Over the last few decades, many new Spider-Man variants emerged in the Marvel Comics and on the big screen, all with incredible abilities. Each of them has a high power level, but a few are much stronger than your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man, Peter Parker. And even though Uncle Ben once said, “With great power, comes great responsibility”, that is not always the case in the Marvel universe, as some of these Spider-Men characters happen to be Spider-Man villains. So, without further ado, let’s look at twenty Spider-Man variants to find the most powerful and strongest version of Spider-Man.
20. Lady Spider / Maybelle Reilly
Created by Robbie Thompson and Denis Medri, this iteration of Spider-Man first made her debut in 2014 in Spider-Verse #1. Set in a world where Earth is still in the 1880s, Maybelle is an alternate version of Aunt May. After her father passes away, she becomes a scientist and puts together her own Spider-Suit with spare parts she found in her garage. With genius intellect, a four-armed harness and Mechanical Web Shooters, she is unfortunately not as strong as the Spider-Man variants on this list. However, despite her lack of spider abilities, she proved an asset in the Spider-verse battle against the Inheritors. In fact, she has recently joined the Web Warriors, with her incredible intellect serving as her greatest superpower.
19. Spider-Girl / Mayday Parker
As the first child of Peter and Mary-Jane Parker, May (nicknamed Mayday) ended up developing her father’s spider-like abilities. Set in an alternate universe, a while into the future, Mayday was kidnapped by Alison Mongrain under the orders of the Green Goblin. She is reunited with her parents by Kaine (who is also on this list). Despite her parents hoping that she would not develop her father’s powers, they eventually developed when she turned fifteen. Although somewhat weaker than her father, May possesses certain abilities that make her stronger such as better agility and an advanced Spider-Sense. Her other powers include wall-crawling, superhuman speed, strength, stamina, durability, reflexes, regeneration, and equilibrium.
18. Spider-Assassin / Peter Parker
Created by Jeff Parker, Paul Tobin, and Clayton Henry, this less-friendly version of Spider-Man first appeared in What If? Spider-Man Vs. Wolverine #1. As an Earth 8351 variant, Peter Parker joins forces with Wolverine and becomes an assassin. Of course, this means he received intense training in both hand-to-hand combat and marksmanship, resulting in him beating Black Widow with ease. So just imagine what Spider-Man would look like with these extraordinary fighting abilities on top of his superhuman speed, strength, senses, stamina, and reflexes. That would set the bar pretty high compared to the original Spider-Man. Unfortunately, he met his end in Amazing Spider-Man (Vol. 3) #10.
17. Spider-Wolf / Identity Unknown
First appearing in Amazing Spider-Man (Vol. 3) #11, this Spider-Man variant’s real name is yet to be revealed. However, he goes by the current alias of Spider-Wolf, otherwise known as the Great Spider-Wolf of the Lycansphere. Unfortunately, not much was revealed about him as he died at the hands of one of the Inheritors known as Karn within the same issue he was introduced in (or rather, the same panel he was introduced in). Possessing all the abilities of the Spider-Totems across the multiverse, what makes him so much stronger than many of them is the fact that he also is a lycanthrope. Simply put, he is a werewolf who gained Spider-Man’s superpowers. So, in addition to his Spider-like abilities, he also had enhanced tracking abilities, senses, sharp claws and fangs, but an unfortunate vulnerability to silver. It’s a pity he died, as seeing more of this character would have been very cool.
16. Spiders-Man / Peter Parker
If you have arachnophobia, then this version of the superhero will be terrifying. In fact, you do not need to be scared of spiders to grasp how truly terrifying this must be. First introduced in Spider-Geddon #3, Spiders-man was created by Christos Gage and Jorge Molina. Surely, you already know Peter Parker’s origin story, where one radioactive spider bit him. Well, here, he falls into a colony of radioactive spiders and is seemingly devoured by them. However, the spiders form a hive mind and merge with Peter’s consciousness, parading the poor guy’s body around, claiming to be him. Of course, they decide it’s a good idea to put on his spider suit and fight crime. Peter is clearly unhappy about the change, referring to himself as a monster in the comics.
