The DC Universe is home to some of the fastest characters imaginable including The Flash. The scarlet speedster is often known as the “Fastest Man Alive.” However, many other people aside from Barry Allen have come to hold the very same title.
Over the years, countless speedsters have been introduced into the DC Universe, offering different takes on The Flash, or even giving him a run for his money. Furthermore, many of these speedsters exist beyond the normal DC Universe as part of the multiverse.
Updated on April 24, 2022 by Scoot Allan: DC's multiverse has been altered a few times over the years due to reality-altering events. Things changed again as the Infinite Frontier era embraced the various realities of the multiverse. A new team of heroes called the Justice Incarnate was formed to explore and protect the multiverse and the team included Barry Allen/The Flash. He has encountered new speedsters across the multiverse who've shown their own powerful connections to the Speed Force.
15 Flash And Ghost Rider Merged To Become Speed Demon
The Marvel vs. DC event saw the two universes collide for a contest which ultimately resulted in the merger of their respective worlds. A new Amalgam universe was created that blended Marvel and DC's heroes and villains for a series of one-shots. Speed Demon followed Blaze Allen, an amalgamation of Ghost Rider and The Flash which also incorporated Etrigan the Demon.
While the upper limits of his speed weren't fully revealed in the Amalgam universe's brief appearances, Flash's speed seemed to be enhanced by the hellish magic of Ghost Rider and Etrigan. The combination of powersets made Speed Demon one of the most powerful Amalgam characters.
14 Lady Flash From Earth 33 Is The Mysterious Keeper Of The Speed Force
Earth 33 is definitely one of the lesser-explored DC universes. However, there's still enough information about Earth 33’s Lady Flash to understand just how fast she truly is. Her real name is unknown, but she claims to be the keeper of the Speed Force. Furthermore, she has noted some magical and other supernatural ties between the Speed Force and her own abilities.
Because of this, it can be assumed she is almost unimaginably fast. She has been shown to have additional powers most speedsters don’t have. Unfortunately, there's no way to accurately determine just how fast she is without a closer look at her universe.
13 Jay Garrick Was The Original Speedster Called The Flash From Earth 2
Of course, the original Flash is easily one of the fastest in the multiverse. Although Jay is far from the fastest when compared to other members of the Flash Family, he's still one of the most important speedsters in all of DC history. He helped lay the groundwork for all other speedsters after him, even though Flash has changed a lot since Jay Garrick.
Jay is an older character and has often expressed that he's no longer as fast as he used to be. At his prime, Jay would have given other multiversal speedsters a run for their money despite his initial lack of a connection to the Speed Force.
12 Red Racer Was A Comic Fan And Speedster From Earth 36
Earth 36 features alternate versions of the Justice League known as the Justice 9, which included a young speedster named Red Racer. Ray was a comic fan whose connection to the speed force and knowledge of comics made him the perfect candidate for the first incarnation of the Justice Incarnate team.
Red Racer was so fast he was capable of compressing the 1,000 years worth of work needed to rebuild the team's multiversal ship. Unfortunately, it cost Red Racer his life, putting him in good company with other heroic speedsters of the multiverse.
11 Earth-9's Lia Nelson Is A Former Flash Who Became Lightray
DC's Tangent universe created new characters using the established names of heroes, set in a reality whose history had been greatly influenced by the appearance of superheroes. Lia Nelson from Earth-9 was the first human born in space which caused her to develop light-based abilities.
While she isn't a speedster in the conventional sense, she began her career as the Flash of the Tangent universe due to her ability to move at the speed of light. She now works with Superman and The Authority as Lightray, although her faster than light speed is just one of the many abilities she wields as a light-based being.
10 Black Racer Is A New God And The Physical Manifestation Of Death
The Black Racer is often regarded as Death himself. While he actually was once a human, Darkseid eventually bestowed his powers upon him. The Black Racer, he has come to develop a particular interest in the Flash Family and other speedsters, as they are typically the only individuals capable of outrunning him.
However, that's not to say he's slow by any means. The Black Racer's speed comes from his cosmic skis, which make him far faster than many other speedsters in both the main DC universe and the multiverse.
9 Johnny Quick Is The Crime Syndicate's Evil Speedster
The Crime Syndicate of Earth-3 are evil opposites of the Justice League who took over their world before they set their sights on the multiverse. Jonathan Chambers was struck by a bolt of lightning and gained super speed to become one of the most powerful Crime Syndicate members.
