Super Saiyan Levels: All 19 Forms Ranked From Weakest To Strongest
Dragon Ball has many concepts essential to the franchise and its understanding, including the Super Saiyan transformations. There are at least 20 Super Saiyan levels in the franchise, and here is a list of them all. Our list will include all transformation levels, ranked from weakest to strongest, as identified in the franchise itself.
Editor’s Note: This post was updated in December 2023 to include the latest forms.
19. Pseudo Super Saiyan
The Pseudo Super Saiyan form is a transformation that Goku briefly undergoes during the battle against Lord Slug in the movie ‘Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug.’ In this form, Goku’s appearance changes, with his iris and pupils no longer visible, a slight bulging of the body, and a yellowish skin tone. The hair almost straightens, with a red tint due to the reflection of the yellow aura.
This transformation grants a significant power increase, allowing Goku to overpower Slug, who had previously dominated him. However, it is implied that even this enhanced state would be insufficient to defeat the formidable Great Namekian Slug. As Goku’s strength starts to wane, his anger triggers a more potent transformation, resembling a Super Saiyan but still categorized as the Pseudo Super Saiyan form.
Despite its power, the form is temporary, fading after a while, especially when Slug rips off Goku’s arm, and it regenerates. Goku’s pupil-less eyes and erratic behavior during this state, King Kai mistakenly identifies it as the actual Super Saiyan form, aligning with the legendary warrior of Saiyan lore.
18. Super Saiyan
The Super Saiyan transformation in Dragon Ball is characterized by a golden-haired appearance, including scalp hair, eyebrows, and fur in the Great Golden Ape form. Achieved through intense emotional stress, it brings a colossal increase in power, with Akira Toriyama suggesting it should be ten times the Saiyan’s previous achievements.
The transformation multiplier is debated, with Daizenshuu 7 suggesting 50 times and Dragon Ball Z: The Anime Adventure Game defining it as 2.5 times the user’s normal performance. Goku attains Super Saiyan after witnessing Frieza kill Krillin, leading to a significant power surge that overwhelms Frieza despite his use of 100% strength. This iconic form is a pivotal moment in the series, showcasing the Saiyan’s newfound strength and determination.
17. Super Saiyan Second Grade
The second-grade Super Saiyan form is a heightened version of the standard Super Saiyan, featuring stiffer and paler hair, increased muscle mass without sacrificing mobility, and torn clothing. The aura becomes larger and more jagged, accompanied by a bioelectrical discharge during transformation or massive attacks. The transformation amplifies aggressive and ruthless behavior while removing emotional control. Vegeta and Future Trunks achieve this form during training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, using it to battle Cell’s semi-perfect form. However, its weaknesses and increased energy consumption led them to abandon the form for more efficient alternatives.
16. Super Saiyan Third Grade
The Super Saiyan Third Grade form is a transformation that resembles the legendary Super Saiyan state but is smaller, with increased muscle size and impracticality. The user’s skin can become reddish, and hair becomes larger, spikier, and spreads in different directions. The aura penetrates outwards, and pupils may temporarily disappear during the transformation.
Unlike the legendary Super Saiyan, the user’s size remains the same after puffing. This form is stronger than Super Saiyan but weaker than Super Saiyan 2, with a power increase of ten times, but the user experiences considerable slowing down and increased muscle mass interference with movements. Future Trunks utilizes this form against Perfect Cell but faces challenges due to its downsides, including quick exhaustion and decreased speed. Vegeta refrains from using this form due to its limitations.
15. Evil Saiyan
In this state, Cumber initially matches Super Saiyan Blue Vegito and later Super Saiyan 4 Xeno Vegito. However, he later combines this form with Super Saiyan 3 to contend with powerful opponents like Top and Super Saiyan Blue Goku. This state also grants the user an Evil Aura with various special abilities. Turles attains this form after consuming enough Fruit of the Tree of Might, using it in a battle against Vegeta and Cumber on the Pseudo Universe’s Planet Vegeta.
