The Avatar: The Last Airbender cartoon is a fantasy action series with bending at the heart of its combat system. Bending is the arcane art of attuning oneself to the four classic elements and using motions to manipulate them, and while bending is partly based on natural affinity and training, it's also a matter of personality. When Toph Beifong taught Aang how to bend earth, for example, she told him to adjust his mindset to become stubborn and direct, like the earth itself.

That makes it surprisingly easy for fans to figure out the Avatar bending personality traits based on the 16 Myers-Briggs personality types, from the calculating INTJ to the humanitarian ENFP and the rest. The mindset, attitude, and nature of each bending type matches one of the MBTI types, often in nuanced and unexpected ways.

Updated on April 5th, 2024 by Louis Kemner: This list of the bender personality traits has been rewritten with new content and adheres to CBR's current publication standards.

16 ISTJ: Earthbender/Sandbender

ISTJ is the Logistician, a methodical, detail-oriented personality type that's comfortable with a practical daily routine. ISTJs are humble but hard workers who favor results over popularity and acclaim since a job well done is its own reward.

The matching bending type, earthbending, is a personal duel between the bender and the stubborn earth. Earthbenders focus on the practical material world around them, using blunt attacks and blocking moves to fight other benders without tapping into their spiritual side or using complex, light-footed tactics. That makes earthbending the best style for an ISTJ.

15 ISFJ: Airbender

ISFJ, the Defender, is a humble and caring personality type that focuses on supporting and nurturing other people without asking for much in return. Defenders are practical, methodical people who share an ISTJ's attitude of a job well done being its own reward, except Defenders see it in a more humanitarian way.

Airbenders are exemplary ISFJs, being selfless and kind people with a strong moral and ethical code. These people use pacifistic airbending to blow away their foes without injuring them, and they have vowed to never take lives, not even with food. Interestingly, Avatar Aang is an ENFP, though he may have some broad ISFJ traits, too.

14 INFJ: Spiritual Projection User

INFJ, or the Advocate, is a rare but fascinating personality type, and plenty of lovable anime characters are INFJ. An Advocate is a quiet, idealistic sage who ponders new ways to make society better and uphold a strong ethical code for everyone to follow. INFJs also favor stability in their lives and approach new ideas slowly and cautiously, as per their Judging side.

The airbenders that master spiritual projection are able to take their spirit and move throughout the physical realm in a spiritual form. They can also find those who have a strong bond with them easily, which gives off some INFJ vibes.

13 INTJ: Waterbender

INTJ is the Architect, the most calculating and aloof personality type of all. Architects are loosely similar to ISTJs, except they are more idea-driven, thinking about the future rather than the world immediately around them. Architects are independent-minded and approach the world as though it were one big puzzle to solve alone.

Waterbending has its nurturing side, but it also suits the Architect's mindset fairly well. Waterbending rewards creative thinking, either in the heat of battle or while theorizing new bending moves, and a waterbender can patiently build an entire city from ice, as the Northern and Southern Water Tribes both show. Conceptualizing and then patiently building an entire settlement with bending is a total Architect move.

12 ISTP: Master Of Flight

ISTP is the Virtuoso, a hands-on and practical personality type that has some overlap with ISTJ but is more open to new ideas and projects. ISTPs take life as it comes and enjoy complex projects, which may be why they're also generalized as crafters or artisans. ISTPs are generally detached and will happily pursue whatever new project they can think of.

Such a detached attitude has airbending vibes, more specifically for true flight. Only Guru Laghima and Zaheer achieved true flight, and fans can definitely see how Zaheer tapped into his ISTP side to pull it off. As a Virtuoso bender, Zaheer kept his options open and didn't commit himself too deeply to anything, treating bending as a project to master with his clever mind.

11 ISFP: Seismic Sensor

ISFP is the Adventurer, a heartfelt yet quiet and humble personality type. An Adventurer is a humanitarian wanderer who likes to explore the world and its inhabitants freely, all while developing their own artistic tastes. ISFPs like to express themselves, but as introverts, they'll do it with art rather than with large groups of people.

Adventurers are closely attuned to the world and the people around them, making them similar to seismic sensors in Avatar: The Last Airbender. Toph Beifong used seismic sensing to "see" everything and everyone around her, and her daughters Lin and Suyin did the same in The Legend of Korra.

10 INFP: Water Healer

INFP is the Mediator, a rare personality type that prefers to keep the peace and find creative ways to help people get along according to their lofty values and ideals. INFPs are similar to INFJs, except they will more easily move on to new people and new tasks as Perceivers, not getting too tied down to any group or area.

INFPs are gentle people who like to nurture others without asking for anything in return as humble introverts, so they may remind Avatar fans of waterbending healing. For example, Katara almost used spirit water to heal Zuko's scar, and she also used healing to save Aang's life after Azula nearly killed him with her lightning.

9 INTP: Combustionbender

INTP is the Logician, an analytical and detail-oriented personality type that's like a more whimsical version of INTJ. INTPs are quiet, theory-oriented people who will shift regularly from one project or idea to another in their never-ending search for the best solution to any problem.

