Demon Slayer: 9 Strongest Hashira, Ranked

In the world of Demon Slayer, the elite hunters of the Demon Slayer Corps are the Hashira. With their incredible talents and mastery of breathing techniques, they frequently fight against the strongest demons in Muzan Kibutsuji’s thrall. With that in mind, let’s figure out who is the strongest Hashira in Demon Slayer.

Demon Slayer: 9 Strongest Hashira, Ranked

Ranking the nine Hashira in Demon Slayer is a pretty straightforward task on the surface, especially given how characters openly talk about their strength and abilities, but directly comparing them isn’t easy. To do so, we’ll look at how each Hashira fared in combat against the Upper Moon Demons, aka Muzan’s strongest demons, their own abilities, as well as their influence within the Demon Slayer Corps to determine who the strongest really is. 

9) Tengen Uzui (Sound Hashira)

While I love Tengen’s flashy nature, he’s taken out of the game way too early for us to really see his powers. He gives it his all fighting against Gyutaro, one half of Upper Moon 6, and does lose an arm and an eye battling him, but he does survive. However, given that the weakest Upper Moon Demon was able to take him out of the game, he was a bit of a disappointment, and he needed Tanjiro’s assistance to win. I love the eccentric madman and his explosive attacks, but he’s easily the weakest of the Hashira.

8) Obanai Iguro (Snake Hashira)

Out of all of the Hashira in Demon Slayer, Iguro probably gets the least development. While his Snake Breathing skills were on display in the Hashira Training Arc premiere, his unconventional sword attacks that mimic a snake are rarely seen in the manga. He was shown to be useful in the final fight against Muzan, cutting off several of his limbs, but it should be noted that Muzan was already severely weakened and quickly recovered from Iguro’s injuries. This is the case of a character who, in the manga, didn’t really have much time to shine, but hopefully, the anime will give him more scenes to prove that he’s stronger than some of his colleagues. 

7) Kyojuro Rengoku (Flame Hashira)

Despite being a fan-favorite character who’s featured fairly early in the series, Rengoku sadly falls short compared to his other Hashira. While he is able to protect every passenger’s life on the Mugen Train as it’s raging out of control, which is nothing to sneeze at, he eventually does meet his end at the hands of Akaza, the Upper Moon 3 demon. Akaza does have to flee from Rengoku, though that’s also due to the sun rising and posing a more immediate threat to him, but it doesn’t diminish how powerful of a swordman Rengoku is. We just see far too little of Rengoku to really see how strong he is.

6) Shinobu Kocho (Insect Hashira)

While Shinobu may be the weakest physically among the Hashira, her acute knowledge of poison makes her a deadly foe to encounter. While it may seem like the fact that she can’t slice a demon’s head off due to this lack of strength makes her infinity weaker than Rengoku, Iguro, and Tengen, that isn’t the case. Her sword functions more like a syringe to inject demons with poisons made from Wisteria Flowers, which are fatal to them. That poison was used to help kill powerful demons like Upper Moon 2, so it’s scarily effective. She’s not a combatant by trade, but when she has to fight, her cruel and cunning nature makes her quite the threat. 

5) Mitsuri Kanroji (Love Hashira)

Mitsuri doesn’t seem to be a fearsome fighter on the surface, coming across as an air-headed lovesick puppy at the worst of times, but her physical abilities and nothing to sneeze at. She’s the most flexible of the Hashira and has incredibly dense muscles, making her unnaturally strong against enemies. Her Love Breathing technique gives her sword unparalleled range and flexibility as well, arguably more so than Iguro. She is useful in the fight against Upper Moon 4 and Muzan, but ultimately, she doesn’t have as many significant feats as other Hashira to merit higher placement. 

Related: Where Can I Watch Demon Slayer Season 4? Answered

4) Muichiro Tokito (Mist Hashira)

Earning the rank of Hashira after only two months in the Demon Slayer Corps, there’s no denying that Tokito is strong. While other Upper Moon Demons took multiple Hashira and Demon Slayers to defeat them, Tokito was able to defeat Upper Moon 5 entirely by himself. His Mist Breathing techniques allow him to increase his evasiveness, and he does eventually awaken the ability to access the Transparent World, showing that he is quite skilled for his age. However, due to his young age and how he dies at the hands of Upper Moon 1, Tokito isn’t able to reach his full potential before the end of the series, leaving him close to, but not at, the top.

3) Giyu Tomioka (Water Hashira)

As the first Hashira we meet in the series, Giyu’s strength is quickly notable. From his effortless killing of Lower Moon 5 to equally fighting against the Wind Hashira in a sparring match, Giyu is undeniably strong, with Akaza calling him the strongest Water Hashira he had ever fought. He was able to hold his own against numerous demons singlehandedly, including Muzan, and while he would lose an arm in the final battle, he’s one of only two Hashira to survive that showdown. If it wasn’t for his inferiority complex and imposter syndrome, then he would probably be even stronger than he is.  

2) Sanemi Shinazugawa (Wind Hashira)

When even Upper Moon One calls you one of the strongest Demon Slayers, you know you’re strong. Sanemi is a brutal Hashira who excels at speed and annihilating anyone in his way. Before he even became a Hashira, he was able to kill Lower Moon 1 and went on to kill plenty more demons. Not only was he one of the primary reasons Upper Moon 1 was killed, but he was able to recover quickly from his injuries and aid in the final fight against Muzan. As the other Hashira to survive the final fight, Sanemi has shown throughout the final arc that his aggressive nature makes him one of the best Demon Slayers. 

1) Gyomei Himejima (Stone Hashira)

The de facto leader of the Demon Slayer Corps is, without a doubt, the strongest Hashira by a mile. Brandishing a flail instead of a sword, Gyomei is able to stand on equal footing with the second strongest demon, Upper Moon One, who concedes he never fought a Hashira as strong as Gyomei in over 300 years. Despite being blind, Gyomei has access to the Transparent World and developed techniques not dissimilar from the ones that demons use in order to keep on equal footing with them. He fights valiantly against Muzan and continues to do so even after losing a leg, making him a true force of nature. Sometimes, the consensus is true – Gyomei is the strongest Hashira in Demon Slayer.

And that’s the nine strongest Hashira in Demon Slayer, ranked.

Demon Slayer is streaming now on Crunchyroll.