14. Super Saiyan Full Power
This Super Saiyan transformation essentially maintains the appearance of the first-grade Super Saiyan but allows for a more relaxed and happy facial expression. Through extended conditioning, the user can desensitize themselves to the negative effects of the transformation, keeping wild emotions in check and achieving a more focused and strategic fighting style.
The aura undergoes changes, becoming smoother with a steady flow of waves. This form brings the power of Super Saiyan to its limits, equivalent to Super Saiyan Third Grade without the drawbacks. Goku introduced the concept of achieving a natural state of Super Saiyan in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Various Saiyan characters, such as Future Trunks, Goten, Trunks, Gohan, Gotenks, Caulifla, and Cabba, have mastered this form, allowing them to stay calm and focused during combat. Goku and Gohan use it in Dragon Ball Z: Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan and continues to appear in other Dragon Ball films.
13. Super Saiyan 2
The Super Saiyan 2 transformation involves spikier, standing-up golden hair and a jagged, flame-like aura. The energy output is significantly increased, and the user experiences a multiplied power beyond the regular Super Saiyan form. The muscle mass is not overly increased, allowing for increased speed. The form is characterized by an electrical discharge, often blue, surrounding the body, especially during charging.
Various Saiyan characters, including Gohan, Goku, Vegito, Bardock, Trunks, and Caulifla, have attained and mastered Super Saiyan 2. In the anime, Zamasu notes that the form increases the user’s power tenfold. Gohan fully achieves and maintains Super Saiyan 2 after witnessing the Cell Juniors’ attack and Android 16’s death. The power of this form surpasses Super Saiyan, Super Saiyan Second Grade, and Super Saiyan Third Grade, enabling Gohan to effortlessly defeat Perfect Cell and Bojack. However, Gohan faces challenges in a Kamehameha match against Super Perfect Cell and ultimately relies on the help of Goku and Vegeta to destroy him.
12. Legendary Super Saiyan
The Legendary Super Saiyan form, notably seen in Dragon Ball Z: Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan, differs significantly from regular Super Saiyan forms. The hair color is initially yellowish-green, later turning golden like a regular Super Saiyan. The most noticeable distinction is the increase in height and muscle mass, resembling the third-grade Super Saiyan but with enhanced speed.
This transformation is triggered by intense sadness and is awakened by Broly while in his Wrath State. In Universe 6, the form is known as the demon Saiyan, associated with raging power that grows steadily but poses a risk of death due to its impact on the user’s health. Despite its immense strength, speed, and power, it falls between regular Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan 2 in terms of power. Broly’s power in this form during the battle against the Z-fighters is estimated to be around 1,400,000,000.
11. Super Saiyan 3
Super Saiyan 3 is a transformation that results in significant changes in physical appearance. The user’s hair becomes long and flowing, reaching down to or past the waist. Eyebrows disappear, a prominent forehead crest becomes visible, and muscle tone is sharply defined with a small increase in mass. The aura pulsates at a high frequency, accompanied by constant electrical discharge.
This transformation uses the full potential of a Saiyan, multiplying the strength of a Super Saiyan by eight times. Goku employs Super Saiyan 3 in a short fight against Majin Buu, showcasing its power and nearly matching the monster’s strength. However, due to its energy consumption, Goku struggles in the prolonged battle against Kid Buu, eventually leading to exhaustion and the transformation’s breakdown. Despite its immense power, the Super Saiyan 3 form is rarely seen in the manga storyline after the battle against Kid Buu.
10. Golden Great Ape
The Golden Great Ape transformation is achieved by Saiyans with tails who can become Super Saiyans. Triggered by gazing at a full moon or a full planetary body, the user transforms into a Super Saiyan ape with golden fur standing on end. They exhibit a golden, crackling aura. This form surpasses the Super Saiyan 3 transformation in power and strength.
The Golden Great Ape has the abilities of a regular Great Ape but enhanced destructiveness. While the berserk state can be uncontrollable, purebred Saiyans like Goku and Vegeta, who unlock this form and maintain their identity, can reach Super Saiyan 4. Goku first displays this form against Baby Vegeta in Dragon Ball GT, overpowering him until he achieves Super Saiyan 4. Baby Vegeta and Vegeta also utilize this form, with the latter transitioning to Super Saiyan 4 seamlessly. Cumber, in Super Dragon Ball Heroes, uses the Golden Great Ape form during a battle against Vegito to gain an advantage, interrupted by Super Fu’s intervention.
9. Super Saiyan 4
The Super Saiyan 4 form is characterized by distinct changes in appearance, including red fur covering the body, elongated and wild hair reaching the center of the back, and a shadow border around the eyes. The hair color varies, and the aura resembles a normal Super Saiyan aura. In this form, the Saiyan becomes considerably larger in size and muscles. Broly’s version features no visible pupils, massively oversized muscles, and a yellow-colored aura.
Super Saiyan 4 is a compressed version of great ape power that maximizes the user’s potential. Upon Goku’s transformation into Super Saiyan 4 during the battle against Baby Vegeta, their power dynamics shifted, making Super Saiyan 4 the most powerful form at the time of its debut. The form enables users to perform more potent signature techniques, such as Goku’s 10x Kamehameha and Gogeta’s 100x Big Bang Kamehameha. Additionally, it grants the ability to absorb energy attacks without consuming the user’s power, as demonstrated by Goku against Great Ape Baby.
Super Saiyan 4 enhances Saiyan power in real-time, allowing the user to adapt and become immune to previously effective attacks. The form has a lower ki consumption than Super Saiyan 3, enabling longer durations in the transformed state. However, fusion using the fusion dance shortens the time limit considerably, as seen when Gogeta defused within ten minutes instead of the regular half-hour.
8. Super Saiyan Rage
The Super Saiyan Rage form appears similar to both Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan 2, with a golden aura that has a blue tinge, emitting particles similar to Super Saiyan Blue and Super Saiyan Rosé. Future Trunks achieves this power-up through intense anger directed at Goku Black and Zamasu. The transformation involves a Super Saiyan 2 state, a blue aura overtaking him, and muscles returning to normal.
In this form, Future Trunks can hold his own against Super Saiyan Rosé Goku Black and Future Zamasu simultaneously. The enhanced power allows him to outperform his adversaries and employ strategic maneuvers. This form enables Future Trunks to face both opponents alone, showcasing improved stamina and combat abilities. During a battle against Fused Zamasu, the power of this form intensifies further through the energy of people worldwide, achieving a massive boost in performance and posing a significant threat to the antagonist.
Super Saiyan Rage shares similarities with the anger mode, both being power-ups of the Super Saiyan 2 form accessed through intense anger. However, Super Saiyan Rage involves a stressed power state, while the Quake of Fury power-up does not.
7. Super Saiyan God
The “Super Saiyan God” is a legendary form among Saiyans, achieved by combining the power of six kind-hearted Saiyans. In this form, the Saiyan’s appearance features slight changes, including a pinkish skin tone and red hair. Goku’s hair turns magenta, while Vegeta’s becomes purple. The eyes become detailed with red irises, and the overall physique appears sleeker. The aura resembles a raging fire, and the Saiyan becomes cool-headed in this state.
At its debut, Super Saiyan God surpassed all previous forms, enabling Goku to compete against Beerus, the God of Destruction. The power of this form allowed for universe-rippling clashes with Beerus, and its sheer force was capable of wiping out the universe with just three blows. While powerful, Super Saiyan God has drawbacks, such as a time limit and quick energy depletion. Goku, however, managed to continue fighting Beerus even after the form’s time limit expired, showcasing his mastery of its power.
Beerus speculated that Goku, through experience and adaptation, could instinctively access the power of Super Saiyan God, mitigating its energy consumption. Goku later mastered this form and seamlessly switched between Super Saiyan God and Super Saiyan Blue, using the former for movement and the latter for attack and defense. This strategy allowed Vegeta to maintain stamina and gain the upper hand in battles.
