Top 10 Best Dragon Ball Z Villains

The Top Ten
1 Frieza Freeza (Pronounced "Frieza" in the Funimation dub) is fictional character in the Dragon Ball series by Akira Toriyama as the primary antagonist of the Freeza Saga. He is a galactic tyrant who governs the Planet Trade Organization and is feared by the universe for his sadistic and brutal nature. He is the series's most personal and significant antagonist, being responsible for many of the series' events,... read more

Frieza is the most coldhearted and the most badass DBZ villain, probably because he kills everyone in his way, even children! If you fight Frieza, and he's stronger than you, he'll make you think you're winning the fight. But when you realize it, Frieza just wants you to know that he's stronger... in the worst ways possible. For example, if he death beams you in a spot, he keeps hitting this one spot. He reflects your most powerful attacks. If there's an animal crawling on your body, he EATS the animal alive just to keep torturing you, and if your blood falls on his face, he LICKS his face clean of the blood! He definitely deserves number 1 on this list!

Normally, I'm pretty torn between a lot of these villains. I love Cell and Kid Buu, as well as Saiyan/Namek Saga Vegeta and Piccolo. But when I look at the one villain who pushed Goku to the limits, I decided Frieza was the best candidate.

Frankly, Frieza is a monster. He's destroyed or conquered countless races and planets and is, in my opinion, the most sadistic character in the entire series. I hate him yet love him at the same time. I did feel slightly sorry for him when he knew he was done for, but I also knew that he would backstab anyone. Also, I was literally shocked when he killed Bardock and blew up Planet Vegeta. But he has all the makings of a very memorable and great villain.

2 Cell Cell is a fictional character in the Dragon Ball series by Akira Toriyama. He is the main antagonist of the Android Saga, being an android/artificial life form from the future, whose goal is to become "perfect" via absorbing Androids 17 and 18 and becoming the strongest fighter in the universe.

It's truly difficult to select among DBZ's main villains, as they all fit into the storyline well, and I do agree with many of the other opinions on the other villains as well. Cell's introduction in the series was very unexpected (unless spoilers were read/seen). In the "current" timeline, the viewers are expecting the androids to wreak havoc, but instead, a mysterious creature from the future arrives. Cell makes the merciful Androids seem like friends, and then absorbs them. He held a presence unlike Buu or Frieza, and to top it off, he was the culmination of all previous major villains and main characters. Just a brief summary, but let's face it. Villains like Frieza have existed in reality (Hitler, Stalin... etc). Buu (and all his forms) were a close second to Cell.

Buu was on the other end. He was a total fantasy character formed from magic. Cell was unlike real-life villains but still had a science element to him. And hence, I'll give him the marginal victory over Buu and a decent edge over Frieza.

3 Kid Buu Kid Buu is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

Kid Buu was born to destroy! He could have wiped out Frieza and Cell in less than 10 seconds without even breaking a sweat, or simply just turned them into candy, and they'd be gone. The Supreme Kai said himself that Buu could have wiped out Frieza and the entire Saiyan race in one blow. After he destroyed the earth for fun, he continued to destroy like a bunch of planets, also just for fun. Although his twisted idea of fun was much different from Frieza and Cell, as they purely just wanted the inhabitants of the planet to suffer, Buu was pretty much the closest thing to the universe's end in all 276 (291 uncut) episodes of Dragon Ball Z. Frieza only wanted to rule the universe, not annihilate it completely. Therefore, Kid Buu is the ultimate villain.

I am highly disappointed in Kid Buu's position on this list. Kid Buu is without a doubt THE most vicious, brutal, and ruthless villain in the entire series: Dragonball, Dragonball Z, AND GT! Kid Buu doesn't talk, he fights, destroys, and kills everything in his path! He doesn't bargain, play games, or spare anything. Goku questioned his abilities and even talks about giving up, and that was with a WEAKER form of Buu. He is the only villain to succeed in destroying the Earth, and he does it after Vegeta makes a statement about it. Buu doesn't care, as mentioned before, he is ruthless!

Frieza, Cell, and Broly fighting together couldn't even stop Buu. And even after destroying the Earth, Buu traveled from planet to planet, destroying everything, including the people in otherworld, nearly killing those who were already dead! Buu could get blown to bits and still revive himself. He was a monster! Cell was programmed to know the moves that he knew from strands of DNA, but Buu learned everything he knew just by seeing it done once, INCLUDING Instant Transmission! There is no contest, not even Goku in his Super Saiyan 3 form could stop him, when Cell was killed by just a stage 2 Super Saiyan. Kid Buu deserves more respect, as he has the most action-packed saga in the entire series.

