | 1 |
| Edgar | VI | Male | 19 | 5 |
| Emporer Mateus | II | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Fang | XIII | Female | 2 | 1 |
| Firion | II | Male | 4 | 1 |
| Fran | XII | Female | 10 | 4 |
| Gabranth | XII | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Gaius Van Baelsar | XIV | Male | 5 | 1 |
| Garnet | IX | Female | 7 | 2 |
| Gau | VI | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Genesis Rhapsodos | VII | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Gilgamesh | V | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Golbez | IV | Male | 6 | 2 |
| Hope | XIII | Male | 4 | 1 |
| Ingus | III | Male | 2 | 1 |
| Irvine | VIII | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Kain | IV | Male | 9 | 4 |
| Kefka | VI | Male | 24 | 6 |
| Kimahri | X | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Kuja | IX | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Laguna | VIII | Male | 5 | 1 |
| Lightning | XIII | Female | 19 | 5 |
| Livia Sas Junius | XIV | Female | 2 | 1 |
| Locke | VI | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Lulu | X | Female | 4 | 1 |
| Mog | VI | Male | 4 | 1 |
| Nael Van Darnus | XIV | Male | 4 | 1 |
| Nero tol Scaeva | XIV | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Paine | X | Female | 1 | 1 |
| Palom/Porom | IV | Other | 2 | 1 |
| Quistis | VIII | Female | 4 | 1 |
| Ramza | T | Male | 2 | 1 |
| Red XIII | VII | Male | 7 | 5 |
| Reno | VII | Male | 5 | 2 |
| Rhitahtyn Sas Arvina | XIV | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Rikku | X | Female | 19 | 7 |
| Rinoa | VIII | Female | 4 | 1 |
| Rosa | IV | Female | 1 | 1 |
| Rydia | IV | Female | 14 | 4 |
| Sabin | VI | Male | 3 | 1 |
| Sazh Katzroy | XIII | Male | 2 | 2 |
| Seifer | VIII | Male | 3 | 2 |
| Sephiroth | VII | Male | 16 | 5 |
| Serah | XIII | Female | 2 | 1 |
| Seymour | X | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Shadow | VI | Male | 9 | 3 |
| Snow | XIII | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Squall | VIII | Male | 27 | 9 |
| Steiner | IX | Male | 7 | 3 |
| Stiltzkin | CC | Male | 1 | 1 |
| Terra | VI | Female | 13 | 5 |
| Tidus | X | Male | 5 | 2 |
| Tifa | VII | Female | 29 | 9 |
| Vanille | XIII | Female | 9 | 3 |
| Vincent | VII | Male | 17 | 6 |
| Vivi | IX | Male | 52 | 14 |
| Wakka | X | Male | 4 | 1 |
| Yuffie | VII | Female | 6 | 2 |
| Yuna | X | Female | 14 | 4 |
| Zack | VII | Male | 17 | 5 |
| Zell Dincht | VIII | Male | 4 | 2 |
| Zidane | IX | Male | 29 | 8 |
| Continuity | Characters | Points | Votes | PpC |
| VII | 11 | 143 | 49 | 13 |
| X | 9 | 105 | 31 | 11.66666667 |
| IX | 7 | 102 | 30 | 14.57142857 |
| VI | 10 | 97 | 30 | 9.7 |
| XII | 5 | 53 | 19 | 10.6 |
| VIII | 8 | 51 | 18 | 6.375 |
| IV | 6 | 51 | 19 | 8.5 |
| XIII | 8 | 40 | 15 | 5 |
| XIV | 5 | 15 | 5 | 3 |
| II | 2 | 7 | 2 | 3.5 |
| V | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| T | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| III | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| CC | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| TA | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Gender | Characters | Points | Votes |
| Male | 53 | 484 | 159 |
| Female | 22 | 187 | 63 |
| Other | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Thoughts
- FF7 is definately the most popular Final Fantasy continuity, with over 140 points. That said, 9 and 10 also did fairly well, thanks to the top two spots. Other games with outstanding casts include 6, 12, 8, and 4.
- 9 had the most valuable characters: although only 7 characters charted, each was worth an average of over 14 points. In contrast, FF13 had 8 characters chart, but they had 5 points each on average.
- 13, though not the abysmal failure some people declare it to be, failed to establish really characters in peoples' minds other than Lightning. Likewise, the NES games, FF5, and the MMO's mostly fall beneath the radar.
- The only spinoffs represented are Tactics, Tacitcs Advance, and Crystal Chronicles.
- White Mages aren't really that popular. I mean, Aeris isn't even in the Top 20, and Yuna is only at spot #17, a tie with another summoner. In contrast, black mages like Vivi did well.
- Kefka is the most popular villain, followed by Sephiroth.
- 8 of the top 20 characters are female, but only 2/7 of the points are for female characters. The mean female character scored about as well as the average male, at about 9 or 10 points.
