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Earth's Mightiest Heroes: Who Is the Most Powerful Avenger of All Time?

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Ron Lim , Israel Silva / Siya Oum / Carmen Carnero / Frank Espinosa / Marvel Comics

What's more powerful: a human rocket or a giant, green brick wall? The truth is, the answer to that question is actually pretty complicated.

Listen, the Avengers is practically a revolving door of the latest and greatest superheroes in the Marvel universe, which means that whittling down that list and arriving at the most powerful Avenger isn't exactly the easiest of tasks to be given. Some people might go with the more obvious choices like Thor and Captain America, but there are always those who'll trend towards someone a bit more off the beaten path. You know, like the almighty Squirrel Girl, who—yes—was a member of the Avengers at one point.

Despite the arguments that are bound to ensue, we've gathered up 20 of the strongest Marvel superheroes worthy of being crowned the most powerful Avenger of all time.

20. Star-Lord

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Paco Medina / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Peter Quill

Notable Movies: Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Best Power: Superhuman durability

Aside from having a cool mask and dual blasters, what else can Star-Lord actually do? Okay, maybe that's a little harsh: he was able to survive the energy of the Power Stone and is capable of surviving in space, but compared to the other Avengers on this list, he doesn't quite stand up to their powers.

19. Valkyrie

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Mahmud Asrar / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Brunnhilde

Notable Movies: Thor: Love and Thunder, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Superhuman strength

First off, Valkyrie rides a pegasus, so she automatically gets extra points for that slay. Aside from that, she holds many of the same powers that Thor does, though at a slightly lesser level; however, once she snatches up Zeus' thunderbolt, her strength takes on an entirely new meaning.

18. Falcon

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Jay Anacleto / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Sam Wilson

Notable Movies/TV Shows: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Master of flight

Falcon's one of those superheroes who can constantly be depended on to swoop in at the last possible moment to save the day: in other words, he probably holds the record number of assists in all of Avengers history.

17. Winter Soldier

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Rod Reis / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Bucky Barnes

Notable Movies/TV Shows: Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Master assassin

Bucky Barnes might not actually have any superhuman abilities, but when it comes to heavy artillery and sheer force, the Winter Soldier's got you covered. And being Captain America's right-hand man, the two basically become unstoppable when fighting together.

While Bucky Barnes isn't the most powerful Avenger of all time, he's certainly the coolest.

16. Hawkeye

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David Aja / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Clint Barton

Notable Movies/TV Shows: Hawkeye, The Avengers, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Master archer

Like the Winter Soldier, Hawkeye also doesn't possess any superhuman powers, but what he lacks in that department he more than makes up for in his archery abilities. A detail-oriented fighter with his senses always on high alert, Clint Barton is ready at a moment's notice to take out whoever's coming around the corner.

15. Wasp

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Elsa Charretier, Adam Kubert / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Janet Van Dyne

Notable Movies: Ant-Man and the Wasp, Ant-Man, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Shrinking in size

Ant-Man's partner in crime, Wasp, is just as ferocious as he is, though with slightly different capabilities. She can shrink down just like Ant-Man can, though being that her name is the Wasp, it only makes sense that she can fly and sting just like the insect.

14. Shang-Chi

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Leinil Francis Yu / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Shang-Chi

Notable Movies: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Best Power: Master of the martial arts

Even without the power of the Ten Rings, Shang-Chi proves his strength in his outstanding martial art skills, though those rings definitely up the ante. He can use them in a variety of different ways, including as projectiles and transportation, while also giving him superhuman strength and stamina.

13. Black Widow

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Adam Hughes / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Natasha Romanoff

Notable Movies: Black Widow, Iron Man 2, Captain America: Civil War, The Avengers, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Stealth/related spy skills

Ethan Hunt, watch out: you've got competition, and her name is Black Widow. Okay, her name is Natasha Romanoff, but that doesn't have the same ring that Black Widow does. Basically, she's got stealth running through her veins and can knock you out without even knowing you were knocked out.

12. War Machine

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Clayton Crain / Marvel Comics

Real Name: James Rhodes

Notable Movies: Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Energy blasts

While James Rhodes' War Machine suit is very similar to that of Iron Man, we do have to remember that the man under the Iron Man suit has a genius-level intellect and has been at it for a bit longer than Rhodes has. But that's not to dismiss War Machine, as he's a major force to be reckoned with out on the field and in the sky.

