28 Most Powerful Marvel Characters of All Time (Ranked)

The world of Marvel Comics is home to many iconic characters with powers and abilities that are beyond superhuman. But while that may be true with most characters, the truth is that some beings and entities are far more powerful than the most popular Marvel characters that people are familiar with. And that’s because the world of Marvel Comics is home to entities that are beyond imagination.

Even though we have seen our fair share of godlike beings that can destroy entire planets in Marvel, some beings are much more powerful and can affect entire realities and universes. So, with that said, we are here to look at the most powerful Marvel characters in the history of this iconic comic book franchise.

Editor’s note: This article is regularly updated with the latest developments from Marvel comics. When a new character appears (or an existing one gains new powers), we consider adding him to this list.

28. Doctor Strange

You might be surprised to see a regular human on this list as Doctor Strange, as powerful as he may be, is nothing more than a normal person trained extremely well in the mystic arts. But while Strange may be a regular human being, he is one of the most powerful characters in Marvel Comics because his mastery over the mystic arts has never been seen before.

Normally, Doctor Strange struggles against powerhouse villains. But he can change entire timelines and alter reality when he has the right tools and is equipped with the right spells. We saw this in the ‘What If…?’ storyline on Disney+ when Doctor Strange altered entire timelines and destroyed an entire universe on his own. That means that he is an incredibly powerful character who can change reality if he wants to do so.

27. Gladiator

We know that there are a lot of powerhouse characters in Marvel, such as the likes of the Hulk and Thor. But the thing is that Gladiator is one of the stronger powerhouses, even though he isn’t as popular as the characters mentioned above. And get this: he can become stronger than the Hulk, who we know has nearly unlimited strength as long as he stays angry.

While he is often seen as a Superman Expy in the sense that he has almost all of the Man of Steel’s powers, what makes Gladiator so powerful is that he is already strong at his base level. But his strength level can be affected by his confidence, as he becomes a lot stronger when he is confident in himself. So, when Gladiator knows that he is stronger than a certain character, Gladiator’s strength is at its peak. This makes him capable of defeating some of the strongest powerhouses in Marvel Comics, including Thor, Hulk, and Hyperion.

26. Scarlet Witch

Scarlet Witch appears on this list because she has powers that are so great that she can change an entire reality if she wants to. Of course, physically, she isn’t on par with the characters on this list as she isn’t the strongest or most durable character here. But when she uses her powers to their full effect, she can defeat some of the strongest characters in Marvel Comics.

What makes Scarlet Witch so dangerous is that her hex powers can change entire realities. We saw this in the ‘House of M‘ when she singlehandedly changed history by reducing the number of mutants worldwide by saying a simple phrase. In that regard, her words can change reality on a global scale. And that makes her one of the most dangerous Marvel characters when she uses her powers to their fullest effect.

25. Vulcan

We are familiar with Alex and Scott Summers, who are Havok and Cyclops, respectively. However, there is a third Summers brother. This brother is far more powerful than his brothers combined, which is why he is on this list. We are talking about the mutant Vulcan, who has powers that allow him to become an Omega-level mutant.

As one of the strongest mutants in the Marvel universe, Vulcan can manipulate and absorb energy. This allows him to use different energy sources for different purposes, such as flight, healing, and psionic resistance. There are even accounts that say that he is capable of controlling all seven elements and can even manipulate magic. This makes him one of the strongest mutants, as there is nothing beyond the reach of his ability to manipulate and absorb any kind of energy source.

24. Apocalypse

As one of the first mutants to ever exist, Apocalypse is a being that has always been ranked at the top when it comes to the most powerful mutants in the Marvel universe. This is why he was always considered the greatest threat to the X-Men and is consistently one of the most popular bad guys in Marvel Comics.

Apocalypse is capable of doing it all. On top of the fact that he has superhuman strength that ranks on par or even above the Hulk’s own strength, he is capable of psionic manipulation, molecular manipulation, and celestial energy manipulation. This allows him to have godlike capabilities, for all intents and purposes, as he can do whatever he wants with his power.

23. Legion

Putting Legion on these types of lists is, in my book, considered cheating, but we can’t skip him because he can do anything. Haller is special even among Omega Level Mutants for being able to manifest superpowers, but the twist in all of this is that he also has some mental problems, which caused him to develop multiple personalities as well. Every time a personality is born, Legion manifests an Omega-level superpower for that personality. It’s estimated that Legion currently holds around 200 personalities with 200 Omega-level powers, ranging from pyrokinetic to omniscient seers.

While Rogue was inside Legion’s mind, she saw over a thousands of possible superpowers and new ones being created all the time.

