While there is a wide range of isekai anime available to anime fans, the genre has become infamous for having overpowered protagonists. This trend has always been a major part of isekai anime, but thanks to Sword Art Online and its protagonist, Kirito, the phenomenon is more common than ever.

Whether they were reincarnated into another world and gained a superpower, no one can defeat or raised to be the strongest in their clan from the moment of birth, there is an abundance of compelling isekai protagonists that have saturated the genre as a whole. Out of this group, there is a handful whose power clearly stands above the rest.

Updated by Sage Ashford on February 22nd 2024: This list has been updated to reflect changes in CBR's publishing style.

25 Pride Royal Ivy Can See Into The Future

The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen

At a young age, princess Pride Royal Ivy regained her memories of her past life. Realizing she'd been reincarnated as the villain of her favorite otome game, Pride resolves to ensure the people around here and the country she loves, have a much happier ending than in the games.

Because she remembers the game's plot, Pride has foreknowledge about many of the events before they happen. She's also designated as the "final boss" of the game, which gives her abilities normal people don't have. She can become a master of anything just by seeing it once, making her excellent at several forms of combat.

24 Tanya Von Degurechaff Has Incredible Control Of Magic

Saga Of Tanya The Evil

Saga of Tanya the Evil is one of those isekai anime with OP MCs, mainly Tanya Degurechaff herself and a few of her most elite soldiers. Before being reincarnated as a 13-year-old girl in the middle of a war, Tanya was a salaryman with a harsh and self-centered personality.

Due to his poor personality, he was murdered by one of his subordinates and sent to a world by a god that Tanya calls "Being X." Tanya worked up the ranks to become a Lieutenant Colonel due in no small part to her masterful grip on magic. While she is cruel and merciless, she also has the skills to crush her enemies without feeling any remorse.

23 Sora & Shiro Excel In A World Where Gaming Skill Rules Over All

No Game No Life

Sora and Shiro share a heartbreaking backstory and are never seen without the other in No Game No Life. While both are impeccably smart, they are both at their strongest when they're with the other. Their teamwork makes them one of the strongest pairs in the world.

As a result, enemies refer to Sora and Shiro as "Blank," the undefeated duo. Even after being transported into another world where they must fight against gods, they never relent and beat them just as easily as if they were humans, making them among the most overpowered characters in anime history.

22 Megumin Mastered The Most Powerful Flame Spell In Her World

Konosuba

Protagonist Kazuma Sato only has one asset: his incredible Luck stat. With that stat, he can only barely survive in Konosuba's lively isekai world, so he needs support characters like Megumin to deal some damage during a quest.

Megumin can only cast one spell per day and has minimal physical strength, but in her eyes, it's worth it. Megumin's explosion spell is famously powerful, and in the Konosuba movie, she combined her power with Yunyun's to create an explosion visible from space.

21 Kazuto Kirigaya AKA Kirito Is A Master Swordsman

Sword Art Online

Almost any anime fan who was around when Sword Art Online came out is familiar with the show's protagonist, Kirito. While the fourteen-year-old's real name is Kazuto Kirigaya, everyone in the franchise calls him by his in-game name after he is trapped in the game for a long amount of time.

Kirito was a beta-tester and a solo player, so the reasoning behind his overpowered nature makes plenty of sense. However, that doesn't take away from the skill that he demonstrates consistently throughout the events of the series. It's clear why Sword Art Online is one of the best isekai anime with an OP MC.

20 Shiroe Relies On His Tactical Abilities To Outmaneuver His Enemies

Log Horizon

Although Sword Art Online popularized the character-becomes-stuck-in-video-game trope, the series is far from the first to explore this concept. Log Horizon, first released in 2013, explores a similar concept, thrusting 30,000 Japanese gamers — including its protagonist, Shiroe — into a video game known as Elder Tale.

Shiroe is an eight-year veteran of Elder Tale, instantly making him one of the strongest entities in the entire game. While his involvement with the show's titular guild, Log Horizon, helps him meet many quality characters, he would have had no problem defeating the game's toughest opponents by himself. Shiroe's superior intelligence allows him to defeat enemies more powerful than he is. However, many other isekai characters are too strong for his intelligence to overcome.

