MetaAOEAoE4 counters: what beats every unit
Find the unit your opponent makes, read across: the first answer is the safest, the others work too. The same counters MetaAOE shows in game.
Standard units
The units every civ (or nearly) can make.
Archers→
Horsemen
Men-at-arms
Mangonels
Longbowmen→HorsemenMen-at-armsMangonels
Spearmen→ArchersMen-at-arms
Handcannoneers- Horsemen→Spearmen
Knights - Knights→Spearmen
Crossbowmen
Camel riders 
Lancers→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders- Men-at-arms→CrossbowmenHandcannoneersKnights
- Crossbowmen→HorsemenArchersMangonels
- Handcannoneers→HorsemenKnightsMangonels
Gunpowder infantry (Streltsy, Janissaries)→HorsemenKnightsMangonels
Zhuge Nu→HorsemenKnightsMangonels
Grenadiers→HorsemenKnights
Horse archers→ArchersCrossbowmenHorsemen
Mangudai→ArchersCrossbowmenHorsemen- Camel riders→SpearmenArchersMen-at-arms
Camel archers→ArchersMen-at-armsCrossbowmen
War elephants→SpearmenCrossbowmenHandcannoneers
Tower elephants→CrossbowmenSpearmenHandcannoneers- Mangonels→HorsemenKnights
Springalds→HorsemenKnights
Culverins→HorsemenKnights
Bombards→HorsemenKnightsCulverins
Trebuchets→HorsemenKnights
Rams→Men-at-armsSpearmenKnights
Siege towers→Men-at-armsSpearmenKnights
Monks→HorsemenKnights
Traders→HorsemenKnights
These counters in game, one key away
In game, MetaAOE reads your opponent's civ and opens its counters on Alt+C, over the game. Free, on Overwolf.
Unique units
Units only one civ has, and what beats them.
Keshiks→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Cataphracts→CrossbowmenHandcannoneersSpearmen
Varangian guards→CrossbowmenHandcannoneersKnights
Limitanei→ArchersMen-at-armsHandcannoneers
Landsknechte→ArchersHorsemenKnights
Royal knights→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Arbalétriers→HorsemenKnightsMangonels
Janissaries→HorsemenKnightsMangonels
Sipahi→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Great bombards→HorsemenKnights
Ghulams→CrossbowmenArchersKnights
Desert raiders→SpearmenArchersCamel riders
Camel lancers→SpearmenCrossbowmenMen-at-arms
Samurai→CrossbowmenHandcannoneersKnights
Mounted samurai→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Onna-musha→ArchersCrossbowmenHorsemen
Yumi ashigaru→HorsemenMen-at-armsMangonels
Ozutsu→HorsemenKnightsMangonels
Donso→ArchersMen-at-armsHandcannoneers
Musofadi warriors→ArchersHorsemenMen-at-arms
Sofa→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Javelin throwers→HorsemenMen-at-armsMangonels
Fire lancers→SpearmenArchersMen-at-arms
Palace guards→CrossbowmenHandcannoneersKnights
Nest of bees→HorsemenKnights
Ghazi raiders→SpearmenArchersCamel riders
Black riders→SpearmenCamel ridersKnights
Hospitaller knights→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Serjeants→CrossbowmenHandcannoneersKnights
Genoese crossbowmen→HorsemenMen-at-armsMangonels
Iron pagodas→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Yeomen→HorsemenMen-at-armsMangonels
Hobelars→SpearmenKnights
Demilancers→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Riddari→SpearmenCrossbowmenCamel riders
Huihui pao→HorsemenKnights
Counters civ by civ
The units each civ plays most in its popular builds, and how to beat them.
Abbasid Dynasty
Ayyubids
Byzantines
Chinese
Delhi Sultanate
English
French
Golden Horde
House of Lancaster
Holy Roman Empire
Japanese
Jeanne d’Arc
Jin Dynasty
Knights Templar
Macedonian Dynasty
Malians
Mongols
Order of the Dragon
Ottomans
Rus
Sengoku Daimyo
Tughlaq Dynasty
Zhu Xi’s LegacyQuestions
What counters knights in AoE4?
Spearmen are the safest answer to knights. Crossbowmen and camel riders work too.
What counters archers in AoE4?
Horsemen are the safest answer to archers. Men-at-arms and mangonels work too.
What counters spearmen in AoE4?
Archers are the safest answer to spearmen. Men-at-arms and handcannoneers work too.
What counters men-at-arms in AoE4?
Crossbowmen are the safest answer to men-at-arms. Handcannoneers and knights work too.
What counters handcannoneers in AoE4?
Horsemen are the safest answer to handcannoneers. Knights and mangonels work too.
What counters mangonels in AoE4?
Horsemen are the safest answer to mangonels. Knights work too.
Why do my counters still lose?
Counters are unit-class rules. Upgrades, army size and micro still decide the fight: a counter with fewer upgrades can lose.
Where are the AoE II counters?
On the full chart, with every AoE II unit: AoE IV and AoE II counters.