11. Ant-Man

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Bob Layton / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Scott Lang

Notable Movies: Ant-Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Shrinking/growing in size

People like to dismiss Ant-Man because they believe all he can do is shrink down to the size of an ant, but in reality, his abilities span much further than that. Scott Lang can also reverse that power and grow massively, making it easy for him to literally stomp out his enemies like he would an ant. Alright, maybe that wasn't the best analogy.

10. Captain America

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Carmen Carnero / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Steve Rogers

Notable Movies: Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Superhuman strength

Okay, okay: don't hate me for putting Captain America halfway down this list, but if we're really here to rank the Avengers by sheer power and force, our good buddy, Steve Rogers, just doesn't measure up to people like the Hulk, Captain Marvel, and Thor. He's got a pretty cool shield, though.

9. Spider-Man

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Mark Bagley / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Peter Parker

Notable Movies: Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Spider-Man: Far From Home, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Spider-senses

While Spider-Man might be one of the most beloved Avengers of all time, he's not the absolute strongest of the bunch, though I'd have to say that being ranked at number nine of a practically endless amount of Avengers is pretty darn good.

8. Black Panther

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Juann Cabal / Marvel Comics

Real Name: T'Challa

Notable Movies: Black Panther, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Super-soldier powers

Not only is Black Panther himself expertly trained in combat, but after Shuri constructed him a Vibranium suit that harnessed kinetic energy, it made T'Challa practically unstoppable. And yes, that's on top of already having the Super-soldier powers constantly coursing through his body.

7. Iron Man

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Barry Windsor-Smith, Jim Starlin, George Tuska, P. Craig Russell / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Tony Stark

Notable Movies: Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3, Spider-Man: Homecoming, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Genius intellect

Yeah, you put a human genius in a technologically-enhanced suit and see what happens.

While Captain America is technically the leader of the Avengers, everyone knows that Iron Man is the real brain in charge of the operation. His suit is extremely powerful, allowing him to fly at wild speeds and fire off massive energy blasts, but behind the scenes, Tony Stark is doing just as much work as Iron Man.

6. Vision

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Steve Epting / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Vision

Notable Movies/TV Shows: WandaVision, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War, Captain America: Civil War

Best Power: Superhuman intelligence/the Mind Stone

Given that Vision literally has the Mind Stone engrained in his head, it's obvious why this Avenger is as powerful as he is. Though technically a robot, Vision is a gentle and kind being, more interested in the cause for peace than in using his powers willy-nilly.

5. Doctor Strange

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Kevin Nowlan / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Stephen Strange

Notable Movies: Doctor Strange, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Thor: Ragnarok, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Conjuring spells

A former surgeon who can cast spells? Yeah, this Stephen Strange dude is really playing God over here.

Doctor Strange has a multitude of different abilities, which all center around him being a sorcerer of the mystic arts, including astral projection, telepathy, teleportation, time manipulation, creating shields, conjuring objects, and sending off energy blasts. And if that wasn't enough, he also can't be killed, which easily puts him in the running for being the most powerful Avenger.

4. Hulk

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Declan Shalvey / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Bruce Banner

Notable Movies/TV Shows: She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, The Incredible Hulk, Captain America: Civil War, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Superhuman strength

Just look at him.

3. Thor

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Ron Lim , Israel Silva / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Thor Odinson

Notable Movies: Thor, Thor: The Dark World, Thor: Ragnarok, Thor: Love and Thunder, Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: God-like strength

Whether it be fighting alongside Mjölnir or Stormbreaker, Thor's strength is indisputable, though it's his gentle heart that creates the perfect balance of a superhero. Oh, and he's the God of Thunder, so there's that.

2. Captain Marvel

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Juan Frigeri / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Carol Danvers

Notable Movies: Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Cosmic physiology

Listen, if it weren't for the following contender, Carol Danvers would 100% be the most powerful Avenger of all time—she's a freaking human rocket, for God's sake. I know some people like to argue that Avengers like Thor or the Hulk should be placed above her when it comes to power rankings, but can either of those characters tear down from space to Earth at the speed of light and shoot out energy blasts at an entire field of foes?

Yeah, exactly.

1. The Scarlet Witch

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Siya Oum / Marvel Comics

Real Name: Wanda Maximoff

Notable Movies/TV Shows: WandaVision, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame

Best Power: Energy manipulation

Yes, the Scarlet Witch is the most powerful Avenger of all time.

Even aside from the absolutely monstrous display of power that she showed in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Wanda Maximoff was always a major force to be reckoned with in the Marvel universe. Her powers are completely unmatched, as she's able to use telekinesis, manipulate energy, and pop in and out of people's consciousness while reading their minds at the same time.

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