19 Leonmitchelli Galette Des Rois Can Defeat Entire Armies On Her Own

Dog Days

Princess Leo is the leader of the Galette Lion Territory, and their strongest soldier by far. Her talent is so great that she's spent the last several sports tournaments trouncing the Biscotti Republic almost on her own. Within the Dog Days universe, the Biscotti Republic's losses get so bad that they summon a champion from another world to help defend them against her might.

New to the job, Cinque still proves he's a fine champion. However, Leo's mastery of magic and many bladed weapons makes her an impossible wall for him to overcome without the help of his partner Eclair. Since Princess Leo must eventually marry, she's mentioned she'll only marry someone strong enough to beat her in combat. So far, she's defeated entire tournaments worth of people on her own.

18 Lugh Tuatha Dé Has Decades Of Experience As An Assassin

The World's Finest Assassin Gets Reincarnated In Another World As An Aristocrat

Lugh Tuatha Dé is a fun example of a character who begins their series as one of the strongest individuals in the entire world. In The World's Finest Assassin, his skills as an assassin are unparalleled, and if it were not for the betrayal of his employer, he would have ended his days as an accomplished legend.

However, thanks to the actions of an unnamed Goddess, Lugh is reborn in a brand-new world with a second lease on life. As an assassin, Lugh functioned as a tool used by his organization to eliminate whichever targets they deemed necessary. Using his skills as an assassin, gifts from the Goddess, and newfound ambition, Lugh effortlessly progresses through the new world he inhabits.

17 Haruto Amou Relies On His Ability To Manipulate Auras

Seven Senses of the Re'Union

Seven Senses of the Re'Union is mostly known for its horrible plot and story, not for its overpowered protagonist, Haruto Amou. However, that does not change the fact that he is as strong as they come. Haruto is one of the most powerful characters in Union, the first VRMMORPG in his world's timeline.

Amou's similarities to the protagonists of Sword Art Online and Log Horizon are hard to ignore. Haruto has sharp abilities and smarts, as well as the ability to manipulate auras. Despite rarely using weapons, he still somehow wins various fights.

16 Hajime Nagumo Mastered The Power Of Transmutation

Arifureta: From Commonplace To World's Strongest

Just like Naofumi from The Rising of the Shield Hero, Hajime was not taken seriously when Arifureta began. He was called an incompetent fool who couldn't do anything. After being made fun of for his weakness, Hajime became an anti-hero who obtained great strength.

The one difference between most isekai heroes and Hajime is his cruel nature, since he uses his powers of mutation and strength to fight his enemies. He can even damage a person's organs without trying, which is quite a feat.

15 Seiya Ryuguin Works To Ensure Victory Ahead Of Time

Cautious Hero: The Hero Is Overpowered But Overly Cautious

Seiya Ryuguin is one of the newest overpowered protagonists in mainstream isekai anime. Cautious Hero's title even states that Seiya is overpowered, so fans weren't shocked by his abilities. However, his temperament provides the perfect foil to his awe-inspiring abilities.

Although Seiya is overpowered, he refuses to fight an enemy he is not sure that he can defeat. He also has a worrisome personality, thinking everyone he meets has a deadly illness. While Seiya can beat anyone because of his natural strength, his cautiousness limits his ability to act, making it difficult to rank him any higher against characters with vastly more power.

14 Shin Wolford Has A Greater Understanding Of Magic

Wise Man's Grandchild

Wise Man's Grandchild's Shin Wolford is another isekai protagonist who is new to the anime world. After Shin died from an unknown cause that wasn't Truck-kun, he was reincarnated as Merlin Wolford's grandson. Merlin is the most powerful magician in the entire universe.

Shin is extremely powerful and can use his knowledge of his past life to make himself stronger. The one thing holding him back is that he does not understand how powerful he is, so he ends up overdoing it most of the time.

13 Mamako Oosuki Gets Her Power From Being A Mom

Do You Love Your Mom And Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks?

If most individuals were transported to a virtual world, they would likely enjoy doing so without being regularly bested by their fellow players — especially if one of these players were their own mother. Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks? plays with this idea, making one of its main characters the protagonist's massively overpowered mother.

Mamako and her son are beta-testers in a video game made to strengthen the bond between parent and child. Against all odds, she ends up with the two most powerful swords in the game.

12 Azazel Ameri's Power Relies On Self-Confidence

Welcome To Demon School, Iruma-Kun!

