Dragon Ball has been kicking around as a franchise for nearly 40 years, but it wasn’t until Dragon Ball Z that it took on massive popularity in the West. With what was originally a healthy blend of action and comedy becoming a far more shonen action-focused series down the line, the series has had some pretty iconic battles. But one of the greatest tropes embodied by the series is that of power levels, namely the levels of Super Saiyan state the Saiyan characters can attain in Dragon Ball.
What is the Order of Super Saiyan Levels by Power Level?
The Super Saiyan form was at first only alluded to by Vegeta on planet Namek but quickly became a go-to power-up for the characters bearing Saiyan blood in the series. The Super Saiyan form was a state of transcendent power often fueled by rage and kept upping the ante (and hair volume) seemingly with each upgrade.
Related: All of Goku’s Forms in Dragon Ball, Ranked by Strength
But despite this, the golden hair would change colors further along, and it can create some confusion in the readers as to what the Super Saiyan pecking order is. It’s a good thing Mr. Popo isn’t aware that people have this problem, but we’ve got the ranked list handy so you’ll never have to question it, shown below:
- Pseudo Super Saiyan
- Super Saiyan (SSJ)
- Ascended Saiyan
- Ultra Super Saiyan
- Super Saiyan Full Power
- Super Saiyan II (SSJ2)
- Super Saiyan III (SSJ3)
- Super Saiyan Rage
- Super Saiyan God
- Super Saiyan Blue
- Super Saiyan Rosé
- Super Saiyan White
- Ultra Instinct
- Perfected Ultra Instinct
Understandably, one might still find themselves confused about the power levels of the Super Saiyans once they stop having the gold hair. Sometimes the signature green eyes don’t even show, such as the Pseudo Super Saiyan, although in that case, the hair doesn’t even change. But aside from the general rule of thumb with the golden ranks (bigger hair and pulsing energy = bigger power) SSJ 1-3 along with Ascended, Ultra, and Full Power are quickly outclassed by the time of Dragon Ball Super.
What Are the Super Saiyan Forms Introduced in Dragon Ball Super?
All Super Saiyan levels beyond SSJ3 are featured either in Dragon Ball Super or the Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods film. Rage resembles most of the previous Super Saiyan forms, but with God onward, the hair colors change.
Naturally, Super Saiyan God is red hair and Blue is blue, with Rosé having a distinctive pink hue, and white being self-explanatory as well. But these forms are attained essentially as a form of Deus ex Machina to address constantly mounting threats of increasing power levels. It’s silly, there’s no way around it, but people love it. And there’s still Ultra Instinct to consider.
What is Ultra Instinct in Dragon Ball?
Ultra Instinct is essentially a state of complete focus on the battle at hand, along with tapping into the character’s deepest potential. There is no Super Saiyan form stronger than Ultra Instinct, especially Perfected Ultra Instinct, but it’s a difficult form to sustain.
Aside from Ultra Instinct, there are several non-canonical Super Saiyan forms along with those alluded to that don’t have a necessarily clear place on the totem pole. Among these are Super Saiyan 4 (SSJ4) and Golden Oozaru (Great Ape) levels featured in Dragon Ball GT, and Super Saiyan Type-C and Type-A used by Broly, the legendary Super Saiyan.
Golden Oozaru sits comfortably above SSJ3, while SSJ4 ranks just above that. But Broly’s transformations, whose power levels are often described as “maximum” are sometimes without how high that can go. Our bet is maximum, especially with him continually being able to put up a fight in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero which came to North American cinemas at the end of summer 2022. Meanwhile, the manga for Super is still kicking, with chapter 92 coming soon!