22. Onslaught

While Apocalypse is often considered one of the biggest bad guys that the X-Men had to face, Onslaught ranks above him in terms of power. Onslaught is a psychic being created when Professor X and Magneto fused into one entity. As such, this being ended up possessing incredible powers exponentially greater than what Xavier and Magneto were capable of. And while Professor X and Magneto were never physical powerhouses, Onslaught has enough physical strength that allows him to overpower Juggernaut at his full strength.

During this character’s history in the comics, he ended up absorbing Nate Gray and Franklin Richards, both incredibly powerful mutants. As such, Onslaught became an even more unstoppable entity. Nevertheless, we are only putting him 20th on this list because he is only as powerful as he is because he is the combination of four powerful mutants.

21. Skyfathers

There are different pantheons of gods in the Marvel Comics universe, and these pantheons are led by gods called Skyfathers due to how they rank above the gods that they rule. Two of the most popular Skyfathers are Odin and Zeus, both incredibly strong and probably the strongest Skyfathers in the universe.

Skyfathers are head and shoulders stronger than the gods that they rule, as we know that Odin was so powerful during his lifetime that he could defeat Thor effortlessly and was more than a match for someone like Galactus. And while Thor eventually became a Skyfather himself, he has yet to reach the level his father achieved before his death. 

20. Amatsu-Mikaboshi

Amatsu-Mikaboshi isn’t the most well-known entity in Marvel Comics. Still, this being is an incredibly powerful entity that can stand up to some of the strongest characters in this fictional universe. He is a primordial being imprisoned in the Shinto underworld and considered the Japanese god of evil and chaos. He is often considered an offshoot of Oblivion as well, which is one reason why he is so powerful.

This abstract entity has powers that are even greater than Odin’s and has intelligence that rivals that of the most intelligent characters in Marvel Comics. On top of that, he is capable of magical abilities that are greater than what Zeus could muster up.

19. Dormammu

The Dark Dimension is home to some of the strongest and most fearsome entities in the world of Marvel, as this is the realm that the magical entity known as Dormammu rules over. He is the arch-nemesis of the masters of the mystic arts and is the very same creature that the Sorcerer Supreme and the other sorcerers on Earth try to keep at bay because he can absorb and destroy entire planets.

As an extra-dimensional entity with incredible magical powers, Dormammu is nearly omnipotent and has enough powers to temper with Odin’s spells and fight the original Sorcerer Supreme on par. At one point, he displayed his powers when he was able to fight Eternity on par. And we know that Eternity is one of the strongest entities in the Marvel Comics universe.

18. Uatu

Uatu is one of the Watchers and is arguably the most popular among them. The Watchers are a race of entities with powers and knowledge that are almost unlimited. On top of that, they are even said to have godlike powers that are nigh-omnipotent. In most cases, Uatu is described as just as powerful as Galactus but has more knowledge about the universe.

However, the thing that has always held Uatu and the other Watchers back is that they are merely observers who like to watch over the Marvel multiverse. They vowed never to interfere with the races of the universe. Nevertheless, Uatu violated his oath more than once when he assisted the heroes of Earth by giving them the knowledge they needed to defeat certain enemies, such as Galactus.

17. The Stranger

The Stranger isn’t the most popular Marvel character on this list, but he is one of the most powerful. That’s because, according to his own account, he is a being who possesses the combined strength and intellect of billions of humanoid beings that live on a planet with a highly-advanced civilization. In that regard, he is as strong as those humanoid beings combined into one being.

As such, the Stranger can tap into cosmic energy sources to generate powerful concussive blasts. He can even alter his size, perform amazing psionic feats, and teleport entire planets from one dimension to another. The only limit to his power is that he cannot tap into another universe’s cosmic energy, as his powers are limited to his own universe.

16. The In-Betweener

The In-Betweener is a very mercurial character due to his complex nature as an entity that synthesizes opposite concepts in the universe. As such, he can be good but evil, logical but emotional, and a god but also a man. Yes, that sounds confusing, but it is the fact that he is the combination of opposing concepts that makes him incredibly powerful, as he can be the most powerful being yet be the weakest as well.

In that regard, the In-Betweener possesses incredible powers that allow him to alter reality on a cosmic scale. But the fact that he is the combination of opposing concepts gives him certain weaknesses, as he is also the combination of power and weakness. That means he is not all-knowing and doesn’t have the same kind of unlimited powers as some of the other powerful Marvel entities.

15. Proteus

Proteus is another Omega-level mutant that makes this list due to his power. Like Scarlet Witch, he can warp and change reality to a certain degree. However, his powers do not stop there, as he is one of the most overpowered mutants on this list. He is a being of pure energy, which is why he is so incredibly powerful.

One of the things that make him so powerful is that he can travel from one universe to another. He also has molecular manipulation that may not be on par with Sentry’s or Molecule Man’s but is still incredibly powerful. Proteus is also one of the few characters that can travel to the Astral Plane at will. But his weakness lies in the fact that he needs to possess human hosts from time to time.

