The Z-Fighters have grown quite a bit since the end of Dragon Ball Z, both in terms of roster and Power Level. Dragon Ball Super's Z-Fighters are stronger than ever, with the top five warriors sporting absurdly overpowered transformations that make them God-tier in terms of strength. Even most of the Earthlings are still strong enough to pull their weight (emphasis on most).
With the Black Frieza Saga set to be the series' next story arc once Toyotarou's Dragon Ball Super manga returns, the Z-Fighters will need to be stronger than ever if they're going to so much as stand a chance. Ultra Instinct Goku and Ultra Ego Vegeta are strong, but Black Frieza one-shot them at the end of the Granolah the Survivor Saga. The Z-Fighters need to work as a team, uniting their most powerful warriors together foe what's sure to be Dragon Ball Super's final battle.
16 Yajirobe is the Weakest Z-Fighter
Yajirobe could be one of the strongest Z-Fighters if he actually cared about training. When he's introduced in the Demon King Piccolo Saga, Goku comments that he's never met anybody as strong as Yajirobe before. This is particularly impressive because Goku just lost to Tien in the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai, meaning that Yajirobe was actually stronger than Tien.
Yajirobe effortlessly kills Cymbal and becomes the third character to climb Korin Tower, after Master Roshi and Goku. In the Saiyan Saga, Yajirobe is also responsible for cutting off Great Ape Vegeta's tail, probably his biggest contribution in the series. Unfortunately, Yajirobe is extremely lazy and dedicates zero time to training after the Saiyan arc, making him the weakest Z-Fighter by a mile.
15 Chiaotzu is Too Weak to Contribute Anymore
If it weren't for Yajirobe never training, Chiaotzu would be the weakest Z-Fighter in Dragon Ball. Introduced alongside Tien, Chiaotzu never wins a fight on-screen in the original Dragon Ball or Dragon Ball Z. His main role in the series is simply to die in the Demon King Piccolo and Saiyan Sagas in order to motivate Tien's character development.
Chiaotzu's psychic abilities amount to basically nothing, and he's so weak, Tien doesn't even bother bringing him to the fight with the Androids, the Cell Games, the battle with Frieza's soldiers in Resurrection F, or the Tournament of Power. The most Chiaotzu accomplishes in Dragon Ball Super is helping fight off Moro's army until Goku and Vegeta show up to save the day.
14 Yamcha is So Weak Now, Goku Didn't Even Consider Him For the Tournament of Power
It's hard to believe there was ever a time when Yamcha was one of the strongest characters in Dragon Ball. Yamcha was Goku's first rival, as well as the first character to actually beat Goku in an on-screen fight, but his martial arts career is filled with loss after loss. Yamcha loses in the first round of every World Tournament he participates in, and quietly retires as a martial artist after Dr. Gero nearly kills him in the Cell Saga.
In Dragon Ball Super, Yamcha isn't even on Goku's radar when he's trying to fill out Universe 7's team – Goku would rather bring Frieza back from the dead than rely on one of his oldest friends. For what it's worth, Yamcha is still one of the strongest humans on Earth, a fact he remains proud of during the Moro Saga, but he's just not strong enough to keep up with Dragon Ball's out-of-control power-scaling anymore.
13 Master Roshi Has Been Secretly Training to Keep Up With His Students
Despite being horribly outclassed by the next generation once Dragon Ball Z starts, Resurrection F reveals that Master Roshi has been secretly training behind the scenes in order to catch up to his former students. He's only slightly stronger than the average Frieza soldier, but this still makes him more powerful than the likes of Yamcha. Goku even recruits Roshi for the Tournament of Power.
In the Dragon Ball Super manga, Master Roshi holds the impressive feat of earning Jiren's praise by tapping into a pseudo-Ultra Instinct state. Roshi may not have raw power, but his years of experience as a martial artist makes him a dangerous and capable fighter when push comes to shove.
12 Tien Has Fallen on Hard Times in Dragon Ball Super
Tien was once strong enough to defeat Goku in the World Martial Arts Tournament, but his days as the strongest member of the Dragon Team are long gone. Tien puts his all into training, but he just can't keep up with either Goku or Krillin, his former rivals. The most Tien does in Dragon Ball Z is show up a few times to use the Tri-Beam and stall for time against Cell & Majin Buu, respectively.
