The Most Intelligent Dragon Ball Characters, Ranked

Dragon Ball tends to celebrate brawn over brains more often than not, but intelligent characters still play a very important role in the long-running manga and anime series. The smartest Dragon Ball characters have changed the world with their ideas and inventions; more so than many of the franchise’s main cast.

Trying to determine who is the most intelligent Dragon Ball character is far from easy though, particularly as the main candidates for the title specialize in very different fields. One or two fall some way short of the title genius, yet their ability to strategize and outthink their opponents helps to give them an edge in battle even when they’re outgunned.

Characters with omniscience or god-like powers will not be considered for this list, as there is a big difference between knowing everything and being able to figure it all out for oneself.

5 Cell

Cell is a Master Manipulator

Frieza is undoubtedly the best Dragon Ball villain, but Cell is probably the smartest. Unlike Frieza, who’s too stupid to understand when he’s been beaten, Cell is able to read and manipulate his opponents in order to gain the upper hand. We see this on numerous occasions, like when he talks Vegeta into allowing him to achieve his perfect form, which very nearly proves to be the Saiyan Prince’s undoing.

Ultimately, Cell’s arrogance and his failure to finish off the Z Fighters when he had the chance to do so leads to his demise, but given that his main aim was to achieve perfection and prove himself to be the strongest fighter in the universe, the Cell Games actually made a lot of sense. Super Buu deserves a special mention here too, as he was twice able to trick the Z Fighters and absorb Gotenks, Picolo, and Gohan.

4 Future Trunks

Trunks Understands that All Actions have Consequences

As a race, the Saiyans aren’t really renowned for their intellect, but that’s not to say that some of the half-Saiyans aren’t still relatively smart. Much of Gohan’s adult arc is centered around his desire to become a scholar rather than a fighter, although there’s a much stronger argument to be made for Trunks being the smartest Saiyan when all’s said and done.

Trunks is very good at reading his opponents and never fails to take impending threats seriously. Unlike Goku and Vegeta, Trunks understands that eliminating danger as quickly as possible is far more important than proving one’s fighting prowess, and unlike Gohan, he never hesitates to do what needs to be done. The fact that he’s a member of the Briefs family and may have helped with the creation of the time machine also works in his favor here.

3 Dr. Brief

Dr. Brief is a Brilliant Inventor

Dr. Brief is the founder of Capsule Corp and a strong contender for the title of smartest Dragon Ball character. His capsule technology is truly incredible and has helped to enrich the lives of all those living on Earth, earning him a small fortune as well as the acclaim of many of his peers and fellow earthlings. He also builds the space ship that takes Goku over to Namek, among other things.

Across the numerous Dragon Ball series and the many galaxies and universes that they’ve explored, it’s difficult to think of a planet that’s more technologically advanced than Earth, and a big part of that is down to Dr. Brief. However, his greatest creation is arguably his daughter, who is one of only a handful of people who surpasses Dr. Brief when it comes to intellect.

2 Dr. Gero

Dr. Gero is an Evil Genius

It’s difficult to compare Dr. Brief and Dr. Gero given that they specialize in two very different fields, but there’s a strong argument to be made for Dr. Gero being the smarter of the two men nonetheless. The androids and Cell are arguably a lot more impressive than any of Dr. Brief’s creations, and Dr. Gero was able to create them in a cave with far fewer resources at his disposal.

Judging by his reaction to their blueprints, there are elements of the androids’ designs that are beyond even Dr Brief’s comprehension, which further tips the scales in Gero’s favor. The only thing holding him back from true greatness was his failure to control his creations, which, together with his immense hatred for Goku, is ultimately what led to his death. For that reason alone, he could never be considered the very smartest Dragon Ball character.

1 Bulma

Bulma is the Smartest Character in Dragon Ball

As the franchise has grown, so too has Bulma’s importance to it. Having demonstrated her ability to repair and operate several spaceships over the years, she then goes on to outdo herself; creating the first and only known time machine in the Dragon Ball universe up to that point in time. Granted, other time machines are referenced later on in Dragon Ball Super, but fans of the series never actually get to see any of them.

Bulma is also the creator of the Dragon Ball radar: a tool that has proven to be incredibly useful over the years. Without this, many of the Z fighters would have remained dead and the Earth would probably have been destroyed when Nappa and Vegeta turned up, so its significance to the series shouldn’t be forgotten, nor indeed should Bulma’s.