The most powerful Hunters in the anime Hunter X Hunter are those who can wield and control Nen better than anyone else.

The titular characters in Hunter X Hunter are extremely strong, far exceeding the general population in terms of aptitude, insight, knowledge, as well as overall power. Hunter activities are (mostly) regulated by the Hunter Association, an NGO responsible for assessing its members' strengths and weaknesses.

As long as someone graduates the Hunter Exam, they are officially part of the community and are afforded incredible privileges. That said, the simple act of passing a test isn't a reliable metric to calculate the power levels of individual Hunters—however, it's possible to make an approximate estimation based on their capacity for Nen.

10 Palm Siberia

Palm Siberia's human Nen abilities are not quite as useful as some, but her transformation into a Chimera Ant magnifies her powers enormously. She is now capable of observing three separate individuals regardless of how far they are from her, an ability known as The Lonesome Deep Sea Fish.

Palm also develops a defensive mode of combat called Black Widow, where she armors herself using her own hair—this technique nearly pushes Killua to his limits. Thankfully, her new identity doesn't prevent her from fulfilling her Hunter tasks.

9 Illumi Zoldyck

Illumi is already overpowered before he obtains his Hunter License, on account of working for his family as a trained assassin. He can incapacitate people with his aura, modify his facial and body features, and puppeteer a large number of individuals simultaneously.

Illumi's weapons of choice are his needles; they can be employed in a variety of ways, including keeping his brother, Killua, under his control for a long time. Interestingly, his role as Gittarackur in the Hunter Exam arc is part of a huge anime plot twist relating to the Zoldyck family.

8 Morel Mackernasey

Morel Mackernasey has been in thousands of fights, explaining the incredible size of his aura: approximately thrice that of Gon. His Deep Purple, a tribute to the real-life rock band, generates a vast cloud of smoke that can be molded into anything he wants, from boats and animals to clones of himself.

His smoke creations are unbelievably durable, allowing him to emit ranged attacks from a safe distance. Morel is just as proficient at unarmed combat, making him an overwhelming opponent in every respect.

7 Killua Zoldyck

Killua has a long way to go before he can match his father or grandfather's strength, but as it stands, he's easily one of the most powerful characters in the series. The fact that he passes the Hunter Exam by defeating nearly 1,500 other participants just proves that Killua is a force of nature.

He manipulates electricity through his aura, developing Nen techniques like Lightning Palm, Thunderbolt, and Godspeed (which he diversifies into Speed of Lightning). Killua has picked up the art of intimidation from Illumi, easily terrifying his opponents into submission with a single glance.

6 Gon Freecss

Gon is the protagonist of Hunter X Hunter and possesses powers befitting his shonen status. He applies his singular Nen ability to all his battles, modifying Jajanken into Rock, Paper, or Scissors, depending on the situation.

Gon is presently powerless because he sacrifices his future to kill Neferpitou, executing an unbreakable contract with himself that is only be dispelled by Nanika's Wish Granting. He might return one day, assuming the manga comes out of hiatus.

5 Cheadle Yorkshire

Cheadle Yorkshire is the current Hunter Association Chairman, suggesting that her powers are incredible. She is yet to display a single hint of Nen; however, it has been stated that Cheadle and Netero used to spar with each other, which is enough evidence to place her above most of her colleagues.

In addition, Tiger asserts that Cheadle's talents far exceed those of Knov and Morel, who are great fighters in their own right. She numbers among the few Triple-Star Hunters in the Association as well.

4 Hisoka Morow

Hisoka fluctuates between anti-hero and villain, making his intentions so comically cryptic that neither the Phantom Troupe nor the Hunter Association is able to parse them accurately. His Nen takes the form of an elastic substance he calls Bungee Gum, with which he is extremely proficient.

Hisoka exhibits a burning desire to fight people who he believes will provide him an entertaining match, although this sometimes backfires, like when he challenges Chrollo Lucilfer in Heaven's Arena. Nevertheless, Hisoka's targets need to sleep with one eye open all the time.

3 Ging Freecss

Ging Freecss shrouds himself in secrecy, so much so that his son doesn't even know anything about him, let alone other Hunters. Netero states that he is among the top five Nen masters alive, despite Ging revealing little about his quirky abilities.

He can perform Leorio Paradinight's Remote Punch after observing it once, implying that his Nen can somehow replicate another's techniques. Unfortunately, it's difficult to gauge the magnitude of his strength, since Ging hasn't been in any serious battle to date.

2 Biscuit Krueger

Biscuit Krueger's childish appearance undersells her power—her Nen is so advanced that her aura can be shaped into any form, at any time. She becomes Gon & Killua's teacher during the Greed Island arc, helping them shed their restraints and evolve several times over the course of a few days.

Biscuit disguises her musculature for ambiguous reasons, but it's extraordinarily difficult to take her down in her giant form. Further, her seniority means that she probably has a number of other accomplishments under her belt.

1 Isaac Netero

Netero offhandedly mentions that he hasn't been the world's most powerful Nen user for a while now, but this could be due to his humility. Besides, he's the only Hunter in existence capable of damaging Meruem's body, however slightly, even if he ultimately fails to kill the Chimera Ant King.

In fact, Netero's Nen aura makes him nigh-invincible—he likely wouldn't need to manifest his 100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva in a battle against regular humans, Hunters or otherwise.

NEXT: 5 Hunter x Hunter Villains ATLA's Aang Could Defeat (& 5 He’d Lose To)

Next Star Wars: 10 Animated Episodes Better Than The Movies