4 Majin Vegeta

Vegeta should definitely be number 1 on here, not 9. What is wrong with you people? Vegeta was one of the best fighters ever. Think about it: survived a spirit bomb, took out two members of the Ginyu Force by himself, destroyed Android #19, played around with semi-perfect Cell, did an epic move, the Final Flash on Perfect Cell, nearly blowing up the planet. He had his mind taken over and still did what he wanted, and did the coolest kamikaze attack I've ever seen! If you want me to continue, I'd be glad to because Vegeta is awesome, and he shouldn't be this low on a list.

When Vegeta first came to Earth, he was awesome. While battling the Z fighters, he seemed immortal. He was hit by the Kamehameha, then by the Spirit Bomb, but still, he was capable of facing Great Ape Gohan. That battle was truly awesome! Before leaving Earth badly injured, he told Krillin (who listened to Goku and didn't finish him off) "When I come back, I'll stare in your eyes as I crush your life." On Namek, Vegeta exterminated an entire village, including the elderly and children. He was defined as "pure evil" and "unspeakable evil". Vegeta even destroyed an entire planet just by using his fingertips!

5 Broly Broly is the main antagonist in the Broly Triple Threat trilogy and Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie. He appears to be the latest of the Legendary Super Saiyans who appear every thousand years. His father was Paragus.

Broly is easily the deadliest foe the Z fighters have ever faced. Every other villain is defeated in the end by the efforts of one or two of the Z warriors. Broly took on Vegeta, Goku, Piccolo, Gohan, and Trunks all at once and completely trashed them. It took all of their power funneled into a punch thrown by Goku just to injure him. By the way, Broly spent a good deal of time standing there and letting Goku hit him as much as he wanted. Broly didn't even react. Frieza destroys planets for fun. Broly destroys galaxies for fun. Cell's power is limited by his Zenkai boosts/absorption. Broly's power increases with every passing second. Majin Buu isn't much better: he only gets stronger through absorption (or in the case of Kid Buu, ejection).

Broly is one of the most ruthless, if not the most ruthless, characters ever. He was evil all the way through. Sure, Goku's power level was over 9000! But Broly was stronger than that when he was born. Laugh out loud. Plus, he never had to cower and beg for his life like Frieza or Cell. And unlike Cell or the Buus, no regeneration powers! He survived Frieza's death ball as a baby! It took two movies to actually kill him. Bio Broly sucked, of course, but if Broly had his own saga, even more of his unknown skills could be discovered. If he ever discovered SS4, not even Omega Shenron would stop him.

6 Beerus Beerus is a fictional character in the Dragon Ball franchise created by Akira Toriyama. He made his first appearance in the 2013 feature film Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods.

Beerus is different than most villains. He's had to side with Goku when his universe's honor or existence is threatened. But he also awaits the day when Goku will reach the level where he'll be the challenge he eagerly awaits. Bulma seems to be the only one who remembers he's not to be trusted, as she occasionally has to remind Goku that his reason to exist is to destroy.

Sometimes, when you see how he loves to eat, drink, and be merry, it makes it easy to forget just how powerful he really is. And though he qualifies as a villain, it's obvious he's secretly taken a liking to Goku and the Earth, though he'd never admit it.

Lord Beerus, or informally called Bills, is by far the most mysterious character. In Dragon Ball Super, it is unknown whether or not he is good. Some may argue, but keep in mind that he said if he wins the universal tournament, then he would wish for the annihilation of Earth, which is fairly odd since he is a God of Destruction. Anyhow, he seems very unwelcoming, and you can just sense a coldness within him whenever he appears. However, I believe he is, in fact, a villain.

7 Cooler Cooler is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

Out of all the villains in DBZ, Cooler is, has been, and always will be my all-time favorite. Part of it is because of his transformations and physical appearance in general, but mainly I like him because of the difference between him and Frieza. Frieza's ok as a villain - he's the only villain I know that can make 'I'm going to kill you' sound polite - but he was so self-absorbed and full of himself that he believed he could simply conquer anyone with no trouble. In that instance, Goku put him in his place. Whereas Cooler, he doesn't underestimate his opponents and even insists that his men check over and over the area, even after it seems as though the enemies were obliterated.

I really hope to see more of Cooler in Dragon Ball Z, cameos and such, though it would be AWESOME if he were to have his own saga. Probably won't happen, but a girl can dream, can't she?

It's hard to pick a favorite villain. DBZ might not have super in-depth characters with humanity and character development and motive, but every villain was enjoyable in some fashion. The big three stand out the most, and from them, Frieza stands out the most.

