When talking about powerful anime characters, the big names that always get dropped are Goku, Ichigo, Naruto, and Luffy. Unsurprisingly, male anime characters are associated with "power" and eviscerating their enemies with energy blasts. It is easy to forget that there are also plenty of equally ripped and powerful anime women who could give the men a run for their money in the power rankings.

From cybernetic police officers to goddesses, some of anime's heaviest hitters are female. Characters across all genres have proven their mettle in battle. That power can be physical, magical, or technological. The more damage these girls and women have dealt, the more they have solidified themselves as some of the strongest female anime characters.

Updated by Alexandra Locke & Ajay Aravind on November 29, 2023: Powerful women often get overlooked in anime, but these female characters stand out anyway. Their strength and powers are so incredible that they are beloved (and feared) for their abilities. As the number of fantastic anime women grows, this article has been updated to include five more of the strongest female anime characters.

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30 Erina Nakiri Is A Culinary Force To Be Reckoned With

Food Wars

Food Wars - Erina Nakiri with flames behind her lording over a kitchen

Erina Nakiri is a force to be reckoned with in Food Wars. As the God's Tongue, Erina’s palette can make or break any chef — and she never holds back her criticism. Even chefs who have been in the spotlight for years can be brought down by a single bad review from Erina.

Erina’s tasting abilities are so powerful and unique that her word on any dish is law. Many chefs have lost faith in their abilities after having Erina taste their food. Erina’s God's Tongue is the most awesome source of power in the culinary world. That said, she can't hold a candle to the other anime women in this list.

29 Casca Sharpens Her Fangs On Thousands Of Opponents

Berserk

Casca looks serious with two soldiers behind her in Berserk

Berserk is a medieval anime with tons of supernatural elements thrown in. Although the malevolent villains don't show their faces until the Eclipse, there are thousands of human fighters for Casca to sharpen her fangs on. As Griffith's unofficial lieutenant and a unit commander, she's easily one of the strongest members of the Band of the Falcon.

Casca is powerful enough to save Griffith after his capture, albeit with Gus' assistance. She unfortunately loses her mental faculties after the Eclipse, but Casca later becomes capable of defeating creatures like the Veykin golems. Most importantly, Isidro would rather train under Casca than Guts.

28 Maka Albarn Is One Of The Story's Most Promising Meisters

Soul Eater

Maka Albarn ready for battle with soul on her back in Soul Eater

Maka Albarn is one of the most promising Meisters in Soul Eater. Though she is the daughter of a prestigious Weapon, Maka’s hones her already prodigious skills by using Soul Evans to defeat increasingly terrifying enemies. Maka’s bond with Soul is so strong that they achieve the highest level possible for their partnership.

Yet, everything hinges on Maka’s ability to wield any form Soul transforms into. Further, her unique "Anti-Demon Wavelength" gives her access to special abilities that others cannot exploit. Maka's incredible fighting skills and unbridled tenacity make her one of the strongest female anime characters.

27 Mikasa Ackerman Is Nothing Less Than A One-Woman Army

Attack On Titan

Mikasa Ackerman looking back at Historia and the Scouts after killing a Titan in Attack on Titan

Attack on Titan may focus on Eren Yeager, but it's clear that Mikasa Ackerman shines far brighter when it comes to human combat. Mikasa is great at her job — ranked first out of all the cadets in the 104th Training Corps. Mikasa has killed many Titans by herself (plus more with help) and top military brass have stated that her "prowess is equal to that of a hundred ordinary soldiers."

Mikasa is a one-woman army. She certainly proves this when she takes on Annie Leonhart, the Female Titan who swats top-notch soldiers away like flies — and lives to tell the tale. Most importantly, Mikasa is directly responsible for purging the world of Eren.

26 Yuuki Asuna Simply Cannot Resist A Good Fight

Sword Art Online

Yuuki Asuna standing in the forest in casual clothes from Sword Art Online

When 10,000 players became trapped in the world's biggest VR MMORPG, "Sword Art Online," their fate seems sealed. However, by the time Kirito meets her in Sword Art Online's first season, Asuna is already one of the strongest members of the Knights of Blood.

Desperate to complete the game and escape, Asuna battles on the Labyrinth's first floor until exhaustion forces her to stop. After partnering with Kirito, the pair level up incredibly fast and become the first players to clear the game, achieving levels in the mid-90s. Even as a healer in ALfheim Online, Asuna cannot resist a good fight.

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25 Kagura Might Actually Be The Strongest Warrior Of The Yato Tribe

Gintama

Kagura from Gintama making a funny face

Gintama's Kagura would want audiences to believe she is just a sweet-natured girl, but there is much more to her than meets the eye. As the daughter of a famous alien hunter, Kagura has a natural gift for fighting and enhanced physical abilities. She might even be the strongest of the Yato Tribe.

When Kagura lets go, her true nature is triggered — usually when her friends' lives are threatened. In Yato Mode, Kagura becomes monstrously scary. She once killed an enemy in this form by impaling his shoulder and forcing him through a wall in one move. As strong as Kagura is, she's not quite invulnerable.

