We are living in the age of superheroes. Caped crusaders have smashed the confines of their comic-book cages and now dominate almost every corner of global pop culture. But who among them truly rules?

To create this ranking of the 50 Most Powerful Super­heroes, we devised a 100-point system that rated each character in nine categories: Cultural Impact, Bankability, Design, Modern Relevance, Mythology, Nemeses, Originality, Personality, and Powers.

We gave each category a maximum score of 10 points, with one exception: Cultural Impact. The power of a superhero is defined most by this quality, so we measured it on a 20-point scale to weigh the final list in favor of characters who have the deepest cultural footprints.

We then assembled a team of EW’s hardcore superhero experts and had them individually score 155 characters in each category. Those composite category scores were then added together to create an overall power total for each character. This determined our final 50 and each character’s position on the list.

The result, we believe, is the most precise and comprehensive superhero ranking ever created. Pick up EW’s special double-issue on newsstands now, but if you just want to crunch the numbers — and see where your favorite superhero rank — check out the chart below (click to expand).

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