Dragon Ball Super villains ranked by power

From Zamasu to Broly and Toppo to Hit, we’ve got out our scouter to rank the Dragon Ball Super villains by power level.

Dragon Ball Super introduced several unforgettable bad guys (and reintroduced one classic villain) who forced our favorite Dragon Ball characters to train like never before and unlock hitherto unthinkable levels of power. Some of these ne’er do wells were gods, others were aliens, and a few were heroes from other universes.

What they all have in common, though, is their incredible strength. Indeed, these fighters were so powerful (and Dragon Ball Super’s power-scaling so wonky) that it could be tough to know who was stronger than who.

Well, don’t worry. To celebrate Dragon Ball Z finally streaming in the UK, I’ve been through all the Dragon Ball Super sagas to bring an indisputable list of the strongest Dragon Ball Supervillains. For the record, we’ve avoided any manga-exclusive characters like Moro and Granhola for now, but don’t worry. We know they exist, and yes, they’re very strong.

10. Zamasu

Gowasu’s omnicidal apprentice, Zamasu, might not look like much of a fighter, but his calm exterior belied his incredible power. Zamasu could go toe-to-toe with Super Saiyan 2 Goku, and his future counterpart could even deal with Saiyan Blue (although he was immortal which is basically cheating). Unfortunately for the genocidal god, while he’s an impressive fighter, he lacks the raw strength of other warriors on this list, relying on guile and sneak attacks to win his fights instead.

9. Hit

If we ranked characters by their cool looks, then Hit would take the top spot (he wears a space trench coat!). Alas, that’s not the case, and while Hit’s ability to stop time makes him a deadly combatant and arguably Universe 6’s strongest unfused fighter, his unique fighting style means he’s better suited to hit-and-run attacks than prolonged battles. So, while he’s capable of making the other fighters on the list break a sweat, we can’t see him beating them in a one-on-one fight.

8. Goku Black

Dragon Ball fans have been fantasizing about an evil Goku for decades now (sorry, Turles, you’re non-canon… and sh*t), and they finally got their wish in 2016 when Goku Black attacked. We won’t bother explaining his back story because it will make you crosseyed, but basically, he’s an alternate version of Zamasu who stole Goku’s body. As a result, he has all of Goku’s power with the added bonus of Zamasu’s godpowers.

Unsurprisingly, this makes Black an absolute monster in combat. Still, while he’s got incredible raw power and plenty of unique techniques, what makes Black scary is how his power is constantly growing; every blow he takes only makes him stronger. Given enough time, he probably could have become the strongest villain the Z-Fighters ever faced, but he stupidly nerfed himself by fusing with another alternate Zamasu (we told you his backstory was staggeringly convoluted).

7. Kefla

Kefla is a fusion of Kale and Caulifla, aka canon Broly (before they made Broly canon), and like all fusion characters, she’s ludicrously powerful. In her Super Saiyan form, she can fight Super Saiyan God Goku, even pushing him to use his blue form. In the anime, Goku even went so far as to describe her ki as limitless, and she’s known as Universe 6’s “true trump card.” So, why have we ranked Kefla so low if she’s so strong? Well, her greatest weakness is her arrogance. Seriously, she makes Vegeta look modest, which allows Goku (with a bit of help from Ultra Instinct) to knock her out of the way during the Tournament of Power.

6. Fused Zamasu

What happens if you glue Goku Black and Zamasu together? You get Fused Zamasu, a divine juggernaut who’s powerful enough to face off against a Super Saiyan Blue Vegetto. Fused Zamasu has all the strengths of Goku Black, with the godly power of Zamasu (and his immortality) thrown in for good measure.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, this makes him one of the strongest villains in the series, although he does suffer from one significant weakness. While Zamasu was immortal, Goku Black wasn’t, and it turns out that’s not a great combo. As a result, Fused Zamasu’s body couldn’t properly heal from Vegetto’s attacks, and he ended up looking like an action figure that had been melted in the microwave.

5. Toppo

While his big bushy mustache makes him look like a friendly alien grandpa, you shouldn’t underestimate Toppo. As the leader of the Pride Troopers and a God of Destruction in training, Toppo is one of Universe 11’s most formidable warriors. In his base form, he threw fists with some of the most powerful characters in the series, including Vegeta, 17, and Gohan.

When he reveals his real strength, though, tapping into his god of Destruction powers, he’s almost entirely unstoppable. Don’t take our word for it, though. Just look what happened to Frieza, who was turned into a human (alien?) punching bag by the deity in waiting. Toppo’s not without some weakness, though. Specifically, he’s a man guided by principles, and when he abandoned those principles and embraced his more savage side, it left a chink in his psychological armor that Vegeta was able to take advantage of.

4. Broly

For years, a specific section of the Dragon Ball fanbase would argue that Broly was the most powerful villain in the series. It was an interminably dull debate and one rendered moot by the fact Broly was non-canon. In 2019, though, Toei changed that by updating the hulking Saiyan and properly bringing him into the story.

While they made a number of changes to Broly to make him, you know… interesting, they did keep one core aspect of the character: his absurd power. Yes, Broly’s one of the most ridiculously strong characters, thanks in large part to his Legendary Super Saiyan transformation. It took Vegeta and Goku fusing into Gogeta to take him down, although it’s arguable that Broly had the power to win that fight; he just lacked the skill to defeat a more experienced martial artist.

3. Jiren

A lot of Dragon Ball villains have a quirk. Vegeta is proud, Cell is Smug, Beerus is lazy, and Frieza is all of the above. Jiren’s quirk is that he’s strong. Predictably, then, he’s strong… like stupidly strong. Ok, my distaste for Jiren aside (if Dragon Ball characters were paint colors, he’d be the tin), he does have some things going for him. He’s Universe 11’s deadliest fighter and supposedly stronger than Belmod, his resident God of Destruction. This lets him hold off multiple powerful opponents at once, as he proved when he fought Goku and Frieza at the same time. His greatest failing is his self-reliance. As such, Jiren doesn’t see the point in working with his teammates, which means he can’t anticipate his enemies’ teamwork, leaving him vulnerable to a ring out during the Tournament of Power.

2. Frieza

Frieza was the second major Dragon Ball Z villain, and we presumed we’d seen the last of the intergalactic tyrant when Trunks turned him into overcooked kebab meat. Well, it shows what we know because Frieza returned not once but twice during Dragon Ball Super’s run, even teaming up with Goku and his pals during the Tournament of Power. A pint-sized powerhouse, Frieza is, without a doubt, the most naturally talented fighter in the entire series.

With just a few months of training, his strength grew to the point where he could take on Super Saiyan Blue Goku, and after his second defeat, he managed to push his power level higher by training himself mentally (just go with it in hell). In the Dragon Ball Super manga, he’s taken things even further, unlocking a new ‘Black Form’ that puts him lightyears ahead of Goku and Vegeta in terms of strength.

1. Beerus

Beerus is the pinnacle of power in Universe 7. We’re yet to meet a fighter who’s come close to his level of strength, and we’re unlikely to in the future. As a deity, he’s got access to god ki. He can obliterate anyone with a wave of his hand, and when we saw him fight the other Gods in the manga, he could take on several at once. His greatest weakness is laziness; he just can’t be arsed with fighting.

If you can’t get enough of Goku and his friends, we’ve got loads of articles for ou to enjoy. We’ve got the 10 best Dragon Ball Z fights, how to watch Dragon Ball Z (wherever you are in the world), and a ranking of the Dragon Ball Super characters by power.

If that’s not enough, we’ve also got a guide explaining everything you need to know about Dragon Ball Daima, as well as a list of all the new TV shows coming this month.