14. Sentry

Sentry was the product of an accident meant to produce the Canadian version of Captain America. He was a regular person who was addicted to drugs and ended up consuming the Golden Serum, which was exponentially stronger than the serum that was used to make Captain America powerful. As such, Sentry became Earth’s strongest hero and obtained power that is said to be as powerful as a million exploding suns.

Often considered a character that virtually has no weaknesses and can only be defeated if he wants to be defeated, Sentry is as strong as the Hulk’s strongest state and has molecular manipulation powers almost at the level of Molecule Man’s own molecular control. He is also capable of manipulating light and darkness. And after he fused with the Void, he became one of the most powerful entities in Marvel history.

13. Mad Jim Jaspers

Now that we’ve reached the topic of Omega-Level Mutants, it’s surprising how some of them are able to surpass even the cosmic entities. One such mutant is Mad Jim Jaspers, who is notable for his reality manipulation skills. True, this doesn’t make him stand out from others who can do the same both on this list and off it, but the manner in which he does it is why he placed so high on this list.

Mad Jim Jaspers can manipulate reality on such a vast scale that one of his versions managed to corrupt an entire reality, Earth-238, which caused it to be entirely purged. It has been warned that Mad Jim Jaspers might turn into a chaotic god if his abilities are left unchecked.

12. Monarch

Monarch, aka Jamie Braddock, possesses, like several other Omega-Level mutants, the ability to manipulate reality on a quantum scale. This means he can create pocket realities and split his own timeline into numerous branches. Additionally, he can create new beings and objects with a simple thought, duplicate people and timelines, manipulate powers, heal wounds, resurrect the dead, exert mind control, and cast illusions.

He is definitely overpowered as far as mutants go and can stand side by side with some lower-tier cosmic beings.

11. Celestials

The Celestials are gigantic cosmic entities that the First Firmament created during the early part of the universe’s history. As such, they can be called the first beings created when the universe was created. And they are much stronger than almost all other races in the Marvel universe.

Celestials go from one planet to another to create, experiment, and judge different beings. They are even stronger than the Elder Gods of Earth and are more powerful than the combined might of the Asgardians and the Eternals. And according to Loki, Earth is such a hotbed for superpowered beings because a Celestial once came to Earth billions of years ago and had his bodily fluids infused with the planet after his death.

10. Galactus

As one of the most known characters in the entire Marvel Comics universe, Galactus is one of the most powerful beings in Marvel and has always been one of the enemies of the Fantastic Four and the Avengers due to his insatiable need to feed on the lifeforce of different planets across the universe.

Galactus is a being that survived the destruction of the previous universe, which means that he is older than the current Marvel universe. His powers are tied to the Power Cosmic, one of the most powerful sources of cosmic power in the Marvel universe. As such, he is almost omnipotent, as he can do almost anything he wants to do with the Power Cosmic. And when he is well-fed, he is almost unstoppable, as he could even take on multiple Celestials on his own. As of Galactus’ confrontation with the Black Winter, Galactus instead feeds on knowledge. As it turns out that Galactus himself is merely a herald of another cosmic entity just as Silver Surfer was to him.

9. Cyttorak

Cyttorak is another entity that may not be on par with the strongest characters on this list but is still pretty much capable of unimaginable feats. He is a powerful being often called the Destroyer and the Lord of Oblivion due to his powers. And he is also often called one of the most powerful magical beings in Marvel, surpassing even the magical abilities of Dormammu.

As such, Cyttorak is a source of magical power for some of the strongest sorcerers and magicians in the Marvel universe, including Doctor Strange, who often has to tap into Cyttorak’s powers to perform amazing magical feats. Cyttorak is also why Juggernaut is an unstoppable force, as he imbued him with a portion of his power. So, if Strange and Juggernaut only have a fraction of his power, that means Cyttorak is exponentially more powerful.

8. Knull

Knull is one of the newer characters on this list, as he made his debut in 2013. Nevertheless, that doesn’t take away the fact that he is much more powerful than some of the strongest beings Marvel Comics has to offer. He is an entity that existed before the universe, as he is a primordial being with nearly unlimited powers. And he only got stronger when he decapitated a Celestial with one swing of his sword and used the Celestial’s head as a power source.

As the King of Symbiotes, Knull has supreme control over all of the Symbiotes of the Marvel universe and is capable of creating them at will. He has an entire army of Symbiotes that he used to overwhelm Earth’s heroes during the King in Black storyline. And he was so strong that he ripped Sentry in half and overpowered and Odinforce-empowered Thor. 

7. Molecule Man

Molecule Man is one of the truly overpowered characters on this list, as he has powers that are capable of rivaling the Beyonder. While he has undergone numerous retcons over the years, he is still an incredibly powerful character that came about as a result of a freak accident that allowed him to have powers that give him almost supreme control over molecules and matter. However, this “accident” was a design of the Beyonder, as Molecule Man’s powers come from him.

