It's hard to believe, but Power Levels was just one part of Dragon Ball Z for three story arcs. Introduced in the Saiyan Saga, the last time Akira Toriyama wrote Power Levels into the story was during Future Trunks' introduction at the beginning of the Cell Saga, before phasing them out completely for the rest of the series. Since then, Power Levels have only returned occasionally as part of the Saiyan's history and background, briefly coming back into the picture in Dragon Ball Super: Broly and Granolah Saga.
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Between Dragon Ball Z anime, manga, guidebooks and movies, there are only a handful of recorded effect levels in Dragon Ball franchise, even for the Saiyans. Some Saiyans like King Vegeta don't even have official power levels, but based on Vegeta's comments in the manga and his reaction to Baby Broly in DBS: Brolycan it be assumed that King Vegeta barely reached 10,000 when he died – which is absolutely nothing compared to Super Saiyan Goku's Power Level at the end of the Frieza Saga, let alone the strongest Saiyans in Dragon Ball Z.
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Future Trunks: 5 (really 3,000,000)
IN Dragon Ball Zthe last recorded power level is the same as the first one: 5. At the beginning of the Saiyan saga, Raditz reads the farmer with the shotgun power level as 5, and when Future Trunks first appears, he suppresses his power level down to 5, which Frieza's soldiers read on their scouts. In reality, Future Trunks is far stronger than his paltry Power Level 5 would suggest, as evidenced by how quickly he kills all the Frieza'a soldiers, Mecha-Frieza, and King Cold.
Given that Future Trunks is stated to be about as strong as Super Saiyan Goku was on Namek, it is safe to assume that Future Trunks has a true power level of 3,000,000. In Trunks' future timeline, Future Gohan mistakenly believed that SSJ Goku was the absolute pinnacle of power, rivaling only his father. Super Saiyan Goku and Super Saiyan Future Trunks are also evenly matched as they test each other's strength, and several characters even mistake Trunks' Ki for Goku's before seeing him.
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Raditz: 1,500
Raditz may be one of the weakest villains in Dragon Ball story, but at the time of his introduction, he was by far the strongest foe Goku had ever fought. At the start of the Saiyan Saga, Raditz has a Power Level of 1,500, which is leagues above both Goku and Piccolo, who sat at 416 and 408 respectively, at full power.
The difference of 1,000 power levels was more than enough to force Goku to give up his life just to stop Raditz. The fact that Goku and Piccolo fought Raditz really puts into perspective how out of control the Power Levels spiraled like Dragon Ball Z get deeper into the Frieza Saga.
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Nappa: 4,000
More than twice as strong as Raditz, Nappa was Vegeta's right-hand man during the Saiyan Saga and is responsible for killing more Z-Fighters in a single fight besides Super Buu during the battle at Kami's Lookout. With a power level of 4,000, it took Tien, Chiaotzu, Piccolo, Krillin and Gohan working together just to stand a chance; and even then no one could actually beat Nappa until Goku came and destroyed him with the Kaioken.
For what it's worth, Gohan, Piccolo, and Krillin come extremely close to killing Nappa multiple times. Working together, Krillin and Piccolo lock Nappa into a multi-hit combo that would have finished him for good had Gohan not gotten cold feet during the battle and refused to fight back. Throughout the Saiyan Saga, Toriyama makes it a point to show that the Z-Fighters Can defeat enemies with stronger power levels, as much as they fight intelligently.
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Paragus: 4,200
Based on Power Level alone, Paragus was one of the strongest Saiyans on Planet Vegeta, before Frieza committed genocide against their race. It makes sense that someone as strong as Paragus would have a son as incredibly powerful as Broly, who was born with a power level of 10,000. Paragus might not be able to stand up to King Vegeta, but he was strong enough to survive on Vampa and would have been able to defeat every Saiyan as of the beginning of the Saiyan Saga, except for Vegeta.
Unfortunately, Paragus is well past his prime at the time Dragon Ball Super: BrolyThe story begins in earnest and wouldn't be able to scratch Goku, Vegeta, Frieza or even the weakest members of the Z-Fighters like Yamcha and Chiaotzu. Frieza eventually kills Paragus, blaming it on the crossfire of Broly's fight with Goku & Vegeta to force Broly to transform Super Saiyan.