24 Power's Blood Manipulation Is An Extremely Strong Ability

Chainsaw Man

Power kills the Sea Cucumber Devil in Chainsaw Man

Chainsaw Man's Power might be one of the most immature and unsophisticated characters in the history of anime. She's frequently caught with her hand in the metaphorical cookie jar, but she's still not ashamed of her flaws. Then again, Power's power possibly gives her the confidence to boast about her alleged accomplishments.

She claims that Devils used to cower before her true form, which looks terrifying and is yet to be seen in the anime. Power's Blood Manipulation ability allows her to control the blood in any individual, including herself. She's also known to craft weapons from her own blood, such as hammers and spears.

23 Sakura Kinomoto Ultimately Becomes Stronger Than Clow Reed

Cardcaptor Sakura

Sakura Kinomoto with her scepter and surrounded by Clow Cards from Cardcaptor Sakura

Sakura Kinomoto is a little girl with a big secret: she is a Cardcaptor. This job is entrusted to her by the great magician, Clow Reed, whose cards she must find and seal. Once Sakura captures a card, its power becomes hers to wield. There are fifty-two cards by the end of Cardcaptor Sakura, giving her an impressive arsenal.

Without the cards, Sakura still has enhanced senses, clairvoyance, and dreams that predict the future. After she converts the Clow Cards to Sakura Cards, Sakura ultimately becomes even more powerful than Clow Reed himself, making her one of the strongest female anime characters.

22 Ochaco Uraraka's Gravity Quirk Has Limitless Potential

My Hero Academia

Ochaco Uraraka at school in her hero costume looking worried in My Hero Academia.

In the world of My Hero Academia, superpowered people greatly outnumber non-superpowered people. However, Quirks come in all kinds of weird and wonderful forms, like Ochako Uraraka's Zero Gravity. With just a touch, Uraraka can nullify the effects of gravity on a person or object, rendering them helpless as they float upwards.

Uraraka can cancel the effect by touching her fingers. Her current weight limit is three tons, but she surpasses that limit as of Chapter 394. Her most impressive feat, however, is the Home Run Comet, which showers her enemy with debris.

21 Aoi Kuneida's Real Asset Is Her Formidable Swordsmanship

Beelzebub

Aoi Kushieda looks bemused in a classroom from Beelzebub

Beelzebub's Aoi Kuneida leads the Red Tails gang in Ishiyama High. At just seventeen years old, she is already a fiercely skilled martial artist, with superior strength, speed, and stamina. Although her real asset is her swordsmanship, Aoi prefers a wooden sword that can slice through glass and concrete.

Aoi can apply this to just about anything: rulers, umbrellas, even her bare hands. Aoi's flashier moves include the Second Ceremony 100 Flower Storming Sakura, which transforms her body into glowing cherry blossom petals, slashing through foes in deadly waves of pink.

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20 Sailor Moon Has Access To An Arsenal Of Cosmic Powers

Sailor Moon

Sailor Moon smiling during her transformation in Sailor Moon Eternal

Usagi Tsukino is an average high school student, but she's also the leader of the Sailor Senshi, a band of superheroes with similarly cosmic names and powers. As her epithet suggests, Sailor Moon's attacks are lunar-powered, and draw strength from sound, healing, and love.

Sailor Saturn might have the most destructive power of the Senshi with her planet-busting Silence Glaive, but she can only use this once. Sailor Moon's royal identity means she is the only person able to use the Silver Crystal — a source of immeasurable power that can revive entire worlds. She is also the only Solar System Senshi immune to turning evil.

19 Homura Akemi's Shield Acts As A Time Manipulation Device

Puella Magi Madoka

Homura Akemi looks determined In Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Puella Magi Madoka Magica puts a dark spin on the Magical Girl subgenre. It also features some of its most powerful spell-casters, like Homura Akemi. Akemi is a small and unassuming teenager with a shield that acts as a time manipulation device. This allows her to pause and reverse the flow of time. Additionally, she can make people immune to the effect by touching them.

The shield also doubles up as a pocket dimension weapons cache, hiding countless guns, rocket launchers, and ammunition. After Madoka resets the universe, Akemi's power over time becomes power over memories instead, and her shield becomes a black bow.

18 Nobara Kugisaki Is Incredibly Resourceful And Perceptive

Jujutsu Kaisen

Nobara Kugisaki using her Straw Doll technique on herself in Jujutsu Kaisen

Nobara Kugisaki is as ruthless as she is fun-loving. Though she loves to go shopping and have a good time, she has also proven that she will go above and beyond to take down her enemies. She even goes as far as using her Straw Doll technique on herself to take down a particularly strong Cursed Spirit named Eso in Jujutsu Kaisen.

Kugisaki is still in training, but she's incredibly resourceful and perceptive. As strong as she is now, fans can only imagine the immense power Kugisaki will have as a Grade One Sorcerer. All things considered, Nobara remains one of the strongest female anime characters out there. And yet, she's outclassed by several others.