The fact that Molecule Man’s powers come from the Beyonder makes him incredibly powerful, as he can manipulate all forms of matter in the universe. That means that he can change the molecular structure of anything and anyone. This allows him to do almost anything he wants, as he can destroy entire planets, travel through time and space, and alter the very fabric of the universe if he wants to.

6. Phoenix Force

The Phoenix Force is the very same entity that empowered Jean Grey’s Phoenix form and allowed her to become one of the strongest mutants in the Marvel universe. Of course, it is also the fact that the Phoenix Force is Jean’s source of power that we neglected to include Phoenix/Dark Phoenix on this list.

As one of the oldest cosmic entities in the universe, the Phoenix Force ranks near the top in terms of its power, as it is a being that represents the forces of creation and destruction and is said to be the entity from which all living things were born across all of the realities in the greater Marvel multiverse. This explains why the Phoenix Force is an entity that is supremely powerful and is feared throughout the galaxy. As such, a Phoenix Force-empowered Jean Grey became one of the strongest characters in Marvel Comics history as she was godlike in this state.

5. Franklin Richards

Franklin Richards is the son of Reed Richards and Susan Storm and was arguably the most powerful mutant in Marvel Comics. The circumstances that gave him his powers were unique, as the radiation that had given his parents their powers was what was responsible for altering his biology and giving him an artificial X-Gene that turned him into an incredibly powerful mutant. He was already an Omega-level mutant at a very young age.

Due to his mutant powers, Franklin became a godlike being who could warp reality and control different aspects of the universe at will. He also possesses psionic powers that surpass the psionic powers of some of the greatest psychics in Marvel Comics. The fact that he can age himself up and down is also quite impressive. With all of his powers, he is often considered to be just as strong as some of the strongest cosmic beings in the Marvel universe. It’s important to note, however, that Franklin Richards is currently in the comics completely depowered and has even lost his status as a fake mutant. He drained himself in a fight against Cormorant, and his powers haven’t returned yet.

4. Cosmic Pantheon

The Cosmic Pantheon is a group of cosmic entities essential to the universe’s survival and are the very representations of some of the most important aspects of the universe. These are Death, Oblivion, Eternity, and Infinity. All of the Cosmic Pantheon members are said to be just as strong as each other, although Eternity is often considered stronger than the others.

Without counting the multiversal beings in Marvel Comics, the members of the Cosmic Pantheon are the strongest characters in their own respective universes. Each Marvel universe has a Cosmic Pantheon that is essential to the universe’s existence. Of course, all of these characters are nigh-omnipotent and are only below the three strongest characters that are on this list.

3. The Living Tribunal

While each Marvel universe has a version of the Cosmic Pantheon, only one Living Tribunal exists across the Marvel multiverse. This entity was created to be the only being above the Cosmic Pantheon regarding its powers and capabilities, as the Living Tribunal is as godlike and omnipotent as any being can be. And its purpose was to maintain the structure and balance of the Marvel multiverse and enforce its judgment whenever things in the multiverse got out of line.

As a truly omnipotent being, the Living Tribunal has limitless powers that allow him to create and destroy realities at will. He was supposed to be only second to the One Above All regarding his power. However, while that may be true regarding the Marvel multiverse, there is one other character that is more powerful than the Living Tribunal.

2. The Beyonder

The Beyonder is an entity that exists beyond the Marvel multiverse, meaning he isn’t part of the Marvel multiverse per se. He exists in an entirely different universe but ended up in the Marvel multiverse due to the “accident” that created Molecule Man. So, when he got to the Marvel multiverse, he started messing things up and started the Secret Wars storyline.

As one of the most powerful beings to ever set foot on the Marvel multiverse, the Beyonder is supremely powerful and is more omnipotent than the Living Tribunal, who needed to be replaced by a new Living Tribunal after the Beyonder killed him. This means that the Beyonder has powers that surpass the being that was supposed to be second only to the One Above All. And like any omnipotent being, the Beyonder can do anything.

So, who is the most powerful Marvel character?

1. The One Above All

The One Above All is the supreme god of the Marvel multiverse and the most powerful Marvel character. He is the being responsible for creating this multiverse and for installing the Living Tribunal as the entity tasked with governing the multiverse. In that regard, the One Above All is like the counterpart of the omnipotent Christian god in the real world, as he can do and create anything at will.

While some think they are different characters, the One Above All and the One Below All are two sides of the same coin. The One Below All is merely the “destructive” and “evil” manifestation of the One Above All’s existence, as it is responsible for destroying the things that the One Above All created. Choosing to remain hidden instead of meddling in the problems of the characters of the Marvel multiverse, the One Above All has hardly had any role in the comics and is still a very mysterious entity.

What do you think? Would you add anyone to our list of strongest Marvel characters?