do tiers matter?

From a sorority standpoint, honestly tiers don't matter much. Yes there are stereotypical "hot" and "popular" sororities, but every sorority is so different and great in their own way. PNMs should just pick whatever sorority they feel most comfortable with, not which one is supposedly the "best" sorority.

no. though it might seem like they do considering the amount of rankings posted on here, in real life it just doesn't matter. there's mutual respect between everyone.

However it is important in the sense that "good" sororities only mix with "good" frats and vice versa, so if thats important to you then yes i would say they do matter. And because of this I would say that girls in top sororities then become friends with top tier frat guys. you get the picture

Realize how much time you will spend being a part of a sorority and decide from there. If you focus too much on being in a top tier sorority but you hate your sisters you'll be miserable for hours every week for 4+ years. I'm in what is generally considered a bottom tier sorority but my guy friends are generally in the frats that are considered top tier. Just be yourself and you'll surround yourself with the right people for you.