17 Major Makoto Kusanagi Is One Of The Most Capable Anime Cyborgs

Ghost In The Shell

Makoto Kusanagi Looking at herself in a mirror in Ghost in the Shell

The lead protagonist of the iconic Ghost in the Shell franchise is one of the most capable cyborgs in pop culture. Kusanagi is the most mechanized of all Section 9's members. As an organo-synthetic, she is a top-of-the-line model with artificial skin that behaves and reacts like the real thing.

Chief Aramaki claims Kusanagi's expertise as a cyberbrain specialist and fighter is "rarer than ESP." She can hack into cyberbrains, control external humanoids like drones, and swap her consciousness into different hosts if needs be. Physically, she is fast enough to intercept bullets and advanced enough to turn invisible.

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16 Major General Olivier Armstrong Transforms Her Subordinates Into A Uniform Monolith

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Olivier Armstrong with her arms crossed, with her head down and eyes closed in Fullmetal Alchemist

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood's Olivier Mira Armstrong is a Major General in the Amestrian army. She is not only one of the best soldiers but also the most ruthless. Olivier has little time for mind games and dissenters and has proven herself merciless when punishing her enemies.

Olivier’s influence is so strong that she manages to transform the rough soldiers at Fort Briggs into a unified monolith. Her reputation precedes her so much that enemies fear having to face Fort Briggs in a fight. Olivier is cunning, commanding, and competitive — traits that make her an incredibly strong female anime character.

15 Tatsumaki Is Called The Tornado Of Terror For A Reason

One-Punch Man

Close up of Tatsumaki looking determined from One Punch Man

One-Punch Man is about a superhero who can take out anyone with a single punch. Yet, Tatsumaki is a viable contender to take Saitama's punch. Nicknamed the "Tornado of Terror," she is the second-most powerful S-Class combatant in the Hero Association's roster.

As an esper, Tatsumaki can create psychic barriers, telekinetically pick up and throw things around and control people's Chi energy to paralyze or inflict horrible pain without ever touching them. Her nickname likely comes from her ability to also whip up powerful psychic whirlwinds to blow away several targets in one fell swoop.

14 Big Mom Is One Of The Most Powerful Villains In The Story

One Piece

The Big Mom Pirates entering Wano Kuni in One Piece.

Charlotte Linlin, also known as Big Mom and Queen of Totto Land, is a former Emperor in One Piece. Although she wants Totto Land to be a paradise, she also exacts a heavy tax from her subjects. Big Mom uses the Soru Soru no Mi Devil Fruit to manipulate any living or inanimate thing by transferring a human soul into it, thereby granting it life as a "Homie."

The human then loses some or all of their life force, a power Big Mom uses to control her underlings. Prometheus the sun, Zeus the thundercloud, and Napoleon the bicorne are her best creations, which she uses to also manipulate the weather. Big Mom unquestionably deserves a high ranking on any list containing the strongest female anime characters.

13 Ragyo Kiryuin Easily Overpowers Her Extremely Overpowered Daughters

Kill La Kill

Ragyo Kiryuin Looking down with her rainbow hair on display and a rainbow shining behind her from Kill la Kill

In Kill la Kill, Ragyo Kiryuin is the CEO of the Revocs Corporation, Chair of Honnoji Academy, and the secret evil mastermind behind everything. She was the first human to ever be infused with Life Fibers, and her alpha matriarchal status allows her to easily overpower others armored with Life Fiber uniforms.

Ragyo's superhuman abilities make her strong enough to break her daughter Satsuki's Bakuzan. Ragyo's most sinister skill is "Mind Stitching," which lets her sew Life Fibers into a person's brain, so she can work them like a puppet. She can also fly and survive in space for extended periods of time.

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12 Shihouin Yoruichi Has Always Been A Big Deal In Soul Society

Bleach

Shihouin Yoruichi perched on a metal structure in Bleach

Bleach is bursting with overpowered people, but Shihouin Yoruichi is among the best. When fans first meet this Shinigami, she has been living as a cat in the human world for a century. Eventually, it is revealed that she was something of a big deal in Soul Society.

Yoruichi is a master of Hoho, Shunpo, and Kido, as well as fighting techniques she made up herself. She is so proficient in hand-to-hand combat, that she does not even need her Zanpakuto. Apart from her use of lightning, Yoruichi is best known for her speed. She can move fast enough to leave an after-image behind, earning her the nickname: "Flash Goddess."

11 Boa Hancock Is Proficient In Two Distinct Types Of Haki

One Piece

Boa Hancock turning men to stone during the Summit War in One Piece.

With the Love Love Devil Fruit's power to petrify people by exploiting their feelings of desire, Boa Hancock is One Piece's answer to Medusa. She is also one of the show's Seven Warlords and the Captain of the Kuja Pirates. In One Piece, reputations are measured in bounties, and hers stands at 1,659,000,000 Belly.

Boa's bounty is hardly surprising, considering that she casually knocks out scores of Pacifistas by herself, while the entire Straw Hat crew spends two years training to defeat just one. Boa Hancock is also proficient in two types of the strange spiritual power, Haki, which only one in a million can master. In fact, some fans might argue that Hancock should have been ranked higher.