15. Spider-Gwen / Gwendolyn Stacy
Created by Jason Latour and Robbi Rodriguez, Spider-Gwen also goes by the alias of Ghost-Spider and first appeared in Edge of Spider-Verse #2 in 2014. After her mother died, Gwen was raised by her father, George Stacy, alone. After being bitten by a genetically engineered spider, Gwen gains the same abilities as the original Spider-Man but uses them for personal pleasure. That is, until the bullied Peter Parker’s desperation to be like Spider-Gwen took over, and he experimented on himself. He was turned into a lizard creature, which Gwen gave a brutal beating when he crashed their high school prom. Unfortunately, Peter’s injuries resulted in his death when he reverted to his human form. From here, she took crime fighting more seriously, using her impressive detective and fighting abilities alongside her spider powers.
14. Spider-Woman / Jessica Drew
After her family moved them to a small cottage in the Wundagore Mountain in Transia, Jessica’s father found their land to have large amounts of uranium on the property. A few years later, she fell ill due to being exposed to the uranium for such an extended period of time at around four to five years old. As a geneticist, her father thought it best to see whether he could help her with the use of arachnid’s regenerative and immunological properties, which can be found in their blood. Injecting her with an untested serum made from a variety of uncommon spiders’ DNA, he was able to stop the spread of the illness. Then he sealed her in a genetic accelerator to speed up the process. She was released decades later and took on the identity of Spider-Woman, first as a crime fighter and then as a bounty hunter. In addition to her spider abilities, she could secrete a fear-inducing pheromone, glide through the air, blast bioelectricity from her hands, and is skilled in martial arts. She is pretty strong for a Spider-Man variant and deserving of her spot on this list.
13. Six-Arm Spider-Man / Peter Benjamin Parker
Created by Michael Gallagher and Kevin West, this version of Spider-Man first appeared in 1992 in What If…? #42. To rid himself of his powers, Peter created a potion he thought would do the trick. Instead, the hero grew four extra arms, with two on each side. Distraught, he went to many experts, including Professor X and Reed Richards, but none could help. The cure was in Michael Morbius’ blood, but sharks, unfortunately, ate the vampire hybrid. With all the abilities of the original Spider-Man, he quickly realized that six arms proved extremely helpful when engaging in battle, to the extent that he efficiently managed to save Gwen Stacy from the Green Goblin. Six-Arm Spider-Man was killed in Spider-Man 2099 (Vol. 2) #6 while trying to buy time for Miguel O’Hara’s Spider-Man and Lady Spider to escape on Earth-928.
12. Superior Spider-Man / Otto Gunther Octavius
If you aren’t well-versed in the world of Marvel comics, then it might be a massive surprise that Doc Ock was once Spider-Man. And he was a very OP (overpowered) version of the Spider-Totem at that. Debuting in The Amazing Spider-Man #697 in 2012, Peter Parker’s mind is swapped with the mind of a dying Doctor Octavius. From here, the villain miraculously decides to change his ways and live up to Peter’s legacy as a superhero. But, of course, he showed his victims no mercy, not holding back the way Peter had when fighting someone. The reason he is so high on this list is that his own tentacles combined with Spider-Man’s form, putting him on a high power level. Furthermore, he had a genius-level intellect which really made him superior in every sense. By the end of the comic series, however, Peter regained his body and consciousness, ending the reign of the Superior Spider-Man.
11. Spider-Carnage / Peter Parker
In this universe, multiple Peter Parker clones were created, with one escaping and changing his name to Ben Reilly. However, the remaining clone took on the alias of Peter Parker and, in turn, his superhero name, Spider-Man. He grew to resent Ben when it was suggested that Ben was the real Peter and not him. A portal was opened upon trying to kill Ben one night, and the Carnage symbiote bonded with Peter after sensing his rage. As the first real villain on this list, Spider-Carnage’s goal was to destroy all of reality and seek vengeance. He possesses all the original Spider-Man’s abilities but with a heightened Spider-Sense comparable to precognition. In addition, Spider-Carnage possesses the abilities of the symbiote, which allow him to create weapons with his body, extend them at inhuman distances, and even morph the symbiote into the costume of the original Spider-Man.
