Sometimes they’re just your average damsel in distress with a bio shorter than a coupon. And other times they’re extremely lovable & badass characters that carry the entire show. For this ranking we’re focusing on that badass group of chicks by looking into some of the most powerful waifus in all of anime. As always, this is just my opinion, so don’t burn me at the stake.
20. Mikasa Ackerman
Anime: Attack on Titan Although Mikasa is just a regular human in a world where Titans are roaming about, she’s the most terrifying presence on screen. Whenever Eren is in danger, she swoops in and murders whoever or whatever is causing him harm. And during the first three seasons that came up quite frequently. Even the god-tier husbando Levi acknowledges Mikasa’s power! So although she lacks any superhuman abilities (unlike the rest of the ladies on this list), she is undoubtedly one of the coolest & strongest characters out there.
19. Megumin
Anime: KonoSuba Since KonoSuba is a comedy, Megumin doesn’t really get to be a badass. However, if you think about it, you realize that she’d be absolutely terrifying if the show dropped its PG rating. Sure, she can only fire off one blast per day – but that blast could probably take out an entire army. And in the KonoSuba world, that’s a pretty impressive feat. Most of the characters we’ve seen in the show so far are either regular humans, or cap out at building-level destruction powers. But then this little mage girl shows up out of nowhere and starts damaging entire castles! She may not be taking the top spot in this ranking (or even the top spot among all the KonoSuba waifus). But she absolutely deserves a mention here.
18. Nezuko Kamado
Anime: Demon Slayer Nezuko was pretty strong from the start of the series. But after the Red-Light District arc, she became ridiculous. Not only is her physical strength in a clearer spotlight than ever, but her regeneration has improved quite a bit as well. In fact, she can just regrow entire limbs now. Because that’s not broken. And the story doesn’t end there. She can also use her powers to both blow demons up, as well as counteract status effects like poison. There’s no doubt in my mind that she’s one of the most powerful characters in the show right now. And since the fanbase loves her more than life itself – she’s definitely waifu material.
17. Morgiana
Anime: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic A lot of these female characters help to counteract gender norms and stereotypes. But Morgiana is probably my favorite strong female character in all of fiction. This is because she not only bodies almost every enemy, but we also see her battling her trauma of literal slavery and then using her chains to make herself more powerful. She was already incredibly strong – creating giant holes in the ground with every kick and tanking damage like a pro. But when she finally accepted her past, she got the ability to set her chains ablaze and use them in order to fly. Which in turn only made her even more dangerous. Overall:
10/10 character arc 11/10 power 100/10 waifu material
16. Sakura Haruno
Anime: Naruto: Shippuden I know we all like to clown on Sakura every chance that we get, but let’s get serious for a minute. If you’ve kept up with Boruto, you know that she’s actually pretty fire right now. After years of Sakura being part of Team 7 only on paper, she finally got enough firepower to back that claim up. Continuing the trend of berserker strength plus healing abilities, the current Sakura is a lot more powerful than even Tsunade was in her prime. Sure, she isn’t anywhere near as powerful as Naruto or Sasuke. But she still outranks a majority of the other characters in her verse, so it’s still a win.
15. Neferpitou
Anime: Hunter x Hunter (2011) Before any of you manga readers say it, I’m aware that the original Pitou was androgynous. That still won’t stop me from gushing about her character as well as her strength. Pitou is simply terrifying. She’s a true predator that can sense you from miles away, and then leap to your destination in only a few seconds. And once she’s there, it’s time to nail down which god you’d like to pray to. She’s incredibly quick. And she has such a strong bond with Meruem that she’ll come after you even after death. Again, pretty terrifying. And yet somehow also waifu material. Anime brain is weird – what can I say?
