It’s unfortunate that so much pressure is put on an 11-year-old in the Harry Potter universe, as being sorted into a particular House at Hogwarts basically sentences that kid into pursuing just one attribute about themselves. While we saw many excel in their Houses, there were also some who had missed opportunities and either buckled under pressure, or just didn’t reach their maximum potential due to their Houses not celebrating their uniqueness.
Over the course of the novels, plays, and film series, we’ve seen dozens of characters that we believe might have been sorted incorrectly, and here are 10 such names that really would have excelled in another House. If nothing else, we can just wait for Rowling to change her mind in the future.
Hermione Granger: Ravenclaw
Hermione achieved all there was to achieve; she became a legendary figure who helped take out Voldemort and then succeeded into being the Minister for Magic. However, she’s still mainly known as a heroic figure rather than an intellectual one.
Had she been in Ravenclaw, Hermione would have excelled in her thinking capacity. Ron and Harry kept her occupied with their taste for adventure, which limited Hermione’s smarts toward rule breaking and rebellion. Her passion toward championing house-elf rights were treated as a joke by Gryffindors, and we think Ravenclaw would have given her a better platform to expand her mental horizons and reach her goals much earlier than she did.
Luna Lovegood: Gryffindor
She was ostracized for being “loony” in her own house, since Ravenclaws were stereotyped with being smart rather than being creative. Luna came into her own by befriending Gryffindors, and showed her brave spirit after joining the Dumbledore’s Army faction.
Being a Gryffindor would have meant she’d been Ginny’s friend right from the get-go, and been around Harry and company for years. Since Gryffindors don’t stress on smarts, Luna’s eccentricity wouldn’t have made her an outcast, and she would have had her courageous side explored in full.
Cedric Diggory: Gryffindor
It’s pretty simple to understand that Cedric would have been alive today had he not been in Hufflepuff. The boy was a strapping young man who was clearly miles ahead of any other Hufflepuff in achievements and skills.
In Gryffindor, Cedric would have been among his peers; rather than standing out so much as an exceptional student, Cedric would have found equals who didn’t tout his greatness all the time. Chances are, he wouldn’t have been fixated on being a great Quidditch player or a TriWizard winner, but been able to find what he liked to do in life and excelled in it.
Fred and George Weasley: Ravenclaw
These two were so much smarter than given credit for—actually, no-one gave them any credit for being smart at all. However, Fred and George proved they were incredibly smart when they devised spells and magical materials that impressed even Hermione.
They didn’t care about studies, which led to them dropping out of school. But studying would have definitely benefited them by allowing them to come up with smarter ways to start their business aspirations. Moreover, they would’ve have had the support of their mother if they had been in Ravenclaw, where being among intellectuals would have given the boys’ smarter tendencies a well-meaning kick.
Neville Longbottom: Hufflepuff
Neville never sought to be the smartest, he never wanted to be the bravest, and he never had any big ambitions - he was happy being part of the crowd and credited as a hard worker. All of these are qualities of a Hufflepuff.
In fact, Neville suffered in his initial years in Gryffindor chiefly because he had a mountain of expectations by being sent into a House that was well-known for big achievers. As a Hufflepuff, Neville’s sensitive side would have been celebrated, especially seeing as Professor Sprout had a liking for him. Without so much pressure, Neville would have had the calmness needed to go out and make friends, and not been such a loner with no confidence.
Newt Scamander: Gryffindor
He’s the ultimate Nice Guy that you can find out there, but Newt needed to find his assertive side in school to survive. As it happened, he was too nice to the point that he got expelled undeservedly.
He proved himself to be a brave man in adulthood, and his situation would have been so much better had he completed school as a Gryffindor. Here, Newt would have learned to separate his nice tendencies with what was just and fair, and wouldn’t have been the gullible person he became. With confidence on his side, there was a world of opportunity for Newt to explore in Hogwarts and he could have graduated and entered a field that played to his strengths as an outgoing person.
James Potter: Slytherin
By all accounts, James Potter seemed to be a piece of work who pretty much got lucky that Snape ruined his chances with Lily, thus allowing Potter to mature a bit now that Lily’s influence was on him.
He was a bully, who had the advantage of a cunning mind that enabled him to excel in his studies with minimal effort. Being in Slytherin would’ve curbed his bullying tendencies, believe it or not. That’s because Potter being so gifted wouldn’t have been made a big deal in Slytherin, and without Sirius being constantly around him, Potter wouldn’t have turned out to be full of himself.
Severus Snape: Gryffindor
Albus himself questioned the Sorting Hat’s decision to send Snape into Slytherin, seeing as the latter spent his entire adult life being the bravest man there ever was. The best part about being in Gryffindor would’ve been that Snape and Lily would have been around each other, meaning Lily would never have allowed him to become a Death Eater.
Plus, there’s a chance that Snape could have been friends with the Marauders, since being sent to Gryffindor would’ve proved him to be worthy of being around Potter and Sirius, who probably would then befriend him. Since he’d be cut off from future Death Eaters, being in Gryffindor would have turned an honest man out of Snape.
Peter Pettigrew: Slytherin
Nothing about this guy was brave in the least, and it seems he somehow duped the Sorting Hat into sending him into Gryffindor. Still, Pettigrew was a very able wizard, whose only problem was his cowardice.
In Slytherin, he wouldn’t have constantly worried about surviving school; rather, Pettigrew’s cunning side could have come out and he might have had a shot at excelling in his studies. With some validation that he really wasn’t just meant to be a minion, Pettigrew wouldn’t have been such a traitor and ironically learned to be brave in a House whose main trait was to be ambitious.
Albus Severus: Hufflepuff
Really just a poor character to come out of the series, Albus Severus turned out to be a whiner who couldn’t keep up with being the son of the famous Harry Potter. Being sent to Slytherin was the worst thing that happened, as his insecurities caught up to him.
As a Hufflepuff, there wouldn’t have been any conflict in this kid over whether he was good or seemingly bad, and he’d instead enjoy Hogwarts for the magic it provided. If nothing else, he would’ve been better off as a Squib, seeing that Harry and Ginny would’ve loved him regardless and Albus would not grow up being scared of being sorted into Slytherin.