Gohan has been a prominent fixture in the Dragon Ball series ever since his introduction at the start of the Saiyan saga, which kicked off Dragon Ball's Dragon Ball Z era. The first of the new generation of Saiyan-Earthling hybrids, Gohan is the son of Goku and Chi-Chi. It's only natural for a child of that lineage to be born with an immense level of untapped power and potential, something fans witness throughout Dragon Ball Z.

Born and raised as a peaceful child, Gohan didn't learn to fight from a young age like his father, but certain circumstances forced him to undergo a harsh training regime. Piccolo guided Gohan's training, helping develop him into a formidable fighting force against an unknown threat. From that day on, Gohan grew at an extraordinary rate and became one of the strongest fighters in the universe.

Updated on January 4, 2024, by Brittanie Maldonado & Ajay Aravind: After years of waiting, Gohan fans finally got to see their favorite character take center stage again in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. With this movie comes a new Gohan transformation, Gohan Beast, his strongest form to date. As such, we've updated this list featuring all the Gohan forms in Dragon Ball.

Gohan Forms
Kid Gohan
Oozaru Gohan
Adult Gohan
Teen Gohan
Super Saiyan Adult Gohan
Super Saiyan Teen Gohan
Super Saiyan 2 Adult Gohan
Super Saiyan 2 Teen Gohan
Ultimate Gohan
Gohan Beast

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12 Kid Gohan Showed Off A Sliver Of His Potential Against Raditz

Raditz Saga

The first time fans formally meet Gohan in Dragon Ball Z is when he arrives at the Kame House to meet up with his friends. Gohan is quite young and keeps his Saiyan tail. After being introduced to Goku's friends, Gohan gets captured by his uncle Raditz, who plans to use the boy as a hostage and lure out Goku.

During the battle, after witnessing his father get brutally beaten up, Gohan unlocks some of his immense hidden power and propels himself headfirst into Raditz. The blow cracks Raditz's armor and staggers him long enough for Goku and Piccolo to finish him off.

11 Kid Gohan Got Stronger After Training With Piccolo

Vegeta Saga

After defeating Raditz, Piccolo receives a warning about the pair of Saiyans, Nappa and Vegeta, who will arrive in two years' time. With Goku sacrificing himself to help defeat Raditz, Piccolo must train Gohan so he can become stronger. Piccolo acts as a substitute for Gohan's father while putting the boy through intensive survival training.

Gohan's strength grows exponentially and, by the end of the training, he can shatter large boulders with little effort. Gohan even defends himself against Saibamen who were strong enough to keep all the Z Fighters, like Tien and Yamcha, on their toes.

10 Kid Gohan Had Some Of His Hidden Potential Unlocked

The Frieza Saga

In order to wish back their dead friends — who had already been revived with the Earth Dragon Balls — Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma travel to the distant planet Namek to use their Dragon Balls. During their quest, Gohan encounters Guru, the elder Namekian who served as a leader among the rest.

After sensing the danger that Frieza and his army will bring, the Namekian elder decides to help the trio and unlocks some of Gohan's hidden potential. This power boost allows Gohan to face off against Frieza while the latter is in his second form. Gohan even gains a split-second advantage against Frieza, leaving Vegeta stunned and curious about Gohan's potential.

9 Oozaru Gohan Was Pivotal To Defeating Vegeta

Vegeta Saga

When Gohan was first introduced by Goku to his friends, they became alarmed after learning that Gohan still had his tail. It's easy to understand why, especially based on their experiences with Goku under the full moon. Having a tail grants Gohan the ability to transform into an Oozaru, or Great Ape.

While this form had glaring weaknesses, notably its reliance on its tail and the full moon, Gohan's Oozaru form proved more powerful than any non-Super Saiyan transformation he had as a child. This Gohan form led to the climatic moment in the Earthling's fight against Vegeta, ultimately causing him to retreat.

8 Adult Gohan Slacked Off On His Training

The Great Saiyaman Saga

After defeating Cell and returning peace to the planet, Gohan and the gang live their days without worries. By the time fans witness the Great Saiyaman Saga, Gohan has grown into a young adult. Unfortunately, focusing on his studies and taking a long break from fighting leads his power to deteriorate.

Gohan only had an echo of the power he had in his teenage youth when he faced off against Cell. Nonetheless, he remained far stronger than the other Z Fighters. The only Fighters who retained more power than Gohan were Goku, who was dead, and Vegeta, who constantly trained since the battle with Cell and had reached a higher level of strength.

