If you're looking to dive into reverse engineering, starting with the right tools can make a significant difference. Here are some of the best tools recommended by experienced reverse engineers on Reddit:

Essential Tools

Disassemblers and Decompilers

• Ghidra: A free and open-source tool developed by the NSA. It's highly recommended for its comprehensive features and strong community support. "Ghidra is open source made by the NSA I believe. Pretty useful as a holistic reverse engineering tool."

• Binary Ninja: A commercial tool with a user-friendly interface and powerful scripting capabilities. "Binary Ninja also is a good alternative, I actually prefer this one since it feels easier read than Ghidra and has mostly similar features."

• IDA Pro: A well-known commercial disassembler with extensive plugin support. While it's expensive, many professionals swear by it. "IDA Pro is a good option, about another comment you said about crackme, it's too easy, look for something better, try to crack some real program (not from a company) find real problems, like the program detecting that it's being modified or things like that."

Debuggers

• x64dbg: A powerful open-source debugger for Windows. "DBGX64 is enough."

• gdb: The GNU Debugger, essential for Linux and other Unix-like systems. "Ghidra, gdb and windbg."

• WinDbg: Microsoft's debugger for Windows, useful for system-level debugging. "Ghidra, gdb and windbg."

Hex Editors

• HxD: A free and popular hex editor for Windows. "A hex editor, I typically use HxD."

• hexedit: A command-line hex editor for Linux. "Ghidra, HxD and hexedit are pretty good."

Other Useful Tools

• Cheat Engine: Great for dynamic analysis and memory manipulation. "I like to use cheat engine."

• CyberChef: A web-based tool for analyzing and manipulating data. "Keep CyberChef bookmarked and/or open in a tab."

• Compiler Explorer (godbolt.org): Useful for comparing C++ code to assembly. "You can use a compiler explorer https://godbolt.org/ for that."

Learning Resources

• Pwn College: Offers courses and challenges to help you learn reverse engineering. "Pwn College and PicoCTF are good resources."

• Guided Hacking: Provides tutorials and courses on reverse engineering and exploit development. "I started learning reverse engineering from guidedhacking, it's mainly RE for game hacking but everything you learn can be applied to any RE project."

• Practical Malware Analysis: A highly recommended book for learning malware analysis and reverse engineering. "Practical Malware Analysis is the GOAT."

• Shellcoder's Handbook: A good resource for understanding basic concepts. "Shellcoders handbook I remember being good for the basics."

Subreddits to Explore

• r/ExploitDev

• r/ReverseEngineering

• r/HowToHack

• r/cybersecurity

These tools and resources should give you a solid foundation to start your journey in reverse engineering. Good luck!