HIGHLIGHTS

Size in One Piece doesn’t always equate to strength; Shanks proves you don’t need height to wield authority and deadly power.
Luffy, despite being small, is one of the strongest Yonko thanks to his Devil Fruit powers and strategic combat skills.
Big Mom’s colossal height doesn’t just make her intimidating, it also fuels her destructive rampages when she’s hungry.

In the world of One Piece, the Yonko are often considered to be the strongest currently active pirates who are capable of causing an incredible amount of destruction. Just like with the Shichibukai, characters are always joining and leaving the Yonko ranks, and as a result, there’s been quite a wide range of individuals who have earned the label as One Piece‘s story has progressed.

Not only are the Yonko members vastly different in their personalities, but they also bear virtually no resemblance to one another in terms of their appearances. There are a few Yonko who are widely considered to be literal giants due to their stature, but there have also been several smaller members who are still just as, if not more powerful than their counterparts. Rather than matching them up according to their abilities and strengths, this topic will analyze how the Yonko compare in terms of their overall size, and whether they’ve been known to use this to their advantage during an intense battle.

7Monkey D. Luffy

Height: 5′ 9″

First Appearance : Episode 1

Luffy may be the smallest Yonko ever seen in the series but looks can be very deceiving, as he is currently without a doubt one of the strongest beings in the entire story, which is why he earned the status in the first place. Part of this comes from his expertise using the Hito Hito no Mi Fruit, where he can unleash a myriad of hard-hitting attacks by extending his body in any playful way he can imagine.

More recently, Luffy has also gained an immense surge of power due to his Devil Fruit’s links with the ancient figure known only as Joy Boy, which only became revealed near the end of the lengthy Wano Country arc. The fact that Luffy, who looks like an ant when standing next to Kaido, managed to take the behemoth down, shows just how far he’s come since the early Romance Dawn days.

6Buggy

Height: 6′ 4″

First Appearance : Episode 4

Despite being a rather clumsy and cowardly pirate, Buggy has somehow managed to slowly rise through the ranks throughout the story until, eventually, he manages to officially become a warlord of the sea. To the outside world, Buggy seems like a fairly formidable pirate who holds a lot of influence across the seas, especially now that he’s part of the Cross Guild, but in reality, it would be hard to make a case for someone this pathetic to ever truly be considered a Yonko.

When he’s not splitting his body apart to avoid getting sliced to pieces by his many enemies, Buggy stands at 6 feet 4 inches tall, which is quite big as far as humans go in the world of One Piece. Again, because Buggy’s Bara Bara no Mi fruit allows him to separate his body at will, it means he often takes a more defensive approach to combat, and therefore will barely ever use his size as a weapon, especially since he rarely ever gets involved in fights anyway.

5Shanks

Height: 6′ 6″

First Appearance : Episode 4

A person’s size provides little to no indication as to how strong they are in One Piece, and arguably the most clear example of this is Shanks. Despite being far smaller than the likes of Whitebeard or Big Mom, Shanks’ presence alone is more than enough to instill fear into anyone he approaches, especially when he decides to activate his deadly Conquerer’s Haki. In fact, it was revealed during the Marineford War that Shanks had actually managed to stop Kaido from getting involved, which is remarkable considering the sheer size difference between the two.

This proves just how much authority the red-haired pirate wields, to the point where he’s even able to organize secret meetings with the Five Elders. In combat, Shanks wields a deadly blade called Gryphon which is almost as big as he is, but despite his size and weapon of choice, Shanks still possesses incredible speed and agility, which he will gladly use to outmaneuver anyone who steps in his way.

4Blackbeard

Height: 11′ 3″

First Appearance : Episode 146

Unlike Buggy who gradually clawed his way to becoming a Yonko by accident, Blackbeard had a long and devious plan set out where he would take advantage of his Shichibukai position to create a brand-new crew of inmates whom he would set free from Impel Down. By the time he did officially become a Yonko, he possessed two of the most powerful Devil Fruits on the planet, along with one of the deadliest pirate crews to have ever sailed the open seas.

Another reason Blackbeard has become so feared is his size, which makes him extremely durable in combat. It’s fair to say that Blackbeard isn’t the most elegant fighter, as he instead prefers to simply cause as much chaos as possible, and if he needs to use his gigantic fists to achieve this, he certainly won’t be against doing so. There have long been theories that Blackbeard has some sort of unique genetic makeup that allows him to hold two Devil Fruits at once, but whether this has any effect on his actual appearance has not yet been confirmed.

3Whitebeard

Height: 21′ 10″

First Appearance : Episode 151

Often touted as being the “Strongest Man in the World,” Whitebeard could also be said to be one of the tallest since he’s more or less the same size as some of the smaller giants seen in the series, which is pretty impressive for a human. Then again, nothing less could be expected from the rival of Gol D. Roger himself, and the leader of the infamous Whitebeard Pirates.

Similarly to Blackbeard, Whitebeard’s size makes him a tricky opponent to take down, to the point where it took 267 sword wounds, 152 bullets, and 46 cannonballs just in the Marineford War alone to defeat him, and even then, he died standing on his own two feet. Pair this with his devastating Gura Gura no Mi Fruit, which is capable of causing entire earthquakes, and his Haki expertise and it’s no wonder why even the mention of Whitebeard’s name is enough to send a shiver down the spine of most characters.

2Kaido

Height: 23′ 4″

First Appearance : Episode 736

Kaido undoubtedly has one of the most memorable character introductions ever seen in the series. As the behemoth launches himself from a Sky Island towards the surface, a narrator explains that this Yonko has been captured multiple times by the World Government, but due to his size and strength, they’ve never been able to kill him off for good. After his failed suicide attempt, Kaido emerges from the crater where he can be seen towering over Kid, Hawkins, and Apoo, who understandably shake in fear at what they’ve just witnessed.

As shown through his numerous bouts against Luffy and Yamato, Kaido regularly uses his superior size to pummel his opponents, whether it be with his fists, or his giant club, which he’s able to swing at lightning speed despite its size. In case that’s not enough, Kaido can also take to the skies with his Mythical-Zoan Dragon Fruit, where he gains a whole host of new abilities and techniques to incinerate his opponents with.

1Big Mom

Height: 28′ 10″

First Appearance : Episode 571

Despite her enormous stature, Big Mom usually prefers to let her misfit family deal with anyone who tries to trespass onto her island, but when she does decide to take matters into her own hands, she becomes one of the most terrifying characters in the entire series. This is especially the case when Big Mom starts to get a little peckish after not eating for a few hours, which will cause her to embark on a mad rampage where she will willingly annihilate friend and foe alike until she gets something to satisfy her tastebuds.

In fact, according to Capone near the beginning of Whole Cake Island, Big Mom is more than capable of destroying entire cities and battleships without even breaking a sweat, and could even tear down the mountain-sized Sweet City castle itself if she entered one of her craving-caused rampages. Despite having since been defeated by Luffy and his allies, Big Mom will always remain one of the most intimidating antagonists in all of One Piece, and her size is a huge reason why.