Believe it or not, there was a time when the humans of Dragon Ball actually had something to do. By the time Dragon Ball Z came around, the Saiyans found themselves competing with villains on a universal level. The human characters were mostly left behind, but they are not to be underestimated.

To be clear, everyone in the Dragon Ball universe is considered human by the Gods. We are referring specifically to Earthlings, who aren’t necessarily human beings. An estimated 75% of Earth’s population is made up of regular human types, while monsters, half-breeds and anthropomorphic animals make up the remainder. As long as they originate from Earth, that’s good enough for us.

As this is a Dragon Ball Z list, characters such as Launch and Mercenary Tao will not appear, although the pair do cameo in DBZ. The humans who feature on this list are either Dragon Ball Z regulars or, at the very least, specific to Dragon Ball Z.

Let’s take a look at the Most Powerful Humans in Dragon Ball Z.

15. Farmer with a Shotgun

The Farmer is one of the first characters introduced in Dragon Ball Z, and the first human to face off against Raditz. Goku’s Saiyan brother states the Farmer’s power level to be just 5, and in all honesty, we see Earthling characters at various World Tournaments that likely outrank him in power. But since we have no definitive proof, and the Farmer comes equipped with his very own shotgun, he also gets his own spot on this list.

It is strongly hinted in both the manga and the anime that the Farmer is killed in his tussle with Raditz, but in actual fact, he cameos in the Android, World Tournament, and Kid Buu sagas (anime only). No one knows quite how he survived the gunshot wound inflicted by Raditz, nor the energy blast he suffered at the hands of Dr. Gero in the Android saga, but it is possible that a power level of 5 doesn’t quite do the Farmer justice.

14. Bulma

Bulma has no superhuman abilities, but she does have a relatively high power level when compared to your average human. She has a power level of 12, as stated by the Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might movie pamphlet, and it rises to 16 in Dragon Ball Z: The Anime Adventure Game.

Bulma’s power is generally exaggerated for comedic relief, but she remains one of the only characters able to put the Prince of all Saiyans in his place, and she even displayed the ability to sense ki when possessed by Captain Ginyu.

Where Bulma stands out is in her genius-level intellect, which she has used to master her piloting skills, all kinds of weaponry, and even time-travel. With time to prepare, Bulma is just as valuable in battle as anyone on this list, and she proves consistently that the Z Fighters would be all over the place without her.

13. Mr. Satan

Although he is generally considered a fraud by the Z Fighters, let’s not forget that Mr. Satan did win at least one World Martial Arts Championship of his own accord (he later won several more but only because more powerful opponents allowed him to do so). Mr. Satan is one of the most skilled combatants on the planet – even Goku proclaims him to have a basic understanding of martial artistry – although he doesn’t take it entirely seriously.

Gohan suggests that Videl has far surpassed her father at the 25th World Tournament, due to the fact that she is more committed to her training. When Satan does take things seriously, he is a force to be reckoned with, demonstrating superhuman levels of speed when Bee is shot down by the evil gunmen.

His other feats include pulling the weight of four buses, punching a hole through one of them, and surviving being launched into a mountain by Cell.

12. Ox-King

Chi-Chi’s father and Goku’s father-in-law, the Ox-King plays an important role in the original Dragon Ball, but remains a recurring character through Dragon Ball Z. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have a whole lot to do in the sequel series. His only notable battle in DBZ is in the non-canon movie Dead Zone, in which he is knocked unconscious in a single blow by one of Garlic Jr.’s minions.

The Ox-King trained under Master Roshi, although he was unable to master such techniques as flight and the Kamehameha wave. He relies much more heavily on raw power. During the Emporer Pilaf Saga of Dragon Ball, he is able to withstand everything Goku throws at him (though he didn’t have the speed to hurt the young Saiyan in return).

His power level is estimated at 900 by the Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might pamphlet, although his speed severely limits his power, and he is unable to perform basic ki techniques.

11. Chi-Chi

The Same Tree of Might pamphlet ranks Chi-Chi’s power level at 300 but, unlike her father, Chi-Chi’s power increases through Dragon Ball Z, while she has some command over her ki. Chi-Chi was trained in martial arts from a young age, eventually learning techniques such as the Blazing Aura, a power-up which produces a red aura similar to that of the Kaio-ken (although this is used mostly for comic effect when she is mad at Goku). She has also demonstrated her own energy blast – the Super Power Slugger – and a laser beam shot from her helmet.

By DBZ, she is able to defeat a handful of Lord Slug’s henchmen (again, this is non-canon), while she trains Goten following Goku’s death. She proves more than capable of keeping up with base Goten, although it’s unclear as to how hard he is trying, as she is heavily outmatched following his transformation to Super Saiyan.

10. Videl

If we’re taking non-canon events into account, Videl somehow manages to survive battles against Broly and Hirudegarn, which makes her virtually invulnerable. Even if we only consider canon, Videl is still capable of techniques far beyond the average human. She has a basic understanding of ki manipulation thanks to her training under Gohan, and she uses it to perform energy blasts and flight, although she never quite masters either.

She relies more on her physical attributes, which surpass her father’s at some point in the Buu saga. She is tactical enough to allow her opponents to attack, using their momentum to dodge and launch counter strikes. She uses this move on multiple occasions, most notably in her World Tournament match up with Spopovich. Videl actually gains the upper hand on the superpowered Spopovich early on in the round, but his Majin potential is too much to keep up with, and Videl is eventually beaten.

9. Yajirobe

Yajirobe is one of the naturally gifted humans in all of Dragon Ball, and at one point was even stronger than Goku. Back in the original Dragon Ball, he was able to climb Korin Tower in no time, where Goku had struggled at first, and Goku declares him the toughest opponent he had ever faced (Roshi, Krillin, and Tien had all been introduced at this point). He is surpassed by Goku and the rest soon after, but he breezes through the early rounds of the 23rd World Tournament, where he ultimately loses to Kami.

Fast-forward to DBZ, and Kami trains Yajirobe for the arrival of the Saiyans, after which the Guardian of Earth admits that Yajirobe has far surpassed him. During the training, Yajirobe is able to easily keep up with Krillin, even while eating, and he later survives a beating from Vegeta. His only downfall is his inability to fly, which he often uses as an excuse not to battle alongside the Z Fighters.

8. Spopovich & Yamu

Spopovich was a former martial artist, having been beaten comfortably by Mr. Satan in the 24th World Tournament finals. Due to his aggressive nature, he was recruited by Babidi to assist in the resurrection of Majin Buu. The Majin power-up unlocks Spopovich’s hidden potential, which causes his skin to turn pale and gives him a massive increase in muscle mass.

Spopovich is unrecognizable at the 25th World Tournament, where he partners with Yamu to drain Gohan of his energy, but they are only able to do so after the Supreme Kai restrains Gohan. The only time their powers are put to the test is during Spopovich’s match up with Videl, and so it’s impossible to gauge their true power. Both are capable of flight and ki manipulation, but their human potential has its limits, as seen in the Namek arc, when Krillin’s potential is unlocked by Guru. Eventually, they are both easily dispatched by Babidi.

7. Chiaotzu

He may look like he’s from an alien race, but Chiaotzu is an Earthling according to the Dragon Ball manga. Chiaotzu’s supposed power level is relatively small, but having been one of the Z Fighters to train on Kami’s Lookout, we can safely assume he is more powerful than Kami. He was also able to defeat Guldo on King Kai’s planet, and even after being resurrected, he continues to train with Tien on a daily basis.

He and Tien were some of the only Earthlings strong enough to survive Buu’s Human Extinction Attack, and Chiaotzu has also been known to withstand a full-powered Kamehameha to the chest.

Still, his psychic abilities are the primary source of his power. He has used them against Krillin at the World Tournament, and he has restrained Goku as recently as Dragon Ball Super with his psychic powers. Chiaotzu’s physical strength may be minimal, but few are able to get close enough to do any damage.

6. Yamcha

Another Dragon Ball graduate, Yamcha is often considered a running joke among fans of the series, but he does have some impressive victories to his name. Yamcha easily overpowers Vegeta’s Saibamen, at least until his overconfidence gets the better of him. He also defeats Goku in their first ever encounter, and supposedly gets the better of Recoome on King Kai’s planet. This comes after several years of consistent training; first with Roshi, then Kami, and later with King Kai.

Yamcha’s power peaks at the Cell Games, after which he abandons his training. Following his second death at the hands of Buu, Yamcha is transported to Other World, where he survives battles with Olibu and Kid Buu (he even wins the former). Both are specific to the anime, as is his fight with Recoome, so his true power during these sagas is dubious. Either way, he remains in the thick of the action for a longer time than Chiaotzu, and plays a starring role in one of the greatest filler episodes of all time in Dragon Ball Super.

