7 Strongest MCU Characters of All Time, Ranked

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is filled with powerful figures, with their relative strength often compared and debated among fans. Since the franchise first began in 2008, the MCU has grown to incorporate many heroes and villains from Marvel Comics, evolving into the biggest shared universe in cinematic history in the process. The movies of the MCU have adapted many comic book storylines, and along the way, that has seen some characters’ individual power levels be increased or reduced as a result. The tapestry of MCU characters is constantly shifting in power levels, making it difficult to identify who should be considered the strongest.

For every obvious powerhouse in the franchise, there are other MCU characters more powerful than they seem. Creating a definitive ranking of the franchise’s heaviest hitters is difficult, particularly as many of their abilities are ill-defined within the MCU. However, based on the franchise’s depiction of the characters and additional context from their comic book appearances, it is possible to determine which characters can be considered the MCU’s strongest.

7) Galactus

With Galactus’s first MCU appearance in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the Devourer of Worlds immediately stood out as one of the franchise’s most powerful characters. The colossal cosmic being possesses the power to effortlessly consume entire worlds, which undeniably qualifies him as one of the most dangerous and terrifying villains in the franchise. As well as being effectively immortal, Galactus is one of the strongest beings in the entire MCU.

6) Arishem

There are a handful of god-tier MCU villains, and Arishem the Judge’s place among them is unquestionable. The Celestial is one of the most ancient beings in the universe, and is responsible for the creation of the Eternals, which he uses as his agents in order to manipulate the growth of planets. Arishem possesses a huge amount of power that puts him on a different scale to most MCU characters, making him one of its strongest figures.

5) Eternity

Not all of the MCU’s strongest characters are threats to the heroes of the franchise. Eternity, as introduced briefly in Thor: Love and Thunder, has the power to rewrite reality in seemingly endless ways. While the MCU itself didn’t expand on Eternity’s power levels, the comics establish the character as the embodiment of time in the universe. Whether Eternity’s strength can be measured isn’t clear, but there’s every indication that he’s one of the strongest characters in the MCU.

4) Loki

When it comes to the most powerful aliens in the MCU, Loki once didn’t rank anywhere near the top of the list. However, the Frost Giant raised on Asgard has grown beyond his initial abilities of illusion, as he received a massive power boost at the end of Loki season 2. At present, Loki serves as the MCU’s God of Stories, pulling the strings of the Multiverse to protect an endless number of realities at once.

3) The Watchers

The animated show What If…? established a number of alternate universes in the MCU, with the character of Uatu the Watcher at its center. A member of the race known as the Watchers, Uatu — and, by extension, his fellow Watchers — are among the most powerful beings in the MCU. Capable of observing multiple realities at once, the Watchers typically abstain from interfering, although What If…? showed that they are capable of breaking that oath, demonstrating remarkable powers in the process.

2) Death

As well as being one of the MCU’s confirmed LGBT characters, Death’s debut in Agatha All Along redefined the hierarchy of power within the franchise. The embodiment of death and decay, Death was shown to be a curious and immensely powerful figure. The combined might of Wiccan and Agatha Harkness was unable to withstand her power, which goes only a small way to demonstrating her true strength. In short, few forces in the MCU would be capable of standing against Death herself.

1) Franklin Richards

By far the most powerful hero in the MCU is Franklin Richards, even though his abilities have yet to be officially established. The Fantastic Four: First Steps hinted at his comic-accurate abilities by depicting Galactus’s interest in the child, which suggests at least some degree of comic accuracy in his MCU story. The Franklin Richards of the comics possesses immense reality manipulation powers, as well as immortality and psionic abilities to rival even Omega-level mutants. Assuming he also boasts these abilities in the MCU, he’s already one of the franchise’s strongest characters.

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