So, how does this have anything to do with you, Cooler? I enjoy Cooler. His very existence does more for Frieza than any golden form ever will. He was fully fleshed out, and his association with Frieza gave a different perspective on their lives. I understood Cooler fully, and that was all just the first movie. I don't think Cooler should be brought back. I believe he should have had a mini arc in the 3 years the Z Warriors were training. A short arc that gave us more scope on Goku's powers, kind of like the movie!

I don't think Cooler stands out as much as some of the other characters here, but it's his subtlety that makes me love the guy. When you make me feel sorry for an evil space emperor who blows up planets for a living... Good job.

8 Omega Shenron Omega Shenron is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

He is absolutely incredible. Omega is just something else. I love his awesome, huge, bully-like design. It really adds to his almost god-like appearance. I must admit, I personally think he was a little too careless with his power and definitely could have been a more destructive force. Nonetheless, Omega was a beast... an insanely powerful beast.

He can single-handedly beat two Super Saiyan 4s without any problems. Also, Goku had to use a Spirit Bomb, which contained the energy of the universe. If he came sooner, the Z fighters wouldn't have been able to beat him, and he almost won. If Goku died by the Minus Energy Ball that Omega Shenron threw at him, the universe would have been doomed for good. Only SS4 Gogeta could stand up and fight him head-on without losing.

He was toying with the two most powerful beings in the universe, and that too with both of them on SSJ4. Goku and Vegeta didn't even put a scratch on Omega. Omega Shenron is the most powerful shadow dragon. He should be in the first position here.

9 Janemba Janemba is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

He had absolutely no trouble facing Goku SSJ3. He has perfect manipulation. The demon can alter reality. For example, he changed the Other World station, with King Yemma in it, into a jellybean-looking thing, along with everything else in Other World, even the tournament grounds. He is apparently able to physically alter and deconstruct/reconstruct the mass of objects. He is also very skilled in martial arts, overpowering both Goku and Vegeta.

Janemba is not overrated by many DBZ fans, but he is truly powerful in his last form. He looks so badass. Imagine if he absorbed Kid Buu. His power level would be incredibly high. Goku needed to fuse to beat him. No offense, but I think he could defeat Broly or Frieza. However, I think it would be a close match between him and Kid Buu.

If you haven't seen DBZ Movie 12 named "Fusion Reborn," go see it now. Janemba is epic. His first form is something to laugh at, but his last is badass. In my opinion, he's as good as Frieza.

10 Zarbon Zarbon is Frieza's right hand man and highest ranking Commander and General in an army of millions. He is always beside his master and emperor, Lord Frieza, following his orders and carrying out his dirty work alongside his comrade, Dodoria. Zarbon is responsible for advising Frieza on numerous matters, including the elimination of the Saiyan race. Zarbon remains loyal to Frieza throughout the entire... read more

Zarbon is the absolute best supporting villain in the series. He is responsible for telling Frieza to eliminate the Saiyan race, goes about pounding Vegeta's daylights in the most brutal fight scene in the entire series, and has likely the most exciting death scene in the series as well. He is also a lover of beauty and holds a dormant power, the ability to transform into a reptilian beast. He is the deadly dynamic of the combination of beauty and the beast and the most mysterious yet demonic, ruthless, and brutal villain in the series. The only other comparable villain in terms of story, mannerism, and actual evil acts is Frieza himself.

Zarbon is the best villain because he had the best fight scene against Vegeta, ruthlessly pummeling him. He also was the Commander General of Frieza's entire army and slaughtered many under his command before meeting a grisly end himself. He has the ability to transform into a reptilian beast and uses his beauty as a clever camouflage for his demonic form. Zarbon is the beauty and the beast personified in one excellent villain and is a very successful plot device for Vegeta's story.

The Contenders
11 King Piccolo King Piccolo is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball, created by Akira Toriyama.

Apparently, the only qualifier for some seems to be who is the strongest. Broly looks cool, is strong, and was overwhelming for the time period but was flat and boring and had nothing interesting personality or character-wise. Even the rather dull Kale has more personality.

King Piccolo was the most intelligent villain in DB history. Destroying the dragon, seeking the martial artists to prevent any threats, capturing Tien, and blasting the city knowing Goku couldn't fly. KP was riveting, seemed insurmountable at the time, and had a lot of zest to his personality. The best DB villain, Freeza & Gero come close, but no cigar.

The first real villain and an epic fight. He broke practically every bone in Goku's body. Goku had to literally punch through him with a Kamehameha to beat him, and Piccolo could still create Piccolo Jr, a character that is still around now.

