The Marvel Cinematic Universe has many practitioners of various forms of magic but who are the strongest sorcerers in the franchise?

While magic has been part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe since its first phase, the franchise has gradually introduced a multitude of powerful and prominent sorcerers. As explained in 2011’s Thor and 2016’s Doctor Strange, magic exists in the MCU, but it can arguably be described as an advanced discipline of science that manipulates reality itself and taps into the otherworldly energies of other realities. There are various sub-disciplines of magic in the MCU timeline and, naturally, some sorcerers are more powerful than others.

The MCU’s various forms of magic include Asgardian Magic, introduced in Thor, Eldritch Magic, Dark Dimension Magic, and Mirror Dimension Magic, which were introduced in Doctor Strange and used by the Masters of the Mystic Arts (and their enemies, the Zealots). More recent MCU works would also introduce more dangerous forms of sorcery, such as Chaos Magic and Dark Magic (also known as witchcraft). The following characters comprise the MCU’s most prominent sorcerers, listed from weakest to strongest.

12Ned Leeds Has No Formal Magical Training (Yet)

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Given proper commitment, practice, and training, anyone in the MCU can learn to harness magic, but relatively few have a particular aptitude for it. In the MCU’s Spider-Man films, Ned Leeds was initially depicted as only an ordinary – albeit highly intelligent – human, but he reveals that his family has an aptitude for magic in Spider-Man: No Way Home. When wearing Doctor Strange’s Sling Ring, Ned proved that he has astounding potential as a sorcerer, as he managed to conjure portals at various points despite lacking any training. While Leeds is only technically a sorcerer, he could hone his magic abilities in future MCU films and become far more powerful.

11Karl Mordo’s Eldritch Magic Make Him A Dangerous Sorcerer

Doctor Strange

Although Karl Mordo is only shown using Eldritch Magic, he quickly proves himself to be one of the finest members of the Masters of the Mystic Arts. While Mordo’s feud with Doctor Strange after the events of the 2016 film is only referenced, the fact that he could pose a threat to Strange makes him one of the MCU’s most dangerous sorcerers. Additionally, Mordo has demonstrated the unique ability to remove magic from others, including the formally trained Jonathan Pangborn.

10Kaecilius’ Thirst For Power Gave Him Immense Magical Capabilities

Doctor Strange

Kaecilius, the antagonist of Doctor Strange, was once one of the Masters of the Mystic Arts, and one of their finest sorcerers at that. Even before augmenting his abilities with Dark Dimension Magic, Kaecilius could rival The Ancient One herself in Eldritch Magic. With the powers of Dormammu and the Dark Dimension, however, Kaecilius posed a major threat to his mentor and could even resist the powers of the Time Stone, but he became considerably weaker once he was reduced to a Mindless One by Dormammu, paying a terrible price for immortality.

9Wong Is The MCU’s Most Recent Sorcerer Supreme

Doctor Strange & Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Another exceptionally powerful member of the Masters of the Mystic Arts, Wong has proven his skill in sorcery time and time again in the MCU. Wong has stood alongside The Ancient One and Doctor Strange against Kaecilius, the forces of Thanos, and Scarlet Witch. Following Doctor Strange’s death in Avengers: Infinity War, Wong succeeded him as the Sorcerer Supreme and kept the title following Strange’s resurrection. Despite his ascension being described as a “technicality,” Wong is more than worthy of the rank.

8Agatha Harkness Is One Of MCU’s Most Powerful Magic-Users

WandaVision

Debuting in WandaVision, Agatha Harkness is shown to be an astoundingly powerful and deadly practitioner of Dark Magic. Harness augmented her abilities by absorbing the magic of the other witches in her coven, a process that killed them. Moreover, Harkness further enhanced her powers with the Darkhold. By the events of WandaVision, Agatha easily entered the Hex, resisted Wanda Maximoff’s magic, asserted her own mind control powers over Westview citizens, and fought Wanda on equal footing for a time.

