Can you imagine the Harry Potter series with the eponymous character in Ravenclaw, Slytherin, or Hufflepuff?

There’s little doubt Harry belonged in Gryffindor; He clearly valued bravery and chivalry over anything else, and those traits are what guided the entire series. Being in Gryffindor also impacted Harry’s social life. Had he been surrounded by different people, it’s likely he would have developed differently, having been influenced by their traits and values.

At the end of the day, Harry would still be Harry. He’d have the same values. But if he’d ended up in another house, there would slight changes in his character, differences in what he values most, that could lead to a very different life path.

Hufflepuff

A Hufflepuff Harry Potter would put other people first even more than he already does. He’d struggle with a typical Hufflepuff’s patient nature, but being around other level-headed people would help him act less rash. He’d continue to work hard in areas of interest to him, but it’s likely he still wouldn’t exert himself in subjects he finds pointless.

The biggest difference in Hufflepuff-Harry would be his disregard for rules. Under the badger banner, Harry would have more of an obligation to follow rules, if just from peer pressure.

Ravenclaw

Similarly to Hufflepuff, in Ravenclaw, Harry would face a great deal of pressure to not break or bend rules. His quick wit and snark would thrive here though, as well as his tendency to act independently. In Ravenclaw, Harry might not find the kinship with his fellow peers that he would in the other houses. Without those close relationships, it’s possible Harry might not develop the kind and sympathetic nature he’s capable of.

Slytherin

Harry is already ambitious, daring, resourceful, and a strong leader, but as a Slytherin, Harry’s desire to help others would be limited. He would be groomed to take care of those closest to him, but not go out of his way for outsiders. Because he’s Harry Potter, self-preservation would have to be instilled in him, but eventually he’d learn to think a little before acting.

There are infinite possibilities for how Harry’s life would be different if he were in another house, so here are just a few examples of what would change:

Flying the Ford Anglia to Hogwarts

Hufflepuff:

Hufflepuff-Harry would never have dreamed of doing something so reckless. He would have insisted they wait for Ron’s parents, tell them what happened, and let them decide the next course of action.

Ravenclaw:

Ravenclaw-Harry already knows a way to Hogwarts without the train.

Slytherin:

Harry’s crafty side would shine here. He and Ron would still get to Hogwarts on their own, but they’d have a much smarter plan. Presumably this plan would not have resulted in detention for either of them, in which case Ron would never have seen Riddle’s name on a plaque and made the connection to the diary.

Going to the Ministry to ‘rescue’ Sirius

Hufflepuff:

In all honesty, Hufflepuff-Harry would have rushed to the Ministry too. Being in Hufflepuff just amplifies Harry’s loyalty and need to help others, and he’d still rush to Sirius’ aid.

Ravenclaw:

A Ravenclaw-Harry definitely wouldn’t have rushed to the scene without finding out all the facts first. In doing so, he would have known Sirius was fine, and that fight could have been avoided. Sirius may even have lived.

Slytherin:

Being Harry’s Godfather, Slytherin-Harry would definitely want to go and help, but he also wouldn’t have jumped into action so quickly. Like a Ravenclaw, Harry would do a little more fact-checking first.

Using Polyjuice to get into Slytherin common room

Hufflepuff:

A Hufflepuff could never make a potion from the restricted section. They’d have too much anxiety about breaking rules. Instead, Harry would have taken the most honest route. He would spend a month getting chummy with Malfoy, maybe even giving him (untainted) cake, in an effort to win his trust. Once they’re friends, he would ask outright if Malfoy knows who opened the Chamber. Now imagine the rest of the series with Harry and Draco as friends. Half Blood Prince would be very different.

Ravenclaw:

Harry would have made the Polyjuice himself and gone in solo. Not much would change except Harry doesn’t need friends.

Slytherin:

This one is fairly obvious. Being a Slytherin would mean Harry could’ve just walked right into the Slytherin common room and eavesdropped. He also could have asked Draco straight up if he knew who opened the chamber, because they might be friends.

Would Harry have kept the Marauder’s Map?

Hufflepuff:

Definitely not. It was confiscated for a reason. Not having that map would have significantly altered Harry’s journey: No trips to Honeydukes, no discovering Pettigrew was alive, no trip to the prefect’s bathroom to open the Golden Egg, no Dumbledore’s Army….

Ravenclaw:

Unlikely. Using the map for his own purposes is a form of deception and cheating.

Slytherin:

Definitely. In fact, he would have used it for the same purposes he did as a Gryffindor.

Fetching Neville’s Remembrall in ‘Sorcerer’s Stone’

Hufflepuff:

Harry would get everyone to pitch in some knuts and buy him a new one. But by not going after the Remembrall, he wouldn’t have shown off his flying prowess and wouldn’t have ended up on the Quidditch team as early as he did.

Ravenclaw:

Not wanting to rise (literally or figuratively) to Malfoy’s bait, Ravenclaw-Harry would have used his wit and sass to make Malfoy give it back. Ultimately this would have the same result as Hufflepuff.

Slytherin:

Harry would care why? Neville’s a Gryffindor, who is he to Harry?

Follow the spiders

Hufflepuff:

Harry would still follow the spiders, but one of two very different things could happen: 1) Harry dies, or 2) He befriends Aragog. There is no in between.

Ravenclaw:

Fat chance a Ravenclaw Harry would have gone into the forest to help Hagrid. He would have headed to the books to figure out a legal loophole to set Hagrid free.

Slytherin:

Assuming Slytherin-Harry was just as close with Hagrid as Gryffindor-Harry, he would have followed the spiders into the forest out of loyalty to Hagrid. But at the first sight of Aragog, his self-preservation would have kicked in and he’d be out of there so fast.

Would Harry have kept the Half-Blood Prince’s textbook notes?

Hufflepuff:

Probably. But, after discovering that the scribblings worked, he would have shared it with everyone else, so they’re all on equal playing field. With so many people seeing the book though, many more students would learn dangerous spells like Sectumsempra.

Ravenclaw:

Definitely not. Ravenclaw-Harry would still love to get ahead, but he wouldn’t resort to cheating. He’d give it back to Slughorn and tell him what’s in the book. Without the book though, Ron probably would have died from poisoning.

Slytherin:

Absolutely. It’s not cheating if you lucked into finding the book, right?

Would Harry have used Levicorpus and Sectumsempra without knowing what it would do?

Hufflepuff:

No. A Hufflepuff would never take such a chance. Thus, he would not have gotten detention from using it on Malfoy, would not have missed the Quidditch match, and Ravenclaw probably would have beaten Gryffindor. This match was a pivotal moment for Harry and Ginny’s relationship, so playing against her would have changed everything.

Ravenclaw:

No. Ravenclaw-Harry would have gone to a professor to ask though.

Slytherin:

No. However, he still would have wanted to know what the spells did, and might try it out on inanimate objects.

Movieism! Breaking the Elder Wand before fixing his own

The result is the same no matter the house: Harry would have fixed his own wand before getting rid of the Elder Wand.