The Logician personality type has some overlap with combustionbending, a rare firebending art whose users will whimsically perceive the world around them before finding a target. These benders also tend to fight on their own, since their bending style doesn't overlap much with other bending styles, hence the Introverted side.

8 ESTP: Lightningbender

ESTP, or the Entrepreneur, is a project-oriented personality type that's more social and outgoing than its ISTP cousin. Like ISTPs, Entrepreneurs are all about things rather than emotions or ideals, using their own two hands to craft new things or run small teams to finish a project.

Entrepreneurs may remind fans of lightningbending, an aggressive bending art that is all about practical results, usually in the heat of battle. It's a total ESTP move to focus entirely on getting tangible results in a hands-on affair like battle, rather than try to heal people or move society in a better direction. ESTPs aren't villainous by nature, but lightningbending may feel that way in Azula's hands.

7 ESFP: Lightning Redirector

ESFP is the Entertainer, the most people-oriented personality type among the 16 MBTI types. ESFPs are free-spirited, practical, socially adept individuals who treat life as a giant art project to explore, and they can't wait to meet new people and learn more about them. They are highly adaptable and flexible, too.

The ESFP type has similar qualities to the art of redirecting lightning, a bending style that Zuko's wise uncle Iroh taught him. This bending style isn't about complex battle tactics or advanced plans ahead of time — lightning redirecting adapts to the enemy's actions, gracefully redirecting their power wherever they choose in a split second.

6 ENFP: Metalbender

ENFP is the Campaigner personality type, and Avatar Aang personally embodies it with his mentality. Campaigners are socially inclined people who wander from one idea or group to another, always thinking up new ways to improve society and make people's lives easier and safer.

ENFP feels like metalbendng, a resourceful and opportunistic bending style that rewards the bender for their creative, thoughtful ways. Metalbending is complex and requires smart attunement to the earth's true nature, and it can be used for humanitarian reasons like building cities or houses. The all-metal city of Zaofu is a good example of that.

5 ENTP: Lavabender

ENTP is the Debater, a personality type that loves to talk. Debaters, true to their type's name, are always ready to discuss or debate any theory, controversy, or philosophy with anyone and everyone. ENTPs are also fairly flexible and intellectual, making them mentally light on their feet as they sling smart ideas everywhere.

The ENTP type calls to mind the art of bending lava. Ghazan, a member of the Red Lotus, first demonstrated it in Book Three: Change, an energetic and bold bending style that can be used anywhere the earth itself can be found. Bolin learned to bend it too, which saved his life as the Northern Air Temple came crashing down.

4 ESTJ: Firebender

ESTJ, or the Executive, is one of the best MBTI types for leaders. Executives are people-oriented and can juggle many ideas at once as extroverts, and they are practical and hands-on, but not as a crafters. Instead, ESTJs excel as leaders of small or large groups, using rules and paperwork to manage complex projects.

The stern yet practical ESTJ type feels like firebending, and plenty of the strongest firebenders in Avatar are either Executives or have strong Executive traits. Admiral Zhao is an example, a meticulous and strong-willed leader who can command thousands of troops with his powerful words and bold ideas.

3 ESFJ: Spiritbender

ESFJ is the Consul, the extroverted counterpart to the ISFJ personality type. Both types are methodical, down-to-earth people who like to support their friends, family, and local community as per their Judging nature, except ESFJs have more leadership qualities than ISFJs and are better at managing large groups.

Given the diplomatic and patient nature of ESFJs, they feel like spiritbending in the Avatar series. Such a bending art requires patience and diligence when training, and it can be used to pacify dark spirits to restore peace, which is absolutely a Consul move.

2 ENFJ: Energybender

ENFJ is the Protagonist, an idealistic, hardworking, and people-oriented personality type. A Protagonist likes to meet and lead lots of people as a true extrovert, and they use their Intuition and Feeling to figure out new ways to make society better, similar to the ENFP. The main difference is that Protagonists are more methodical and down-to-earth, and can be more stubborn, too.

ENFJ, with its humanitarian and hardworking ways, has some overlap with the art unofficially known as energybending. Aang used that bending art to directly fight Ozai's soul with his own, and with his ENFJ side, Aang overcame Ozai and robbed him of his firebending forever.

1 ENTJ: Bloodbender

ENTJ is one of the rarest but most effective personality types, known as the Commander. An ENTJ is fairly similar to an ESTJ, except a Commander is more inclined to use new theories to totally transform how work is done, and typically for the better. An ENTJ is also more future-oriented than the ESTJ type since the latter tends to live in the present.

The ENTJ personality type feels like bloodbending, a sinister bending art that requires diligent training to master, since it took many years for Hama to perfect it. This bending art was also the reward for Hama thinking up a new bending type rather than use her existing moves, and it allowed her to pursue her plan to hide in the Fire Nation, tormenting the people who once imprisoned her.