5. Master Roshi

Roshi’s power level is calculated at just 139 in the Saiyan saga, and he does little in the way of improving through Dragon Ball Z. However, the scouter does not account for Roshi’s ultimate form. While Yamcha’s power apparently decreases following the Cell saga, Roshi at Max Power plays a significant role in Resurrection ‘F’, which is considered official DBZ canon. He is the weakest Z Fighter present, but he is able to defeat plenty of Frieza’s minions with a Max Power Kamehameha, which we rank higher than any of Yamcha’s Wolf Fang Fists. He is one of the 10 fighters representing Universe 7 in the upcoming Universal Survival arc of DBS, while Yamcha is nowhere to be seen.

Roshi also has experience on his side– over 300 years of it, to be precise. He has taught some of the finest martial artists on the planet over this period, including Goku, Krillin, and Yamcha. He is seemingly overshadowed by his students early on in DBZ, but he hides his true power. Regarding Resurrection ‘F’, Toriyama stated that he is “only that strong if he feels like it”.

4. Krillin

One of the most popular characters in the series, Krillin often serves the Z Fighters as the comic relief. Unfortunately, this means that we rarely see his true power, though his various attacks on the Saibamen, the Saiyans, and Frieza are vital moments in their respective battles.

Krillin improves over time with the rest of the Z Fighters, though his biggest increase in power comes through Guru unlocking his hidden potential. Vegeta notes that Krillin is still weaker than Zarbon following the power-up. The likes of Tien and Yamcha are able to defeat the Ginyu Force around the same time, but if Krillin was ever trailing Yamcha in strength, it didn’t last for long.

He is another one on the slate for the Universal Survival Tournament, and is present at Frieza’s invasion, neither of which include Yamcha. He is also shown to be more powerful than Roshi during the battle with Frieza’s soldiers, having a much easier time of it, and even coming to his former master’s aid on several occasions.

3. Olibu

One of the lesser-known heroes on this list, Olibu resides on the Grand Kai’s planet, and participates in the Other World Tournament with the likes of Goku and Pikkon. King Kai claims that Olibu is the North Quadrant’s second greatest fighter (behind Goku), and he proves as much, facing off against Pikkon in the quarter-finals and only narrowly losing out (Pikkon, incidentally, is shown to be more powerful than Perfect Cell).

Based on Hercules and several other historical figures, Olibu was Earth’s protector thousands of years ago. King Kai suggests that the Earth’s oldest legends come from Olibu’s many acts of heroism during his lifetime. His exact date of death is unknown, but he is close to 10,000 years of training in Other World, which explains his vast power level as seen in the tournament.

Olibu does lose out to Yamcha during their sparring session, but the former most likely isn’t taking it seriously, because Yamcha is nowhere near Olibu’s level.

2. Tien

There is a long-standing debate among fans as to whether Tien or Krillin is the stronger human. Krillin is described in the Resurrection ‘F’ profiles as “the strongest Earthling warrior”. This could be due to the fact that Tien is not a pure human being, but a distant descendant of the Three-Eyed People, though he is still an Earthling either way. During the battle with Frieza’s army, Tien takes minimal damage, while Krillin relies more than once on Gohan and Piccolo’s help. However, Tien has always been a step ahead of Krillin.

Back when power levels were being thrown about left and right, Tien was consistently proven to be the stronger of the two. Tien’s power level at the beginning of DBZ was 250, compared to 1830 during the Saiyan invasion, while Krillin’s ranged from 206-1770.

Between the Saiyan and Cell sagas, Tien trained on King Kai’s planet, and was the stronger of the two during the Cell Games. After the Cell arc, Tien continued his training, while Krillin settled down with his family. If Olibu gave Pikkon a hard time, and Pikkon easily defeated Perfect Cell, then Olibu is most likely above Cell himself. If either Tien or Krillin trained hard enough to surpass Olibu, it most definitely was not Krillin.

1. Uub

The Peaceful World Saga, which has been more or less rewritten by Dragon Ball Super, is still the official final saga of Dragon Ball Z. Excluding GT, which is not series canon, the epilogue is Uub’s only appearance in the franchise, but he proves in a short space of time that he is easily the strongest human in DBZ.

Uub is the result of Goku’s wish to fight a good version of Kid Buu. No one knows quite how Goku’s wish was granted, but Uub is Buu reincarnated, and he shows flashes of Buu’s enormous power during his World Tournament match up with Goku.

Goku essentially uses the match as a training session, provoking Uub into releasing his energy while slowly upping his own game. Uub is a match for him every step of the way, and Goku eventually abandons the fight to train the boy. Whether we will see the results of Goku’s training in DBS is unclear, but Uub was the most powerful human in DBZ, even before he was properly trained.

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Who would you rank as the strongest DBZ human? Let us know in the comments!