6. Super Saiyan Blue
Super Saiyan Blue, also known as Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan, is a powerful Saiyan transformation achieved by merging the first Super Saiyan form with the divine ki of a Super Saiyan God. Its appearance includes cyan-colored hair, a vibrant blue aura, and heightened power levels. The form requires a calm mind, rendering its ki insensitive to most mortals. While initially needing both Goku and Vegeta to challenge Beerus, it showcases improved endurance and efficiency in subsequent battles, allowing Goku to enhance it with the Kaio-Ken technique. Despite its stamina consumption, mastery decreases this drawback, making Super Saiyan Blue a formidable and versatile transformation.
5. Super Saiyan Rosé
Super Saiyan Rosé is Goku Black’s unique transformation, analogous to Super Saiyan Blue but with a distinct aesthetic. In this form, the hair and aura take on shades of pink and red, showcasing its divine nature. Goku Black attains Super Saiyan Rosé by surpassing the power of Super Saiyan God and evolving his regular Super Saiyan form. The form grants precise ki control, enabling the creation of energy weapons effortlessly. Unlike its mortal counterpart, Super Saiyan Rosé doesn’t show a decrease in endurance and has no time limit, making it a formidable and efficient transformation in battle.
4. Ultra Ego
Ultra Ego is Vegeta’s transformation that significantly boosts his power, allowing him to wield the Power of Destruction at its full potential. In this form, Vegeta’s aura resembles opaque flames, capable of destroying enemy attacks upon contact. Unlike Ultra Instinct, Ultra Ego taps into the user’s battle lust, increasing overall power as they endure and even enjoy enemy attacks. Vegeta achieves Ultra Ego against Granolah after realizing the limitations of his Super Saiyan God SS Evolved form. The transformation is taken on at will, even when severely damaged, showcasing Vegeta’s resilience. However, the user must be cautious not to let battle fervor lead to unnecessary damage. Vegeta initially overwhelms Granolah, but as the fight progresses, he succumbs to the thrill, pushing himself to take more attacks. Despite attempting a powerful move, Vegeta is eventually countered by Granolah, leading to his defeat. Later, Vegeta, along with Goku, unites against Gas in their respective Ultra Ego and Ultra Instinct forms, charging at him with newfound pride.
3. Gohan Beast
Gohan Beast is an evolved state of Gohan’s Potential Unleashed form, representing his strongest transformation in recent media. Stemming from Gohan’s continuous awakenings since childhood, it surpassed his previous forms. Piccolo believed Gohan would become the world’s strongest just before achieving this state. In Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Gohan attains the form after witnessing Piccolo’s apparent death at the hands of Cell Max. Fueled by rage, he effortlessly withstands Cell Max’s full-power punch and retaliates brutally. In this form, Gohan annihilates Cell Max’s Explosive Scream and core with a Special Beam Cannon while Orange Piccolo restricts the giant’s movement.
2. Ultra Instinct Sign
Ultra Instinct Sign is a powerful form achieved by breaking self-imposed limits, with a distinct appearance featuring spikier silver hair, silver eyes, and a complex silver, purple, and blue aura. The state is marked by an explosive blue glowing aura and transparent energy shooting upwards. Goku attains this form by resisting a powerful attack in the anime and mastering martial arts in the manga. Initially, it can only be used for a short time, granting the Autonomous Ultra Instinct ability. While it provides incredible agility, its raw attack strength is comparatively less. In the anime, it elevates Goku’s abilities to a divine level, possibly surpassing even Beerus, while in the manga, it outshines Blue Kaio-ken and is likened to Vegeta’s Super Saiyan God SS Evolved.
1. Mastered Ultra Instinct
Perfected Ultra Instinct is a state where Goku’s power skyrockets, surpassing even Gods of Destruction. In the anime, Beerus acknowledges Goku’s possible superiority in power. The form increases the user’s power by two or three times their previous strongest transformation. Goku can match full-power Jiren and display complete mastery over Ultra Instinct. The form grants automatic and precise movements, allowing Goku to defend and counterattack effortlessly. It also strengthens Goku’s Saiyan Power ability, boosting speed, power, efficiency, and ki.
Perfected Ultra Instinct’s divine status and ability to channel divine ki are noted. Goku can create a powerful giant energy avatar in times of need. The form requires complete emotional control, but Goku can channel rage for a significant power boost.
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