He took the name Johnny Quick and began working alongside the size-changing Atomica. While Johnny Quick has never been as fast as Barry Allen in an extended race, he has a number of dirty tricks that make him a dangerous multiversal speedster.
8 Future State's Jess Chambers Works With Teen Justice As Kid Quick
The Future State event introduced a new multiversal Flash named Jess Chambers, who was better known as Kid Quick when they started their career alongside the Teen Justice team on Earth 11. While Chambers will eventually take on the role of Flash in Future State where they were able to deliver a message across the multiverse, Kid Quick hasn't quite reached that speed.
However, they do have a unique ability that separates Kid Quick from other Flashes across the multiverse. Jess Chambers is attuned to the vibrational frequencies of different realities which allows them to navigate the multiverse better than most speedsters.
7 Superman Is One Of The Fastest Characters In The DC Universe
The interesting thing about Superman’s speed is that while he has no connection to the Speed Force, he's still one of DC’s fastest characters. Over the years, Superman has had a number of races with The Flash that showcase his extreme speed.
While some are still faster than he is, Superman's other abilities give him an extra edge when paired with his super-speed. Superman is actually much faster when he's flying, but he can still reach incredible speeds while running like The Flash.
6 The Black Flash Is A Grim Reaper For Speedsters
The interesting thing about Black Flash is that he technically isn’t a character. Instead, he is a presence within the Speed Force itself whose sole purpose is to absorb a speedster at the time of their death. Since some speedsters are capable of outrunning the likes of the Black Racer, the Black Flash then comes in to finish the job.
Strictly speaking, the Black Flash isn’t really a bad guy, but rather more of a force of nature. Regardless, since his entire existence revolves around catching people who are fast enough to outrun death, it is easy to see why he ranks high among DC's multiversal speedsters.
5 Batman Merged With The Flash And Stole His Speed To Become Red Death
Red Death is actually a dark mash-up of both Batman and Flash from the Dark Multiverse. Bruce Wayne from Earth -52 snapped after failing to save those closest to him. In order to make sure he would never be too slow again, he kidnapped Barry Allen and forced him to transfer his powers.
During the process, something went wrong and the two ended up merging instead. While Bruce remains in control, he constantly has Barry in his head, fighting him at every turn. Because of this, Bruce actually has the potential to be much faster, but Barry’s constant pushback only hinders his abilities.
4 Eobard Thawne Is Powered By The Negative Speed Force As Reverse-Flash
Eobard Thawne/Reverse-Flash is easily Barry Allen’s biggest adversary. Over the years, Thawne has tortured Barry in unimaginable ways, yet also improved him in the process. With the Negative Speed Force at his side, Thawne continues to get faster and faster.
Technically speaking, he's actually faster than Barry. However, at the end of virtually every encounter between the two, Barry emerges faster than Thawne. Regardless, Reverse-Flash isn't afraid to use his speed in devastating ways to shock and torment his old foe.
3 Barry Allen Was The First Flash With A Connection To The Speed Force
Barry Allen is the most popular version of The Flash, who was eventually revealed as the creator of the Speed Force. This gives him one of the strongest connections to the dimension that powers the other speedsters. This was just one of The Flash's big changes since his Rebirth.
As a result, Barry has continued to get faster over the years, both through pushing himself and by studying the Speed Force. Likewise, his time with the Justice League has also helped him improve. Yet, despite everything Barry has accomplished as The Flash, he's still not the fastest speedster in the multiverse.
2 Wallace West From Kingdom Come Lives In A State Of Constant Motion
Earth 22 first appeared in the Kingdom Come series by Mark Waid and Alex Ross. In this alternate future, older versions of superheroes struggle with how heroism has evolved. Here, Wally West is still The Flash. However, after a point, his connection to the Speed Force grew to the point where he could no longer stop.
Wally is in a constant state of motion in the universe, constantly traveling at incredible speeds. While he remains a hero, this version of Flash is easily one of the fastest. With Wally already being faster than Barry, it makes sense that an older, more experienced version of Wally would continue to outrace his mentor.
1 Wally West Is A Speed Force Conduit Who Took Over As The Flash
Not only is Wally West the Fastest Man Alive in the main DC Universe, but his powers have increased over the years making him the fastest speedster in the DC Multiverse as well. While Barry may have created the Speed Force, Wally spent more time studying how to manipulate it.
Wally also pushed his limits as The Flash, building a stronger connection to the Speed Force in the process. There are many ways Wally West has changed over the years since his beginning as Kid Flash, but he proves time and again that he truly is The Fastest Man Alive.