Azazel Ameri is the student council president in Welcome to Demon School, Iruma-Kun!, and she soon became Iruma Suzuki's best friend. She is a dignified and powerful demon girl who is widely respected, but she also has a soft side, such as a secret love of shojo manga.

In battle, Azazel Ameri can use her formidable bloodline trait, Romanticide, to multiply her power and become a melee powerhouse. Her strength is derived from her self-confidence, so if Ameri loses faith in her abilities in battle, she may become weaker — a drawback she is perfectly aware of.

11 Leon Bartfort Uses A Hyper-Advanced Giant Robot

Trapped In A Dating Sim

Leon Bartfort is the witty, roguish antihero of Trapped in a Dating Sim, a wacky isekai anime taking place in an otome game world where giant robots are common. He's strong not because of magic or swords, but because he can pilot an incredibly powerful mech with advanced technology.

Leon defeated his rivals with ease in Trapped in a Dating Sim, and he only needed his robot's shovel and fists to do it. This is how he trounced Prince Julius and his cronies in the combat arena, though these glorious victories actually made Leon even less popular, not more.

10 Naofumi Iwatani Mastered How To Use His Shields

The Rising Of The Shield Hero

The Rising of the Shield Hero spawned a lot of controversy due to its handling of the main character, Naofumi Iwatani. Still, he is one of the best isekai protagonists in recent years. After this controversy dwindled down once the show wrapped up, it turned into amazement regarding the series' ability to subvert the expectations of its viewers.

Despite being the Shield Hero, which is considered the weakest out of the four Cardinal Heroes, Naofumi has nearly perfect defense and can even be offensive with some of his shields. Add in a demonic shield that overtakes his mind, and he possesses a mix of strengths. Naofumi's ability to think outside the box and test the limits of his power make him dangerous, but against other characters who wield reality-altering power, he doesn't stand much of a chance.

9 Takuma Sakamoto Can Defeat Anyone Within His Realm

How Not To Summon A Demon Lord

Diablo, whose real name is Takuma Sakamoto, was summoned to his favorite MMORPG's world, Cross Reverie, as his in-game character during the events of How Not to Summon a Demon Lord. It turns out that Diablo is known as the true Demon King and has the overwhelming power to defeat anyone in the game, no matter their status.

Even if they have better equipment or are at a higher level than him, Takuma can always beat them. He also admits to holding back when he does defeat his enemies in How Not to Summon a Demon Lord.

8 Demon King Claude Wields The Power To Destroy The World

I'm The Villainess, So I'm Taming The Final Boss

I'm the Villainess, So I'm Taming the Final Boss is a shojo-style seinen anime starring the villainess-turned-heroine Aileen Lauren d'Autriche. This is not an OP MC anime, though, since Aileen's best weapons are her sharp wits and her ample meta-knowledge rather than combat strength. So she needs her kuudere lover, Claude, to protect her from physical harm.

Demon King Claude doesn't like fighting, and he'd rather be understood and loved than feared. Still, he is immensely powerful as the half-human lord of all demons, and his mood alone can change the weather. If he morphs into his true demon form, he could destroy the entire world.

7 Sadao Maou Can Harm People By Looking At Them

The Devil Is A Part-Timer!

Sadao Maou is one of the most powerful characters in anime history. The protagonist of The Devil Is a Part-Timer! lived as Satan before being forced to flee from his world following his near-defeat at the hands of the Hero Emilia.

While Sadao may look harmless, fans would be wise to remember that he is literally Satan. Though he lost almost all of his powers upon entering Earth, he had extraordinary powers ranging from mind control, teleportation, regeneration, and even the ability to harm others by simply staring at them.

6 Ginta Toramizu's Power And Creativity Led Him To Defeat The Chess Army

MAR

Ginta Toramizu was a nerdy kid from Earth who was constantly bullied until he was teleported to another world. On the planet MAR-Heaven, Ginta's strength increased thanks to the lighter gravity, making him stronger than the average person, pushing him to protect people from the tyrannical Chess Army.

Like most shonen protagonists, Ginta doesn't start out as overpowered. However, by the end of MAR, he defeats every major member of the Chess Army with the help of his partner weapon, Babbo. Ginta's partnership with Babbo allows Babbo to transform into eight different forms, limited only by his imagination.