Ahhh, very nostalgic. He is definitely one of the better villains. Back when the "I want to take over the world" idea was only kind of overplayed. He still had a nice backstory and an interesting continuity problem that Akira Toriyama managed to fix in Z... or "fix."

12 Raditz Raditz is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

I love Raditz. He is not weak because, when he was fighting Goku and Piccolo, he did have the upper hand for most of the fight. They just barely managed to defeat him. The only reason they won is because Goku put Raditz in a full nelson, and both were hit by Piccolo's Special Beam Cannon. I would have liked to have seen Raditz come back, switch sides, and make amends with his family. Well, Raditz, I LOVE you, even if nobody else does!

Everyone pushed Raditz aside, but many of them forget that he was insanely powerful at the start of the show. Everyone else had a power level of around 300, but Raditz's was over one thousand! He was a badass and could have easily defeated Goku and Piccolo if he hadn't been so cocky. But that arrogance simply made him a better character.

Raditz may not be strong compared to the Z fighters now, but he was a badass. He's the first villain in DBZ and he made an amazing impression by catching a bullet and flinging it back with enough force to kill a man. Only the combined efforts of Piccolo and Goku finally killed him, and even then, Goku died too!

13 Android 18

Also known as "the only competent female character in all of Dragon Ball Z," her introduction was badass, showing her decking the floor with SSJ Vegeta and Future Trunks, not to mention a lot of cool techniques like the Accel Dance (with 17), Zero Point Field, and later, the Destructo-Disc. Her character interactions with the other androids, Krillin, and later, Mr. Satan are among some of the best in the series. Trunks's movie really shows off her power and character as a villain.

Unfortunately, however, like Chi-Chi before her, she becomes horribly insignificant after properly joining the good guys - bar a storyline where she wins the 25th World Martial Arts Tournament and hilariously shakes Mr. Satan down for money - and basically just stays in the kitchen from that point onward, despite being much stronger than Krillin, Tien, and possibly Piccolo, who all at least try to fight.

Still, before Toriyama decided to suck the life out of her, she was one kick-ass villain, and I, for one, am really sorry to see her so low down this list.

14 Android 17 Android 17 is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

You have to admire that he never gives up. Even when the odds were against him with Cell, he never admitted defeat and got back up every time. Whereas someone else would probably just lay there and wait for someone to rescue them. Android 17 probably has more heart and courage than anybody else.

Nobody could even scratch his 'weaker' sister, Android 18, when they were introduced. If they hadn't been reprogrammed to not be so vicious, they would have killed every Z-Fighter without a doubt, and they probably could have taken Cell if they got to him before he absorbed all of the people.

OG Android 17 in the Cell Saga was ruthless and quite literally heartless. He was the most prone to violence out of all the Androids. He and Android 18 made a great team, but Android 18 showed more of a soft side early on, while Android 17 genuinely just wanted to destroy everything up until Cell absorbed him.

15 Goku Black Goku Black (Or "Black") is a fictional character in the Dragon Ball Super series by Akira Toriyama. He is the first main antagonist in the Future Trunks Saga where he is revealed to be Zamasu from a prior timeline who stole the body of Goku, the series's protagonist and using it as a means to "gain" justice, whilst antagonizing Future Trunks in his timeline, where he works alongside this timeline's... read more

The most chilling Dragon Ball villain ever. He's calm, intimidating, arrogant and can be absolutely terrifying at times. The dude wields a blade made of ki and at one point whips out a scythe. Fantastic villain.

His origins are also very interesting and the mystery behind him was so engaging to watch.

He has got a new transformation of super saiyan rose which is strong enough to challenge super saiyan blue.

He would be the most deadly cold blooded villain in DRAGON BALL history.

Goku Black is one of the greatest villains. He provided a challenge that didn't require goku to just power up like every other villain he's faced. Also, my boy vegito needed to be shown again. He's too funny

16 Nappa Nappa is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

DBZA did him justice. Ghost Nappa was god tier. But looking at the character, he needs to come back. He was amazing, and, well, he is a bald character, so Krillin can have a rival now. But he was dope. He killed basically every important Z-fighter (Yamcha is not important), and Vegeta was stupid for killing him. (I know why he killed Nappa, but still, Nappa would've been better and stronger.)

Nappa is so underrated, yet such a badass character. You guys only like him because of the abridged series, and that's cool, but just know that this guy took out all the Z-Fighters, killing four of them in the process! Plus, he was the first one ever to block Goku's Kamehameha. Imagine if he had trained up to the Frieza Saga. Man, that guy would hold his own against Frieza, if so.