14. Mereoleona Vermillion
Anime: Black Clover Mereoleona has that strong aunty vibe and I’m absolutely here for it. Not only is she the most confident warrior around, but she’ll also wipe the floor with just about anyone who dares to stand in her way. She was like a sensei to Yami (which is a title she shares with the literal king of her verse) and her ferocious nature makes her incredibly difficult to pin down. She can sense her surroundings perfectly and launch dozens of fire punches your way before you even realize the error in your ways. Overall, she’s called a lioness for a reason – and is by far the most consistently powerful character I’ve seen in the Black Clover universe.
13. Yoruichi Shihoin
Anime: Bleach Yoruichi has the same type of vibe as Mereoleona, but with a bit more power to back it up. Just like Mereoleona was a mentor to Yami, Yoruichi was a mentor to Ichigo. You know – the main character of the show. And just like Mereoleona was a lioness, Yoruichi is symbolized by a cat. In fact, she’s initially introduced as a cat. One of the best fake-outs anime has ever seen. However, instead of just focusing on raw strength, Yoruichi also has some immense speed to back her up. Being able to blitz most of the characters in the series while also having enough firepower to damage a crystalized Aizen is just an insane combo. The fact that she’s also one of the most lovable characters to date (and among the first strong female archetypes in anime) also helps her case out quite a bit.
12. Akame
Anime: Akame ga Kill! You’d think that Esdeath is more deserving of this spot (with her city-level ice attacks and all that) but we have to remember how their fight went for the ice queen. Plus, Akame basically has hax abilities. And that will always outscale raw power and battle prowess. To be more precise, I’m talking about her blade and how it has a built-in one-shot mechanic. Which is quite dandy when you’re also the fastest person on the planet and can leave afterimages while time is literally frozen. One cut=one kill. And that is an insane amount of power for one person to bear.
11. Shalltear Bloodfallen
Anime: Overlord I was originally going to put Albedo on here, but since Shalltear is stronger in a one-on-one setting, we’ll have to make some changes. Plus the vampire Merry Poppins is quite lovable as well. When it comes to a battles, there are very few characters that can even hope to stand in the ring with Shalltear. She has:
Built-in sustain (making her durability near-infinite) Time-warping abilities that can negate all of your attacks And enough firepower to decimate entire armies
In fact, if Ainz hadn’t metagamed the hell out of their fight, she might have solo’d the most powerful character in her respective universe! And if that isn’t a showcase of strength, I don’t know what is.
10. Tooru
Anime: Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Even though Tooru looks like your average lovable goofball, she’s insanely deadly and powerful. This is mostly due to her fire blasts. They’re powerful enough to change the weather and could even destroy an entire city if Tooru ever decided to go all-out. But that’s not all! In terms of physical strength and speed, she’s also pretty insane. A fight among dragons is nothing short of a spectacle as they dot around and destroy half of the landscape while warming up. She even has insane durability! After tanking multiple magic attacks and swipes from an opposing dragon, Tooru just got slightly pissed. That should clue you into how powerful she truly is.
9. Shinobu Oshino
Anime: Monogatari series Although Shinobu has become in our minds that one lovable loli that occasionally flexes her power, we have to remember where she came from. While she was a full vampire, Shinobu was almost like a god. She could jump from Antarctica to Japan (nearly destroying Antarctica in the process), and could regenerate any and all damage that happened to come her way. She could unironically wipe out humanity as a whole if she felt like it. And if we were to take character statements into account, she could ever destroy the entire world.
8. Merlin
Anime: The Seven Deadly Sins Merlin is just a badass. Even while young, she had the backbone to literally troll gods. And that should give you a pretty good sense of her attitude overall. Now she’s an incredibly wise sorceress that knows every spell under the sun, and has the power to cast them at will. The fact that she also has infinite mana only further widens the gap between her and almost any other character in her universe. We’ve seen that she’s capable of casting hundreds of spells without her enemies even noticing, poking at their defenses, and then unleashing an attack that is tailor-made to counter them. Overall, she just has too many tools at her disposal when entering any fight. All of that power coupled with the fact that she’s just gorgeous (and rather lovable) secures her a spot on this list, as well as in Escanor’s heart.