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Bardock: 10,000
Bardock may be a lower class warrior, but that doesn't mean he isn't powerful in his own right. After receiving a Zenkai boost after his fight with Dodoria in Dragon Ball Z: Bardock – The Father of GokuBardock's power level skyrockets to 10,000. This makes Bardock stronger than any other Saiyan other than Prince Vegeta. Unfortunately, Bardock immediately leaves to fight Frieza and is killed along with the rest of Planet Vegeta.
While Dragon Ball Super doesn't have an official power level for Bardock, he is arguably as strong as he was in the Bardock TV Special, if not more so. During the Granolah saga flashback, Bardock not only puts up a good fight against Gas, he briefly uses a technique eerily similar to Ultra Instinct. It's safe to say that Bardock reached a five-figure power level before he died, even in Dragon Ball Supercontinuity.
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Gohan: 200,000
Like most characters, Gohan's latest recorded Power Level in Dragon Ball Z was during the final battle with Frieza on Namek. After a few Zenkai boosts and Guru unleashing his potential, Gohan's Power Level gradually rises to 200,000. Realistically, Gohan's rage boost means that his power level briefly rose to even greater heights.
Second Form Frieza has a power level of at least 1,000,000, but Gohan managed to damage him, meaning at least some of his attacks hit the seven-figure range. That said, Gohan's resting power level was only 200,000 and the best he could do was land a few good hits on Frieza before he needed Piccolo to save his life.
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Vegeta: 250,000
Vegeta begins the Saiyan Saga with a Power Level of 18,000 and ends the Frieza Saga with a Power Level of 250,000, experiencing tremendous growth on Namek by abusing several Zenkai boosts during his battle with Zarbon, Ginyu Force, and later Frieza. Unfortunately, Vegeta never becomes strong enough to fight on Frieza's level.
During his final battle with Frieza, Vegeta is effortlessly outclassed and beaten to a pulp before being killed in front of Goku. Vegeta is left to beg his rival to kill his greatest enemy and take on the pride of all Saiyans. Unfortunately, even if Vegeta went Super Saiyan on Namek, the SSJ multiplier wouldn't have been enough for him to outclass Frieza. Final Form Frieza at 100% Power would still have been able to kill Super Saiyan Vegeta in the long run.
4
Fruit of Might Boosted Turles: 300,000
He may not be canon, but Turles is one of the most powerful Saiyans in the Dragon Ball Z. Although his base power level is usually set at around 19,000 (making him stronger than any saiyan in Saiyan saga), he manages to fight a Goku with a power level of around 30,000 right before eating the fruit of the Tree of Might in Dragon Ball Z Movie 3.
Once Turles eats the fruit from Might's tree, his power level increases to 300,000, making him slightly weaker than First Form Frieza. Considering how much Turle's power level increases after eating a single fruit, a second fruit from Might's tree would more than likely make him as strong as Final Form Frieza, if not Super Saiyan Goku on Namek. When it comes down to it, Turles is one of the most exaggerated characters in DBZ.
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Super Saiyan Goku: 150,000,000
If Goku didn't turn Super Saiyan on Namek, no one would have been able to defeat Final Form Frieza. It is only thanks to the Super Saiyan multiplier that Goku's power level rises high enough to put Frieza in his place. While Dragon Ball Z anime tries to keep things even, it Dragon Ball manga makes it very clear that SSJ Goku far surpasses Frieza with his overwhelming 3,000,000 Power Level.
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Even at 100% full power, Frieza never stood a chance against Super Saiyan Goku. Goku wears him down, outmaneuvers him and could have killed him at any moment. Instead, Goku wanted to humble and humiliate Frieza in a way to assert his humanity. In the original timeline, Goku dies shortly after returning to Earth due to his heart virus, but his power level only continues to climb Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Supercontinuity.
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Legendary Super Saiyan Broly: 1,400,000,000
Dragon Ball Zs original version of Broly was designed to be the single strongest villain the Z-Fighters had ever faced. Broly's legendary Super Saiyan form constantly grows stronger the more he fights, meaning his power level can soar to maximum power levels as long as he is not defeated. Even in his own movie, Broly technically wins. The only reason he loses is because of Goku's Miracle Punch, which defies all laws of power scaling, allowing the heroes to win.
Although he does not have an official power level in canon, Dragon Ball Supers version of Broly is even stronger. Legendary Super Saiyan Broly in DBS is so powerful that Goku and Vegeta are forced to fuse into Gogeta just to have a chance against him. Even that's not enough, as Gogeta must transform Super Saiyan Blue—a literal god form—just to secure the win. Broly's current power level is beyond measure.