10. Scarlet Spider / Kaine Parker
Although there have been many who have taken on the alias of the Scarlet Spider, including Ben Reilly, it is Kaine Parker that is the strongest version. Created by Terry Kavanagh and Steven Butler, the hero first appeared in Web of Spider-Man #119 in 1994. As another clone of Peter Parker, Kaine, unfortunately, ended up with cellular degeneration and tarantula mutation. However, once cured, he was on the same power level as the original Spider-Man until he embraced The Other, which increased his strength and durability tenfold. In addition, he had the Mark of Kaine, which caused deformation in his hands but allowed him to burn whomever he touched. Furthermore, he could organically produce his own webs and connect with other insects and bugs in his environment in a psychic manner. Most impressively, he was immune to the Spider-Sense of other Spider-Men as their bodies considered him as part of them.
9. Spider-Man / Miles Morales
First appearing in Ultimate Fallout #4 in 2011, Miles Morales was created as an African American hero by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli. As the second most popular Spider-Man after Peter Parker, Miles is significantly stronger, with much of his abilities on display in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). Similarly to Peter, Miles was bitten by a radioactive spider that took a ride home in his school bag from Osborn Industries. From here, he gained all the basic Spider-Man abilities, such as superhuman speed, strength and reflexes alongside wall-crawling. However, he differs because he has superhuman equilibrium, electricity generation, camouflage, and a healing factor twenty times faster than Peter Parker’s regeneration. Finally, Norman Osborn believed that he could possibly possess immortality as a result of the Oz serum the spider was enhanced with.
8. Spider-Hulk / Peter Parker
Appearing for the first and last time in Web Of Spider-Man #70 in 1990, this version of the Spider-Totem feels like a fever dream. However, can you imagine how powerful a combination between Spider-Man and the Incredible Hulk would be? Well, in this comic storyline, Peter takes a trip to Connecticut to cover a story given to him by the Daily Bugle. He encounters the Hulk here, who zaps him with a shot of bio-electricity, leaving the hero woozy for the days following. Upon getting angry, Peter quickly discovered that he now, too, possessed the Gamma radiation gene that transformed Bruce Banner into the mad, green giant. While retaining his Spider-like abilities, he also gained Hulk’s insane super strength, durability and ability to jump long distances easily. This was in addition to the Hulk’s incredible intelligence and high-end vocabulary.
7. Iron Spider-Man / Peter Parker
Technically referred to as the Iron Spider Armor, Amazing Spider-Man #529 saw Peter Parker first wearing this fantastic suit. This new Spider suit was created by none other than Tony Stark using his Stark Tech after Peter was resurrected following his death against Morlun. Of course, the suit is reminiscent of Tony’s Iron Man suit, sporting the same colour scheme but also adding some cool, mechanical legs to the mix. A very similar version of this suit can be seen in Avengers: Infinity War (2018), with the suit being constructed of nanotechnology instead. The suit has many capabilities, including seventeen multifunctional layers of various functions, enhanced lenses, a mask filter which allows him up to 8 minutes of air compression, and a glider device. So if Spider-Man was already powerful on his own, with the suit, his abilities are increased tenfold.
6. Spider-Man 2099 / Miguel O’Hara
Peter David and Rick Leonardi created this Latino Spidey hero, making his first appearance in 1992 in Amazing Spider-Man #365. Miguel O’Hara was an engineer of Irish/Mexican descent who worked for a company called Alchemax under Tyler Stone. After Stone forced him to perform an experiment on a human, Miguel decided to quit his job. But upon handing in his notice, Stone offers him a drink laced with a serum called Rapture. Trying to remove the effects of the serum, he uses the procedure from the failed experiment he had to perform earlier and ends up with human-spider hybrid DNA. As a result, he gained multiple abilities similar to Peter Parker while also gaining abilities such as telepathy, telescopic and night vision, talons and fangs, and organic webbing. And Miguel’s combat skills and high level of intellect are a bonus on top of this.
5. Zombie Spider-Man / Peter Parker
Now, to kick off the top five strongest Spider-Men with a terrifying bang, we introduce you to the zombified version of Peter Parker. Set on Earth-2149, the events before the zombie plague arrived are hard to find. Bitten by an infected Colonel America while trying to get Aunt May and Mary-Jane out of the city, he succumbs to the virus and eats them both. In addition to his spider physiology and abilities, the zombie virus allows him to take on the powers of those he eats. And unfortunately for the heroes of this world, Peter’s hunger is unrivalled. Despite dying in Marvel Zombies Return #5, the potential of his powers is immeasurable. He not only managed to defeat and consume the Green Goblin with ease but also took on and ate the Silver Surfer, increasing his power level significantly. In fact, if he consumed enough powerful characters, his decaying self might have made it to the top spot on this list.
4. Silk / Cindy Moon
First appearing in the Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 3 #1, it is revealed that Cindy was bitten by the same spider that bit Peter Parker. After she discovered her powers, Ezekiel Sims trained her and then hid her in a tower from Morlun, who was searching for her. Despite knowing the code, she didn’t leave in fear of the villain until Peter came and freed her, explaining Morlun was dead. Possessing more or less the same abilities as Spider-Man, she surpassed him with her long-range precognitive Spider-sense, eidetic memory, organic webbing and mastery of hand-to-hand combat. Compared to the original Peter, these abilities make her a far superior hero by a long shot.
3. Symbiote Spider-Man / Peter Parker
Created by Peter David, we have actually seen this version of the hero in the third film in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy. Before bonding with Eddie Brock, the Venom symbiote bonded with Peter in the 1985 Secret Wars miniseries. As a result, the hero gained all of the symbiote’s excellent abilities, placing him at a similar level to Spider-Carnage. The difference, however, is that Spider-Man is significantly stronger in this form, with the ability to regenerate at incredible speeds. In addition, all his spider abilities are enhanced, but Peter ended up rejecting the symbiote upon discovering its evil nature. This led to Venom bonding with Eddie Brock and becoming a well-known arch nemesis to Spider-Man.
2. Ghost Spider / Peter Parker
First appearing in Amazing Spider-Man Annual (Vol. 1) #38, the version of the hero we see on Earth-11638 is quite literally a combination of Spider-Man and Ghost Rider’s abilities. Here, Uncle Ben does not die and instead helps Peter found and grow Parker Technologies. Peter still becomes the Amazing Spider-Man, but as it turns out, this version has ulterior motives. Wanting to increase his powers, he brought Spider-Men from other universes into his own in a ploy to steal their powers for himself. Upon seeing what he is doing is wrong, the Sorcerer Supreme of Earth-11638 connects his soul to the Spirit of Vengeance, Ghost Rider, and creates the ‘Ghost Spider. He possesses both Spider-Man and Ghost Rider abilities, which means he is much stronger than the other entries on this list. Well, except for…
1. Cosmic Spider-Man / Peter Parker
First appearing in 1990 in Amazing Spider-Man #328, this version is hands-down the most powerful and strongest version of Spider-Man as he obtained powers from Captain Universe. In addition, he also embraced an ability known only as the Enigma Force, which gave him the power to destroy universes if he wished to do so. Possessing powers that derived from pure life force, many enemies were terrified to set foot into his universe. Unfortunately, he could not assist much when the other versions of Spider-Man were fighting the Inheritors, as leaving his universe would mean losing the Enigma Force. Unfortunately, he was eventually defeated by Solus, the leader of the Inheritors, when he made his way to Earth-13 and drained Peter’s life force in Amazing Spider-Man (Vol. 3) #11.
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Who do you think is the strongest variant or version of Spider-Man?