7. Erza Scarlet
Anime: Fairy Tail In my mind, Erza is the true main character of the series. Not only does she make every scene better just by being in it, but she’s also undoubtedly one of the most powerful warriors in the entire show. When all of the bones in your body are broken, most characters have a flashback or scream to the skies in hopes that someone will come to save them. Erza on the other hand uses her one good arm to fling herself at a meteor to destroy it. And the beautiful thing about Erza is that she has a lot more to her than just raw strength. In fact, she basically has an outfit for every bad situation one could find themselves in.
6. Tatsumaki
Anime: One Punch Man Since she’s in the same show as Saitama, people tend to forget how absolutely broken Tatsumaki is. Need I remind you that she dropped a meteor onto an enemy without even breaking a sweat? And that isn’t even taking into account the fact that she can fly, shield herself, or even yeet an enemy into the Sun. She has so many options! Furthermore, she gets the usual tsundere buff that’s consistent across all anime, increasing her already insane numbers by up to 10%. She might not be One Punch Man, but she’s One Cast Woman and I think that’s just as impressive.
5. Ryūko Matoi
Anime: Kill la Kill If you’re thinking about in-universe mechanics, Ryuuko was built to succeed from the very beginning. She’s nearly immortal, and also has the one weapon that can counter everyone else in the entire show. Sounds pretty busted. And yet, she managed to get even more powerful as the show went on. She quickly graduated to slicing mountains and then quickly got a master’s degree as a country or even moon-destroying force of pure fanservice. Jokes aside, she did go to space in the final episode (which on its own already speaks of her newfound speed and durability) and blew a moon-sized hole in the Cocoon Genesis Sphere. So putting her this high up shouldn’t really be that surprising.
4. Rimuru Tempest
Anime: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Rimuru might be androgynous and even technically a man (if we only count their previous life) but they’re a waifu to me. So, here we are. In terms of hax abilities, there are very few (if any) characters that can take Rimuru’s throne. From a supercomputer in their head that can analyze any situation and tell them the best way to move forward, to an ability that literally kills you if you fear the caster. It’s all here. Rimuru is almost a god! And that’s not even mentioning the nearly unbreakable defense they have going for them, or the fact that they can infinitely scale by just eating strong people. Overall, Rimuru is like the Mr. Beast of strength, since just being their friend will automatically boost you to city-leveling power.
3. Android 18
Anime: Dragon Ball You can’t really make a “strongest” list without at least one Dragon Ball character coming up. And while she might not technically be the most powerful in her universe, Android 18 is the only true waifu in the show (if we’re only counting the anime). Plus she actually made an appearance in Dragon Ball Super, which already means that she’s capable of destroying planets at the very least. Not to mention the fact that she is massively faster than the speed of light, and has the durability of a Nokia tank. And just in case all of that wasn’t enough, the writer threw in a Destructo Disc for good measure. You know – that ability that can cut enemies in half even if they severely outrank you in terms of power and durability? The ability that cut a guy who was more durable than a planet? Yeah, that one.
2. Zero Two
Anime: Darling in the Franxx Although Android 18 can destroy a planet, Zero Two can fight entire galactic wars by herself. So I think it’s pretty safe to assume that she outscales her by a little bit. Okay, she does need her Darling in order to really make an impact. But that should be a given for these types of lists. Plus she was basically the most beloved and popular waifu for like 2 years. And if you’re universally beloved while also being capable of filming your own Star Wars movie, you already know that I have to give you some special treatment.
1. Haruhi Suzumiya
Anime: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya And in our number one spot, we have Haruhi. Although she might look like your average high schooler, she’s actually an omnipotent god (which is kind of the ceiling when it comes to power). Plus she was basically a god in our world as well during the late 2000s, meaning that her power outgrew even her own show. It also means that she was the textbook definition of a waifu for quite some time. Overall, starting from a Titan-killer and ending on a literal god seems like a good flow. And I doubt anyone is going to fight me when I say that Haruhi is the most powerful waifu in anime.