7 Teen Gohan Trained Harder Than Ever Before

Perfect Cell Saga

After Future Trunks warns them about approaching danger, the Z Fighters prepare themselves for the worst and start training to get stronger. When the Androids arrive, the prediction proves inaccurate. There are two extra Androids and a mysterious biological android known as Cell.

After gaining his full power, Cell threatened the world and announced a tournament in ten days. Gohan spent a single day in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber with Goku and finally attained the Super Saiyan transformation. This made him stronger than even Vegeta in his base form, allowing Gohan to handle Androids with ease.

6 Super Saiyan Adult Gohan's Power Falls Short Of His Younger Days

The Great Saiyaman Saga

Due to a lack of training and being more focused on his life as an everyday citizen, Gohan began losing his strength and eventually reached a point where his Super Saiyan transformation, albeit impressive, gave him only a fraction of the power boost in comparison to his prime fighting days during the Cell saga.

Gohan only used the transformation as a disguise to stop a few criminals and could easily trigger it, especially if he became angry. Unfortunately, Gohan wasn't in peak condition — instead of being a game-changing maneuver, this Gohan form was simply a tool to make himself look stronger than he was.

5 Super Saiyan Teen Gohan Was Once The Youngest Super Saiyan

Perfect Cell Saga

After entering the hyperbolic time chamber with his father, Gohan underwent strict training to achieve more power and become a more formidable opponent for Goku. During the training, Goku teaches Gohan how to channel his anger and attain the Super Saiyan transformation without needing to train excessively like Vegeta or experience an emotional trigger like Goku.

Gohan learned the transformation and performed it on command, making him the youngest Saiyan to achieve the legendary form at the time. He became strong enough to survive a one-on-one battle against Cell, even though he was over-matched.

4 Super Saiyan 2 Adult Gohan Is Powerful Despite Not Keeping Up With His Training

World Tournament Saga

The next level of Super Saiyan makes its return in the World Tournament Saga during Gohan's battle with Kibito. Gohan first achieves this transformation after Cell destroys Android 16 in front of him. The form uses Gohan's energy to reinforce his muscles, which increases muscle mass and strength without sacrificing speed.

It even causes electric sparks to surround his body. According to the lore, Gohan's stored kinetic energy caused these sparks. Even though it still retained its properties, the form had grown weaker because of Gohan's break from fighting. In Vegeta's eyes, Gohan had gone soft over the years.

3 Super Saiyan 2 Teen Gohan Is Still A Fan Favorite Moment

Perfect Cell Saga

First appearing during the battle with Cell, Gohan became the strongest fighter in the universe through the Super Saiyan 2 transformation. In this form, Gohan surpassed Cell and even his father in terms of power and speed. After obtaining this transformation, Gohan made quick work of the Cell Juniors with one blow each.

A simple kick in Cell's stomach caused him to throw up the absorbed Android 18, which forced him to revert to his Imperfect Form. Gohan's regular Kamehameha overwhelmed Cell's full-power Solar Kamehameha and his full-power Kamehameha was strong enough to disintegrate Cell. This was the strongest form a child had attained in the series, except for the fusion Gotenks.

2 Ultimate Gohan Doesn't Need To Transform Into A Super Saiyan

Fusion Saga

After being defeated by Majin Buu and left on the brink of death, Gohan returned to the world of the Kais and trained using the Z Sword. After breaking the sword in two and releasing the Old Kai, Gohan underwent a 24-hour ritual to unlock all his potential.

After the ritual was completed, Gohan obtained power stronger than his Super Saiyan 2, and it didn't even change his appearance. As Ultimate Gohan, otherwise known as "Mystic Gohan," he easily overpowered Super Buu and toyed with him.

1 Gohan Beast Is The Culmination Of Gohan's Untapped Potential

Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero

During the Universe Survival saga in Dragon Ball Super, Gohan declared his intent to find a different power outside the realm of Super Saiyan, utilizing his Ultimate form. At this point, the anime depicted Gohan's Ultimate form as a transformation. This would come to pass in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.

When attempting to save his daughter Pan from the Red Ribbon Army, Gohan confronted a new version of his old nemesis Cell in Cell Max. Believing Cell Max had killed Piccolo, Gohan awakened a new form with white Super Saiyan 2-like hair and red pupils. Gohan Beast, also known as "Final Gohan," easily defeated Cell Max and saved Earth once again.