7Sylvie Shows How Powerful Asgardian Magic Can Be

Marvel’s Loki

As her universe’s Goddess of Mischief, Sylvie is a Loki variant introduced in the Loki Disney+ series, which depicts her as possessing Asgardian Magic abilities superior to those of the more familiar Loki iterations. Sylvie has baffled and avoided the TVA for much of her life, and even outfought the alternate 2012 variant of Loki. Most astoundingly, she has managed to effectively use her Asgardian Magic powers in the TVA headquarters, despite their measures that normally prevent magic use.

6Ancient One Mastered More Than One Version Of MCU Magic

Doctor Strange

As Doctor Strange’s mentor and the longest-serving Sorcerer Supreme among the Masters of the Mystic Arts, it is no surprise that the Ancient One is one of the most powerful sorcerers in the MCU. The mysterious Ancient One has thoroughly mastered Eldritch and Mirror Dimension Magic, protecting humanity from mystical threats for centuries. Perhaps her most impressive feat, however, is tapping into Dark Dimension Magic without being corrupted by it.

5Sinister Strange Utilized The Power Of Dreamwalking

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

An evil variant of Doctor Strange, “Sinister Strange” has a nearly identical history to his mainstream counterpart, only he became corrupted by the Darkhold, an extremely dangerous book of Dark Magic. Sinister Strange frequently employed the power of Dreamwalking, which allowed him to possess variants of himself in other realities. Despite his augmented powers (which caused an incursion in his reality), Sinister Strange was defeated by the mainstream iteration of Doctor Strange in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

4Doctor Strange Is The MCU’s Main Magician

Doctor Strange

As the mainstream MCU timeline’s preeminent magic-using superhero, Doctor Strange is, unsurprisingly, one of the franchise’s most powerful sorcerers. Mordo, Wong, and the Ancient One herself have all noted Stephen Strange’s superlative aptitude for magic, and while his position as the Sorcerer Supreme was relatively short-lived, Strange remains the most powerful member of the Masters of the Mystic Arts in the MCU. In addition to mastering Eldritch and Mirror Dimension Magic (as well as time manipulation before the Time Stone’s destruction), Doctor Strange also managed to use the Darkhold without becoming fully corrupted by it, though he did gain a third eye from using the cursed book.

3Strange Supreme Mastered One Of The MCU’s Most Dangerous Forms Of Magic

Marvel’s What If…?

Another corrupted variant of Doctor Strange, Strange Supreme was introduced in Marvel’s What If…?, which sees him defeating the dreaded Dormammu and mastering Dark Dimension Magic, in addition to possessing the same superlative skills as his mainstream counterpart. Strange Supreme, who even managed to impress Infinity Ultron (an Ultron variant who is virtually omnipotent due to his use of all six Infinity Stones), was only truly obstructed by his universe’s Absolute Point in time. Moreover, Strange Supreme’s morally gray characterization in both seasons of What If…? indicates that he was not fully corrupted by the Dark Dimension Magic.

2Scarlet Witch’s Chaos Magic Makes Her A Truly Terrifying Sorcerer

WandaVision & Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

\

While already a powerful superhuman from her introduction, Wanda Maximoff became one of the most powerful beings in the MCU multiverse upon unlocking the full potential of her magic abilities in WandaVision. By the events of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Wanda had fully embraced her new title of Scarlet Witch and mastered the rare Chaos Magic, which she augmented with the corrupting Darkhold. According to Agatha Harness, Scarlet Witch is intrinsically more powerful than the Sorcerer Supreme and she proves this repeatedly in Multiverse of Madness. Ultimately, nobody truly defeats Wanda, and she dies due to her own sacrifice to destroy every Darkhold in the multiverse.

1Loki Is Currently The MCU’s Most Powerful Magic-User

Marvel’s Loki

Like his mainstream MCU counterpart, the alternate 2012 variant of Loki, who was introduced in Avengers: Endgame and later starts in Marvel’s Loki, is an exceptionally powerful sorcerer who has mastered Asgardian Magic. At the end of Loki season 2, however, this Loki variant gained the ultimate upgrade to his abilities by destroying and replacing the Temporal Loom, giving him control over Time Slipping. Now the God of Stories, Loki has mastery over time and space itself, making him the most powerful sorcerer in the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe.