After more than a year of surviving in a world infested by walking, biting corpses, the gang from "The Walking Dead" have no shortage of creative ways to get rid of pesky zombies.

But some of their killing techniques are better than others, which is why we've ranked them in this list, from the cream of the crop to the actual worst. Many factors were considered -- from effectiveness to messiness, level of difficulty to materials required -- in order to separate the best from the rest. And here they are, starting with...

The bullseye.

Quick, efficient, noiseless, and neat. This technique wins it all for letting the killer not only dispatch a zombie quietly, but avoid getting sprayed with human goo in the process.

The tap'n'turn.

Notice the quick pivot to escape being hit by brain-spray as your target's head explodes. EXCELLENT.

The point-blank headshot.

A foolproof, no-nonsense kill, just as long as you can get close enough.

The katana two-fer.

Effective, but tough. Cutting off one head is difficult; cutting off two at once takes serious skillz.

The chin-up.

This technique is only necessary when the zombie's skull is otherwise obstructed, thus its lower ranking. But for helmet-clad targets, it's unbeatable.

The vehicular zombicide.

In the unlikely event that you happen to have a) a Subaru hatchback, and b) a perfectly-positioned zombie, you certainly could kill it this way. But lord, the mess.

The head smash.

Grappling up close with the dead like this should generally be avoided, but when you can't aim a crossbow properly through your tears, this is the way to go.

The backdoor stab.

Just as effective as an ordinary stabbing, but with extra points for artistry.

The stab.

Simple and straightforward. However, novice zombie-killers should practice with a longer-range weapon, like a machete, before working up to knifing their target in the skull.

Hose 'em.

Highly effective, but points off for requiring special equipment.

The half-head slice.

It works, but it's too difficult to make our top five. Hitting that sweet spot to slice the skull halfway up is a lot trickier than just severing the head.

The spade to the face.

Another face-crushing technique, this one beats out the stomp and the sledgehammer for not requiring you to put any actual body parts into a zombie's head or accurately swing a heavy weapon, respectively.

The sledgehammer.

Effective, but messy, and easy to miss.

The stomp.

Easier than the sledgehammer, but significantly more disgusting.

The zombie-o-lantern.

It's really difficult to accurately aim a flare right into a zombie's eye socket, but it works, and it sure is pretty.

Hammering the herd.

Only Tyreese could have survived using this completely inefficient technique, which not only requires serious power and accuracy, but uses a tool with a range of 12 measly inches.

The big stick method.

Yes, you can use a stick to rip a zombie's cranium clear in half, but it requires a lot of strength, a strong stomach, and a mercenary disposition. In other words: The Governor could do this, but you probably can't.

Ripping out the spinal cord through the throat.

Both disgusting and dangerous (cutting yourself on a jagged bit of bone would be just as bad as getting bitten, right?), and also requires both superhuman strength and an indepth knowledge of human anatomy. Not recommended.

The citrus approach.

Just peel, then separate into sections! Although it gets the job done, this technique seems needlessly complicated when a simple stab would do just fine.

The soggy split.

Getting the zombie all waterlogged and then letting it break into two mushy pieces: this technique earns the second-lowest spot on the list for a) being an accident, and b) not even actually killing the zombie. Geez, guys.

Cutting off 20 zombie heads and putting them in an aquarium.

Not only does it not kill the zombies, and not only do the severed heads pose a serious hazard if the tank gets smashed, but SERIOUSLY DUDE WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU.