Batman is unique among superheroes. He fights villains at all power levels, from purse snatchers to Darkseid. Even though he has no superpowers of his own, Batman usually comes out victorious. His success comes down to his brilliant mind, highly trained body, unwavering determination, and vast resources. However, on some occasions, Batman was more than just a guy in a bat costume thanks to the DC Comics multiverse, and popular comic book events.

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In some stories, Batman's power came from a suit or technology he created. In others, there was an entirely different reality where circumstances changed to give him powers. Batman has wielded Lantern rings of various colors, worn battle armor to fight gods, and possessed godlike powers himself.

Updated on November 29, 2022 by Matthew Z. Wood: Thanks to alternate realities, potential futures, and enhanced technology, comic creators have crafted many powerful versions of Batman. Every few years, an Elseworlds comic or invention creates a new Dark Knight possessing new powers. Iconic versions seen in The Dark Knight Returns or obscure versions seen in Red Rain showcase various strengths and weaknesses that stand out from the hundreds of Batman variations found in comic books and beyond.

20 Golden Age Batman

First Appearance: Detective Comics #27 (1939) By Bill Finger & Bob Kane

Batman in his original Golden Age costume in DC Comics

The original Batman was a feared creature of the night, unlike anything seen in comic books. While Superman represented justice, Batman represented vengeance. The original Batman from the Golden Age, with his simple costume design and purple gloves, is fearsome but fairly weak compared to his later iterations.

The Golden Age Batman debuted with little technology, gadgets, or resources. As technology in the real world advanced, and as comic creators expanded Batman's mythology, the Dark Knight gained a larger arsenal and only grew in power with each subsequent comic book era.

19 Dark Knight Returns Batman

First Appearance: The Dark Knight Returns #1 (1986) By Frank Miller, Klaus Janson & Lynn Varley

Armored Batman punches Superman in DC's Dark Knight Returns

In The Dark Knight Returns, Batman was 55 years old, far darker and more brutal than he had been portrayed in decades. He refused to use a gun but used his fists, batarangs, and feet to beat criminals to within an inch of their lives. Frank Miller's Dark Knight used an array of weapons like a Batmobile that was built like a tank.

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This Batman took on a powerful gang leader and old enemies Two-Face and the Joker. He even figured out a way to beat Superman, thanks to sonic weapons, kryptonite, and the help of a nuclear explosion. The Dark Knight Returns Batman was tough, resourceful, and willing to do whatever it took to free Gotham City. However, he also had a weak heart and a very limited way of seeing the world, making him less durable and adaptable than most version of Batman.

18 Jim Gordon's Batman

First Appearance: Batman #41, by Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, Danny Miki & Steve Wands

Batman superimposed over the Superheavy Batman armor in DC Comics

When it seemed like Batman and the Joker had killed each other in Batman: Endgame, the Gotham police department was left with a lawless city to contend with. Looking for a way to strike fear into criminals and emulate Batman's presence, Gotham City turned to Power Tech to create a program that celebrated Batman's legacy.

The Superheavy Batsuit was entrusted to former police commissioner James Gordon. As the officially sanctioned protector of Gotham, he had plenty of weapons at his disposal but the suit was a difficult piece of technology. Less well-trained than any other Batman, the armor, super-strength, and tear gas launchers the suit provided really didn't put him on par with Bruce Wayne's normal array of gadgets and vehicles, either. Gordon was nearly killed by ordinary street thugs, confirming his fears that he wasn't strong enough to wear Batman's mantle.

17 Batman Beyond

First Appearance: Batman Beyond (1999)

Batman Beyond action pose from the animated series

In Batman Beyond, Bruce Wayne retired and turned over the cape and cowl to teenager Terry McGinnis. As Batman, McGinnis fought new villains like Inque, Spellbinder, and Blight while also battling new versions of Bane and Mr. Freeze.

Terry wore a high-tech suit that let him fly, carry out surveillance by sticking magnetically to ceilings, disappear, and listen to conversations with enhanced hearing. The suit gave him offensive capabilities like the ability to fire batarangs, smoke and gas pellets. Much of Batman's standard gadgets were built into the Batman Beyond suit, creating a sleek new design that is still considered one of the best Batsuits to date.

16 Kingdom Come Batman

First Appearance: Kingdom Come #1 (1996) By Mark Waid & Alex Ross

Armored Batman leads a new generation of heroes in DC Comics Kingdom Come

Mark Waid and Alex Ross created Kingdom Come, set in an alternate future where a battle between heroes and villains threatened the world. The Batman in Kingdom Come had to graft an exoskeleton onto his body to combat years of physical excess from crimefighting, but the exoskeleton made him physically stronger and let him fly, allowing him to protect himself after his identity was exposed.

Batman built and maintained an army of robots called Bat-Knights to become the underground ruler of Gotham City. When Lex Luthor created the Mankind Liberation Front to oppose the Justice League's tyrannical rule, Lex manufactured more Bat-Knights to fight rogue heroes. With his robots and exoskeleton, Batman was a force to be reckoned with.

15 Amazo Virus Batman

First Appearance: Justice League Vol. 2 #37 (2015) By Geoff Johns, Jason Fabok & Brad Anderson

Batman using an echolocation blast after gaining powers from the Amazo Virus in DC Comics

In the New 52 Justice League series, Lex Luthor created a synthetic plague called the Amazo Virus to suppress metahuman abilities, but it broke containment. It gave normal people superpowers but infected those who already had powers, brainwashing them into zombies.

Batman was exposed to the virus and briefly developed the power to use sound waves to see via echolocation. He could also project sound in a blast capable of knocking down his enemies, like Black Canary's cry. Batman fought the League with his new abilities while they were under the Amazo Virus's effects.

14 Dark Claw Combined Batman With Marvel's Wolverine

First Appearance: Amalgam Comics (1996), By Larry Hama, Jim Balent, Ray McCarthy, and Garrahy

Dark Claw Battles Hyena in Amalgam Comics

The Amalgam DC/Marvel crossover event isn't well-regarded but it did result in some memorable mash-ups of great characters. Combining Batman's intellect and doggedness with Wolverine's healing factor and unbreakable claws, the character wasn't particularly inspired but he was incredibly powerful.

Wolverine is an underrated Marvel powerhouse. Combining his adamantium skeleton and berserker nature with Batman's cold rage and genius could have produced a character who could have overturned the underworld. However, the event's purpose wasn't to upset comics' status quo, so the relatively tame pastiche was only edgy in the most predictable ways. Dark Claw was violent but controlled and mostly felt like Bruce Wayne with cutlery.

13 Owl Man

First Appearance: Justice League Of America #29 (1964). Created By: Gardner Fox & Mike Sekowsky

Owl Man scowls while Superman uses his heat vision in DC Comics

While Superman faces inverted characters like Bizarro, Batman has a host of Anti-Batmen. However, his most potent evil opposite is arguably the Owl Man of Earth 3. A founding member of that world's Crime Syndicate Of America, even a standard version of Owl Man is as brilliantly ruthless as Batman is dogged and forthright.

Owl Man has been pinballing around the DC Universe for decades but the most powerful version of this character appeared in Justice League: Crisis On Two Earths. An entertaining story about the inevitable battle between the CSA and JLA, this version of Owl Man was far smarter and nihilistic than anyone suspected. When he discovered the existence of other worlds, he immediately began searching for a way to unilaterally destroy the Multiverse. He nearly succeeded in his quest but was of course stopped by his heroic counterpart, Batman.

12 Insider Batman

First Appearance: Bruce Wayne: The Road Home: Batman and Robin #1 (2010) By Fabian Nicieza, Cliff Richards & Ian Hannin

Batman in the Insider Suit in DC Comics

In Final Crisis, by Grant Morrison, J.G. Jones, Doug Mahnke, and Carlos Pacheco, Darkseid's Omega Sanction hit Batman, sending him back in time. When Bruce Wayne made his way back to the present, he decided to check on the Bat Family. In Bruce Wayne: The Road Home: Batman and Robin #1, Wayne decided to test them with a new suit and became the Insider.

The suit used advanced technology to copy the powers of some Justice League members. With heat vision mode, Wayne could shoot lasers, speed force mode let him move like the Flash, a will-powered force beam allowed him to copy Green Lantern, and an electric wire could tie people up and detect lies like Wonder Woman's lasso. This essentially combined Batman and Amazo, making this one of the weirdest uses he could put this incredible technology to. The suit was nonetheless powerful, limited only by its battery life.

11 Batman '66

First Appearance: Batman (1966)

Adam West as Batman in the 1966 TV series

While the Batman from the 1966 TV series was not powerful in the traditional sense, he was cool, calm, and always in control. Adam West helped make Batman a household name, reaching audiences beyond just comics fans.

What made him so powerful? The 1966 Batman had everything. There was no situation he hadn't foreseen and equipped himself to handle. When he fought Mr. Freeze, he wore his Bat-thermal underwear. When someone tried to shoot him, he unfolded his Bat-bulletproof shield. Even when he fought a shark, he had Bat-shark repellent. '66 Batman was always prepared as the ultimate boy scout.

10 Vampire Batman

First Appearance: Batman and Dracula: Red Rain (1992) By Doug Moench, Kelley Jones, Malcom Jones III & Les Dorscheid

Batman becomes a vampire in Red Rain in DC Comics

A trilogy of Elseworlds stories launched with Batman & Dracula: Red Rain. When Dracula came to Gotham City, one of the vampires infected Batman to give him the power to fight the undead army. With his enhanced strength, speed, and the power of flight, Batman was more than a match for Dracula but won the war at the cost of his own humanity.

While fighting the remaining vampire army led by the Joker, Batman killed his archenemy. Batman was driven by bloodlust, turning Alfred and Commissioner Gordon into enemies. With his vampire powers at their peak, Batman could have consumed the entire human race.

9 DC One Million Batman

First Appearance: JLA #23 (1998) By Grant Morrison, Howard Porter, John Dell, Pat Garrahy & Heroic Age

Batman from the 853rd Century wears new armor in the DC One Million event

In 1998, a crossover event called DC One Million introduced superheroes from the distant future. The Batman of the 853rd century lived on the prison planet Pluto, which was taken over by the supervillain Xauron. Xauron slaughtered thousands of guards, leaving a child who took on the identity of Batman to fight injustice.

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The DC One Million Batman wore an advanced suit that was armored and fireproof with night vision, camouflage, and flight capability. DC One Million's Batman was trained in martial arts from across the galaxy. His mind was even more advanced than Bruce Wayne's, with telepathic powers and the ability to make calculations that even overwhelmed Superman. Batman's greatest weapon has always been his mind, and this Batman exemplifies the character's mental power.

8 Green Lantern Batman

First Appearance: Batman: In Darkest Knight (1994) By Mike W. Barr, Jerry Bingham & Digital Chameleon

Batman is selected by the Green Lantern Corps in DC Comics

Batman has worn several Lantern power rings but he first donned one in Batman: In Darkest Knight. In an alternate reality, instead of a bat crashing through his window, a Green Lantern crash-landed on the Wayne family grounds and gave Wayne his ring.

As Green Lantern, Wayne could bring his thoughts to life and he used them to change history. He stopped the Red Hood before he could become the Joker and fought crime on Earth so well that other characters like Superman and Wonder Woman never became even grew into heroes. Readers never saw the limits of this Batman's power, but given his dedication and will, he was easily as powerful as Hal Jordan and far more effective.

7 The Batman Of Zur-En-Arrh

First Appearance: Batman #113 (1958) By France Herron & Dick Sprang

Batman confronts his namesake on the distant world of Zur-En-Arrh in DC Comics

In an unlikely Silver Age trip to space, Batman once met an otherworldly superhero he had inadvertently inspired. Called The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh, this hero fought crime with incredibly advanced technology that would be on par with the New Gods in more recent comics. Even stranger, this world apparently imbued humans with the equivalent of Kryptonian superpowers, making Batman himself Zur-En-Arrh's most powerful guardian for his stay.

As strange as it is, this story is widely beloved by creators. Batman: The Brave & The Bold emulated this plotline but made it more nuanced, as reliance on his newly-found superpowers actually made Batman overconfident. The character also found new life in the legendary Batman: R.I.P storyline, where Bruce Wayne donned his alien counterpart's improbable costume as part of a "backup personality" Batman created as part of a plan to continue functioning even if he was psychologically disabled.

6 Speeding Bullets Batman

First Appearance: Superman: Speeding Bullets (1993) By J.M. DeMatteis, Eduardo Barreto & Les Dorscheid

Kal-El as Batman in Superman: Speeding Bullets in DC Comics

Superman is one of the most powerful superheroes in the DC universe, and Batman is the most dedicated. What happens when the two combine? In Superman: Speeding Bullets, Kal-El's spaceship was found by the Waynes instead of the Kents. Raised as Bruce Wayne, his parents were shot, and he became Batman with all the powers of Superman.

The Speeding Bullets version of Batman was almost too powerful. With all these powers, he became a terror feared for his brutality more than his theatrics. Thankfully, he fell in love with Lois Lane who tamed his powers and made him more compassionate. This Batman reflected the instinctive fear fans have for Batman's fascistic instincts and their appreciation for his humanity.

5 Hellbat Batman

First Appearance: Batman and Robin Vol. 2 #33 (2014) By Peter J. Tomasi, Patrick Gleason, Mike Gray & John Kalisz

Batman in his Hellbat armor in DC Comics

The Justice League made a contingency plan to protect Batman, one of its few non-powered members, in Batman and Robin #33. Designed by Cyborg, the Hellbat armor was forged by Superman in the heart of a sun and enchanted by Wonder Woman in Olympus, given a shape-changing cape by Green Lantern, and tempered by the Flash and Aquaman under extreme heat and the ocean's weight.

With the Hellbat armor, Batman had enhanced speed, strength and durability, but the cape could change shapes to let him fly, create tentacles, and make him invisible. However, prolonged ue of the Hellbat suit could kill Batman, making it a weapon of last resort.

4 White Lantern Batman

First Appearance: Brightest Day #14 (2010) By Geoff Johns, Peter J. Tomasi, Ivan Reis, Joe Prado & Peter Steigerwald

Batman as a White Lantern in DC Comics' Brightest Day

In the emotional spectrum of the universe, the White Lantern of life is the most powerful. In Brightest Day, Deadman forced a White Lantern ring onto Batman. Batman wore the ring briefly before it told him he wasn't its rightful heir. For that brief moment, Batman became one of the most powerful beings in the universe.

The White Lantern is based on life and can draw on the powers of all the other Corps. The White Lantern can create constructs like the Green Lantern Corps, store the power of other rings, bring the dead back to life and connect to and observe the rings of any other corps members. When Kyle Rayner wore a white power ring, he was described as "godlike." Batman's stay in this role was brief but earth-shatteringly powerful.

3 Mobius Chair Batman

First Appearance: Justice League Vol. 2 #42 (2015) By Geoff Johns, Jason Fabok & Brad Anderson

Batman sits on the Mobius Chair in DC Comics

In 2015's "Darkseid War," the Justice League encountered Metron, one of the New Gods created for Jack Kirby's Fourth World, a being who craved knowledge. He was aided by his Mobius Chair, but when Wonder Woman pulled Metron out of the chair, Batman sat on it and become a New God himself, the god of all knowledge.

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The chair made Batman effectively omnipotent, able to answer any question and know everything in the universe. It also allowed him to instantaneously travel through time and space. He used the Chair to stop crimes by observing future timelines, seeing the potential criminals and stopping them before they transgressed. One of the only god-like incarnations of Batman, it's not surprising that the power corrupted him, and he was barely able to escape its temptation.

2 Atmahn The Night Judge

First Appearance: Trinity #30 (2008) By Kurt Busiek, Mark Bagley, Art Thibert & Pete Pantazis

Ahtmahn the Night Judge, Dinanna Truthqueen and Kellel from Trinity in DC Comics

The Trinity series brought together the three most popular members of the DC universe: Wonder Woman, Batman and Superman. The Trinity discovered that these individuals were the keystones to the power of the multiverse. Morgaine Le Fey worked with other magic users to create a new reality where the Trinity were replaced by villains. As a result, the trio were sent to an alternate world where they became gods.

Batman was Atmahn the Night Judge, Wonder Woman was Dinanna Truthqueen, and Superman was Kellel, all worshiped by primitive beings. When he finally returned in Trinity #39, Batman and the other heroes could do anything they wanted. He was a literal god.

1 The Batman Who Laughs

First Appearance: Dark Knights: Metal (2019) Created By: Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo

The Batman Who Laughs imbued with cosmic power in DC Comics

A character who invaded DC's main continuity from the Dark Multiverse, the Batman Who Laughs started out as a formidable Batman/Joker mash-up but he grew into a multiversal threat on par with the Anti-Monitor and other universe-destroying villains. He was bad enough at the beginning, bringing a host of evil alternate Batmen and feral Robins to Gotham with him.

However, his end game was deeper and darker than anyone could have realized. After Lex Luthor freed the multiversal Hand dubbed Perpetua from The Force, she demonstrated greater power than any DC god or goddess and threatened to rewrite the multiverse at her whim. However, the Batman Who Laughs was able to become Perpetua's servant and then trick her and steal her power. As the Darkest Knight, he was briefly the most powerful Batman, until his inevitable defeat at the hands of Earth's heroes.

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