While stronger than Yamcha and Roshi as far as Power Levels go, Tien's showing in Dragon Ball Super is nothing short of dismal. He's one of the first fighters on Universe 7's team to be eliminated from the Tournament of Power, and he struggles fighting Moro's army worse than even Yamcha. Tien is certainly strong, but the series makes no effort to respect his power these days.
11 Krillin is the Strongest Human in Dragon Ball
Krillin is the strongest human among the Z-Fighters – at least until Uub eventually joins the team once Dragon Ball Super catches up to the End of Z. Krillin is Goku’s best friend and started training with him at the exact same time. Despite not having Saiyan genetics or transformations, Krillin’s done a respectable job at keeping himself useful. He doesn't make it too far in the Tournament of Power, but he remains one of Goku’s most important allies.
Despite being utterly outclassed in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Krillin was strong enough to hurt Cell Max with a well-timed kick – a seriously impressive feat considering he's just an Earthling. Krillin will never be at the top of the pecking order, but he's a smart martial artist who always fights with everything he has and can always be counted on to support the Z-Fighters in a pinch.
10 Goten Has Potential, But Doesn't Have the Discipline to Get Stronger
Goten had so much potential when he was first introduced in Dragon Ball Z’s Majin Buu Saga. He was the youngest Super Saiyan in history, and despite having no formal training, was already roughly as strong as Gohan. Unfortunately, as powerful as Goten is innately, he doesn't really care about martial arts. Goten would rather play at being a superhero and go on dates instead of pushing himself past his limits.
Goten’s biggest contribution in Dragon Ball is being Trunks’ fusion part, but even then, the two struggle to actually turn into Gotenks in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. Goten is at least strong enough to participate in Dragon Ball Super Chapter 103’s Saiyan battle royale, but by all accounts, he'd be the first to go down.
9 Trunks Has Always Been Slightly Stronger Than Goten
By virtue of being one year older than Goten, Trunks is the stronger of the two. Even then, he's only barely more powerful than his best friend and rival, as their Power Levels remain equal enough for them be able to fuse into Gotenks (assuming they do the dance correctly, that is). Trunks’ biggest leg up over Goten is that Toyotarou seems more interested in developing his character over Goku’s second son.
Trunks gets a lot of focus in the Dragon Ball Super manga’s adaptation of the Super Hero Saga, and even serves as the main character of the manga’s exclusive High School Saga. Alongside Goten, Gamma 1, and Gamma 2, Trunks contributes a fair deal to the final battle with Cell Max, but he's just too weak at this point to make a big difference. He and Goten are even considered big enough liabilities where no one wanted to bring them to fight Frieza’s soldiers in Resurrection F, join the team for the Tournament of Power, or do battle with Moro’s army (even Yamcha was invited!)
8 Android 18 is the Only Female Z-Fighter
Android 18 is a real powerhouse, and one of the strongest members of the Z-Fighters. Without any transformations of her own, 18 was able to pull her weight during the Tournament of Power and was a valuable ally during the fight against Moro. Thanks to her infinite stamina, Android 18 can accomplish feats others Z-Fighters could only dream of, all while fighting indefinitely.
18 is only slightly weaker than her twin brother, 17, but she's never let this slow her down. Android 18 has one of the most impressive win records among the Z-Fighters, and even manages to defeat Goten and Trunks during the 25th Tenkaichi Budokai. Until Pan grows old enough to join the team, Android 18 also holds the distinction of being the only female Z-Fighter in Dragon Ball Super.
7 Android 17 Won the Tournament of Power For The Z-Fighters
The MVP of the Tournament of Power, Android 17 only joined the Z-Fighters recently, but he's already proven himself one of their best members between the Universe Survival Saga and Moro arcs. Like his sister, 18, Android 17 has infinite stamina. Unlike Android 18, 17 was built with a much stronger power processor. This made him difficult for Dr. Gero to control, but also made 17 the strongest Android other than 16 and Cell.
Just by fighting poachers and keeping Cell Juniors in line on his island, Android 17 went from about as strong as Piccolo after fusing with Kami, to roughly God-tier in terms of Power Level. He wasn't strong enough to do serious damage to someone like Jiren, but 17 is powerful enough to make it all the way to the end of the Tournament of Power and put up a better fight against Moro’s goons than most Z-Fighters.