Saiyans are the most famous race on Dragon Ball outside of humans, but are they really the strongest? Throughout its run, Dragon Ball has introduced fans to tons of different characters, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Because of the incredible things we've seen from characters like Goku, Vegeta, and Gohan, many fans feel that Saiyans are among the strongest species in the series.
But there's a whole universe of characters out there, and everyone's a little different. Considering the overall performance of various species in Dragon Ball, not just the deviations, these are the strongest races in the franchise.
Every major Dragon Ball villain, ranked from weakest to strongest
The early Dragon Ball villains may not seem that strong anymore, but it's still worth taking a look at who was the most powerful.
Yardrats
Yardrats are not the strongest race in the series by any means. But what they lack in physical strength and fighting ability, they make up for in other ways. Yardrats have honed skills that can affect space, time, and energy.
Their most notable feat is the creation of the Instant Transmission technique, which has served Goku well over the years. This falls under the general umbrella of Spirit Control, which the Yardrats use to use techniques such as Cloning and Gigantification. It doesn't make them stronger, but it still makes them a remarkable species and shows how creative some of the weaker races in Dragon Ball can be.
People
Humans are the most famous race of characters in Dragon Ball, with characters such as Master Roshi, Krillin, Bulma, and Yamcha playing important roles in the beginning of the series. They might not stand out too much compared to other races, but humans can be pretty tough.
There are alien races that are naturally stronger than most humans, with the majority lacking the ability to fly or control ki the way the main cast can. Still, the remarkable human characters like Krillin, Tien, and altered creatures like Android 17 and 18 show you how much potential humans have in Dragon Ball.
Namekians
The Namekians are one of the strongest mortal races in the series, possessing unusually high power levels and other abilities that make them stand out. Their society is divided into the Warrior and Dragon clans, with the former being more combat-oriented, like Piccolo and Nail, and the latter having a higher aptitude for magical abilities, such as creating Dragon Balls, like Dende and Kami.
Of all the Nameikians, Piccolo gets the most attention and ends up becoming the most powerful Namek in history by the end of Z. Regular Nameks are capable in their own right, but none have shown the same kind of potential and progression that we've seen from Piccolo throughout the series.
Glinds
Some Dragon Ball fans may refer to them as Kais, but the actual term for them is Glind. The Glinds are the race we know to be the Kais and Supreme Kais in Dragon Ball.
Power-wise, Glinds can be hard to read. They are certainly stronger than most, with their floor higher than most moral species. Some mortal characters like Goku and Vegeta have pushed past their limits and are stronger than most Glinds. Still, overall, they surpass the majority of common species in the Dragon Ball universe.
Majins
Not to be confused with Majin Buu, these Majins are the ones that live in the Demo Realm. Before DAIMAthe most notable Majin in the series was Dabura. Majins are a race of demons that have incredible fighting potential and are exceptionally skilled at using magic in battle.
Like many powerful races, Majins have various transformations they can achieve that give them massive increases in power in battle. The type of transformation depends on the character, but Majins in the franchise have been shown to be able to power up into Transcended states, as well as Dark and Demon God forms.
Saiyans
At the end of Zthe strongest known characters in the series were the Saiyans, with Goku and Vegeta having reached the peak of their potential after years of training and conflict. Although there are not many left, the Saiyans were known for their fighting prowess and were feared by those around them for their abilities in battle.
But when it comes down to it, even the so-called “Saiyan Elites” weren't all that impressive when matched up against the top members of the Frieza Force and many other universal threats. But as characters like Goku, Vegeta, Gohan and Broly have shown, Saiyans themselves have it in them to become absolute forces of nature, given enough time and the right training/conditions.
Frieza Race
We've only been introduced to a handful of them in the series, but from what we've seen, the members of the Frieza Race are incredibly strong compared to most around them. It's not surprising considering Frieza and King Cold had such an iron grip on Universe 7 for so long.
The members of the Frieza Race stand out from most fighters even in their base forms, and have access to a variety of transformations and power-ups similar to what we've seen with the Saiyans. Frieza is a fighting prodigy, and while you can assume that not all members of his species will be as strong and talented as he is, it shows that members of the Frieza Race have a certain advantage when it comes to battle that most fighters don't.
Eternal dragons
They may not be as strong as traditional fighters, but the Eternal Dragons are incredibly powerful creatures whose powers and abilities surpass most mortals in the Dragon Ball universe. Instead of impressing with physical abilities, Eternal Dragons are wish-granting that can do almost anything, depending on the specific dragon.
Shenron is obviously the most well-known Eternal Dragon, but other dragons like Porunga and Super Shenron are more powerful. Every dragon has its limits (except for Super Shenron), but given what they can do, it's natural to rank the Eternal Dragons as some of the most powerful creatures in the series.
Angels
The Angels, by far the strongest non-lethal species, may not look that intimidating at first, but they are not to be taken lightly, even by the strongest characters in the series. Angels serve as attendants and teachers to the Gods of Destruction, both aiding them in their duties and training them to better use their destructive abilities.
Angels can pull things we just don't see from even the strongest members of the strongest races in Dragon Ball. Always using Perfected Ultra Instinct, they can accomplish incredible feats such as manipulating time, and can even resurrect the dead, similar to Eternal Dragons, but without the same limitations.
Dragon Ball Super
- Release date
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2015 – 2018
- Network
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Fuji TV
- Showrunner
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Tatsuya Nagamine
- Directors
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Ryota Nakamura, Masanori Sato, Kenichi Takeshita, Takao Iwai, Hideki Hiroshima, Masato Mitsuka, Kazuya Karasawa, Ayumu Ono, Takahiro Imamura, Tatsuya Nagamine, Kôjiro Kawasaki, Kouji Ogawa
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Masakazu Morita
Whis (voice)
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Masako Nozawa
Son Goku/Goku Black/Son Gohan/Son Goten (voices)