Nappa is EXTREMELY underrated. In the beginning of the show, he was a force to be feared and was kind of built up to be a huge threat. He caused the death of Tien, Chiaotzu, Yamcha, Piccolo (and Kami), and beat the tar out of Gohan and Krillin. People only like him because of Abridged (which is still a pretty good Nappa), but he was one of the most ruthless villains in the series.

17 Piccolo Piccolo is a fictional character in the Dragon Ball manga series created by Akira Toriyama. He first appeared in chapter 161 of the Dragon Ball manga in the Shonen Jump magazine on February 22, 1988. He is a member of the alien Namekian race and has abilities such as ki manipulation, regeneration, telepathy, flight, and superhuman hearing.

He was great as a villain and a hero, at least until the Buu saga where he was put into the role of Angry Fusion Coach. His transition to good was probably the second best (behind Tenshinhan), and he was one of the only two people to actually kill Goku.

Unlike his father, Jr was less evil, and we could all see that from the start. He meditated and focused while the other Piccolo slept on his throne with his eyes open. Piccolo was a really cool villain.

Not only is he my favorite Dragon Ball villain, but he is also my favorite DBZ fighter and character in general.

18 Baby

Baby is the best villain possible. He infests people's bodies and exponentially increases their power! His cause is benevolent as he seeks justice for the Saiyans committing genocide on his race. He forced Goku to go Super Saiyan 4 and was still able to turn Golden Ape and start stomping on Goku.

He is not only strong but also very powerful. He got the whole Earth on his side. He managed to take control of Vegeta. He made a genius revive him. He looks amazing! Baby is the best!

I think I'm in love with Baby. He is cute and cool. Good thing I'm on his side. I think he is handsome. I love his outfit.

19 Zamasu Zamasu is a fictional character in the Dragon Ball series by Akira Toriyama, Although a Supreme Kai from Universe 10, he is the true main antagonist and the catalyst of the Future Trunks Saga in Dragon Ball Super, being responsible for Goku Black's existence, working alongside him to restore "justice" while fighting against Future Trunks in his timeline.

He killed Goku, took his body, and killed his family with it. Then he became so powerful only the Omni King could stop him. I prefer him as Goku Black because he was a masochistic psychopath. But Zamasu is interesting because he knows he is a hypocrite but sees his actions as a noble sacrifice to save the universe. The moment when he cried was mocked, but it gives him so much more character. Goku Black is still more interesting, but since they are the same person, I guess he deserves to be at least top 5.

Zamasu actually managed to succeed in the end. He managed to destroy everybody in Trunks' timeline and also in other timelines. His obsession with his so-called justice is also fun to watch, seeing how deluded he has become.

Zamasu has accomplished much compared to other villains like Cell and Buu, who really did their purpose. Zamasu, like Frieza, did it all by their own choice, but Zamasu thinks that he is on the side of justice, unlike Frieza, who is doing it all due to his pride as the strongest. Zamasu believes that everything he's doing is some sort of sacrifice for a greater good - a very twisted definition of "greater good" since, if he succeeds, no one else is left but him.

20 Garlic Jr. Garlic Jr. is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

It was awesome in the anime when he rules the world and Piccolo cheats everyone (including the viewer), and then Krillin goes to play too, and Gohan is apparently left alone against his two friends. The bad part was Kami and Popo running like fools for an hour or two.

Garlic Jr. doesn't get much respect, does he? I think he's a pretty cool villain. He fought against gods and succeeded both in ruling the world and becoming immortal. Plus, he's a badass.

Both Piccolo and Goku had a hard time fighting this guy.

21 Jeice Jeice is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

I wish Vegeta hadn't killed him. When he died, I said, Clever girl, under my breath.

I always loved this guy. Wish he did more.

How come Jeice is way lower than the likes of Guldo, Saibaman, and even that monster Pilaf?

22 Hatchiyack
23 Burter Burter is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.
24 Super Buu Super Buu is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

Eating and sleeping are all that matter to him, except a challenge. That makes him most dangerous because he wiped out almost everyone on Earth to get what he wanted. He was even able to tear through the fabric of space and time just because he was enraged at the thought of not getting to eat chocolate again.

For such a bad guy, he's a lot funnier than the average villain. He even creates an outhouse when Goku and Vegeta shake up his digestive tract. And he falls asleep or sits down with a drink and reads when he gets tired of waiting. Can't imagine Frieza or Cell doing that.

25 Super Android 17 Super 17 is an anime fictional character from the anime series, Dragon Ball Z, created by Akira Toriyama.

Super Android 17 is so buff he can take off his arm and turn it into a machine gun thing! He didn't even flinch when he got punched in the face. Awesome villain.

This guy actually could defeat SSJ4 Goku. His power is really up there, probably matched to Beerus.

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