Demon Slayer continues to reign as one of shonen anime’s modern-day heavy hitters. Known as Kimetsu no Yaiba in Japan, with exceptional animation, inspiring music, and simple yet endearing characters, it’s no wonder fans are so invested in the adventures of Tanjiro and co. One of the highlights of the series, though, is most certainly the titular demons.
Be they good or bad, the demons of Demon Slayer have certainly proved they’re a force to be reckoned with. Regardless of how strong or how weak they are, even the less powerful ones should send any normal human running for the hills as fast as possible, lest they become dinner. Which of Demon Slayer’s demons are the most powerful though?
Susumaru and Yahaba
A package deal to be sure, early antagonists Susumaru and Yahaba combine their strengths and utilize teamwork in order to get the job done. While Susumaru can grow extra limbs and summon heavy balls of death, Yahaba can control how an object moves and has eyes on his hands, Pale Man-style.
It’s easy to see how their strengths can feed into one another, and while they’re certainly a force to be reckoned with on their own, as an earlier threat Tanjiro comes across, they’re certainly on the weaker side. Still, with how much of a fight they put up against him and Nezuko, they’ve at least earned a spot.
Kyogai
The Drum Demon provided one of the more engaging settings within Demon Slayer’s story. With a hit of this big boy’s drum, Kyogai can either alter the orientation of his home, the Drum House, or he can unleash a vicious attack against his enemies.
Kyogai is the first of the Twelve Kizuki, or rather, the first to have been a part of the Twelve, that Tanjiro faces, and his strength most definitely gave Tanjiro an uphill and trippy hurdle to overcome. But as Muzan stripped Kyogai of his rank, it probably wouldn’t be right to place Kyogai much higher here.
Daki
One of the newer demons Tanjiro and co. have faced, Daki is a demon obsessed with things as beautiful as she is, if not more. She can manipulate her flesh into a variety of objects, but mainly does so to create lethal threads of cloth. Quite often, she’ll trap people within the very fabric of the cloth so she can snack on them later.
Along with her brother Gyutaro, her reign of terror on the Entertainment District devastated many homes and people, and the two put up a tremendous and tense fight against Tanjiro and the rest. She certainly earns Muzan’s assessment of her when he calls her a “special demon.”
Enmu
The villain of Mugen Train, a front-runner for best 2020 anime movie, Enmu is a gleefully sadistic demon, ranked as Lower One of the Twelve Kizuki. As diabolical as he is dapper, his strength and powers come from putting his victims to sleep and giving them pleasant dreams as he exacts his cruelty upon them.
Adapting a single volume of manga into a movie sounds good on paper, but the story and characters had better deliver. Luckily, Enmu’s phantasmagoric strangeness provides a cinema-level threat as Tanjiro travels upon the titular train, making for a memorable and strong antagonist.
Gyutaro
Another recent addition to Demon Slayer, Gyutaro resembles a cross between the Joker and the scariest Bloodborne boss, with a KnY twist, of course. Made bitter during his humanity, Gyutaro also has a heavily sadistic side to him, making quick work of his enemies with poison-tipped scythes and streams of blood that can send devastating shockwaves.
As Daki’s older brother as well as the true Big Bad of the Entertainment District arc, it’s on Gyutaro to really pack a punch for Tanjiro, and he sure answers the call. The duo really gives the four demon slayers a run for their money, but for Gyutaro to level so much of the Entertainment District after his own decapitation really displays his horrible strength.
Nezuko
Everyone’s favorite adorable demon, until someone lays a finger on Tanjiro. If that happens, everyone in the area needs to run and hide because Nezuko will unleash her raw and awesome strength as she slowly loses the remarkable control she has over herself to keep innocent people safe.
Nezuko’s journey still has a long way to go, and it’s possible she could rank higher by the series’ end. Still, the strength she’s exhibited thus far alone, between the self-control mentioned earlier to the unbridled force she shows when she fights secures her a comfortable spot in the top 5.
Akaza
If Nezuko is the most-loved demon, Akaza may be the most hated. The Upper Rank 3 demon comes at the end of the Mugen Train arc, just as the story should be ending, and displays marvelous strength and speed in his fight against Rengoku until, of course, he defeats Rengoku and takes his life.
Akaza’s placement here is similar to Nezuko in that there’s still more to see of him, but what’s been seen so far is impressive, if also wildly upsetting. Frankly, anyone who can defeat Rengoku and his breathing style deserves placement here, and while it’s possible to see him rise up in the ranks, most people probably look forward to what will surely be his downfall later.
Tamayo
The first good demon that Tanjiro had met in his journey (aside from Nezuko), Tamayo is a kind doctor, and provides Tanjiro with a wealth of knowledge. Besides her considerable strength in fighting off her natural desire to feed off humans, she’s also able to use her Blood Demon Art to cast spells.
Tamayo is not a super involved fighter in the series, at least not as far as the anime has shown, but her mastery over her base demon instincts is exceptional. As such, she provides evidence and hope for Tanjiro that one day his sister might have the same level of control over herself that Tamayo does.
The Spider Family
The of Rui’s dysfunctional found family of spider demons have proved to be possibly Tanjiro’s most difficult opponents so far in the anime. Consisting of six of variable powers and sizes, Rui’s Spider Family terrorize Tanjiro and a host of several other demon hunters during their mission to destroy the family.
Demon Slayer’s popularity in the west exploded during the arc with the Spiders. During the individual fights, the anime displayed both peak action and peak horror. Tanjiro himself had to manifest strengths previously unknown to him just to overcome Rui. For all of this, they would deserve to rank at number 1, if not for…
Kibutsuji Muzan
Demon Slayer’s ultimate threat, what little has been shown of Muzan’s power proves that, when the time comes for Tanjiro to face him, he will face the greatest challenge of his life. Feared by both the Demon Slayer Corps as well as his own underlings, Muzan strength has been hyped beyond belief, and it’s certain he will wreck house once he actually fights.
As the big bad, it’s imperative for Muzan to be crazy strong and provide a sizable threat for the heroes to overcome. His strength is matched only by his cruelty, and the fear he inspires in his underlings as well as the determination for the Corps to finally destroy him once and for all makes his placement well-earned, even if the totality of his strength has not yet been revealed.