Are there Class Tiers in D&D 5e?

Question

From this and this, I get that there are some (official?) tiers for classes in D&D 3.5e.

Is there such a thing for D&D 5e? If there are, at least I expect them to be separated across class archtypes, not just classes.

For reference, I'm using the tiers from 3.5e. For example, Tiers 1 and 5 are:

Tier 1: Capable of doing absolutely everything, often better than classes that specialize in that thing. Often capable of solving encounters with a single mechanical ability and little thought from the player. Has world changing powers at high levels.

Tier 5: Capable of doing only one thing, and not necessarily all that well, or so unfocused that they have trouble mastering anything, and in many types of encounters the character cannot contribute. In some cases, can do one thing very well, but that one thing is very often not needed. Has trouble shining in any encounter unless the rest of the party is weak in that situation and the encounter matches their strengths.

Answer 1

5e doesn't have official tiers. 5e material is play tested a lot before content is released for official books. WoTC balanced 5e much better, hinging a lot of choices on the concept of bounded accuracy. Typically, UA play test material is overpowered to start with, then dialed back before official release.

Some unbalances do exist: a prominent example is that the original Ranger Beast Master was underpowered.

Answer 2

Sort of. As we can see from this answer clerics and wizards are still more exponential than fighters and rogues, and end up distinctly better at level 20. However, the path to that point has drastically changed, and there are now levels where it is best to be a fighter! It's certainly still reasonable to talk about tiers of power, and the old tier definitions still make meaningful discriminations between classes, at a given level. What's different is that "tiers 1, 5, and 6 at this time don't exist" and that the 'flatter' power curve of 5e makes cross-tier play less awful.

Answer 3

5e does use the term "Tiers", but in a different way.

Instead of a gauge for the relative strength between classes, Fifth Edition uses the term to refer to the overall strength of characters at different levels—what amount of power they typically wield and the sort of threats they are likely to encounter.

Chapter One of the PHB lists four tiers of play, under the header, "Tiers of Play". To paraphrase, since the section is too lengthy to quote:

Tier 1 is levels 1-4.Characters are effectively apprentice adventurers, and face minor threats to local farm steads or villages.

Tier 2 is levels 5-10. Spell casters are more powerful, fighting classes get extra attacks. Characters face dangers that threaten cities and kingdoms.

Tier 3 is levels 11-16. Characters are high above the ordinary populace. They have powers that create previously impossible effects, or the ability to do very impressive things with their attacks. They confront threats to whole regions and continents.

Tier 4 is levels 17-20. Characters achieve pinnacle of class features, becoming archetypes. They confront threats to the world or even the multiverse.