Summary

• With mulltiple versions of The Flash in the past, present, and future, naming the fastest of them all isn't easy.
• There are olden Age heroes, current Flashes, and future successors and grandchildren all wielding the Speed Force in their own ways.
• The Allen family line may be Flash's greatest legacy, but Wally West still embodies the true limits of the mysterious Speed Force.

In the world of superheroes, The Flash is the undisputed Fastest Man Alive. But there is more than one 'scarlet speedster' running around the DC Universe. With multiple allies from the past and future all expanding the Flash Family over the years, who is truly the fastest of the crew?

It's a hard thing to rank every DC speedster's strength with the mystical Speed Force, but by looking at their age, experience, training and power origins, it's possible to create a rough ranking of the speedsters. Read on to discover the fastest heroes in DC's iconic Flash Family.

15 Jai West (AKA Surge)

The biological son of Wally West and Linda Park-West

As the son of Wally West’s Flash, one may expect Jay to be the spitting image of his father, powers-wise. However, Jai and his twin sister Irey shared a connection to the Speed Force and unfortunately, he was forced to give up his powers as the split was causing them both pain.

Jai was powerless for years, but a trip to Gemworld resulted in Wally passing along his new ‘Surge’ ability to Jai, giving him a boost in his natural strength. He might be the slowest in the Flash Family, but his new abilities finally let him find a place in it.

14 Irey West (AKA Thunderheart)

The biological daughter of Wally West and Linda Park-West

Irey got to hang onto the Speed Force connection while Jai was forced to give it up, and as a result she’s gotten pretty adept at using her powers. Irey loves her abilities and is ready to dive headfirst into any situation where she can use them.

However, she’s still very young, inexperienced and tends to get in over her head. While Irey is destined to take on the Flash mantle for herself one day, she has a lot to learn about the ins and outs of her powers (not to mention learning how to think ahead).

13 Max Mercury (AKA "The Zen Guru of Speed")

A 19th Century speedster, leaping through time to save the day across centuries

When it comes to learning the ropes about speed, there’s no better super-speed teacher than Max Mercury. Max was given powers via a magical enchantment rather than a direct connection to the Speed Force. However, Max gained a mastery of his skills over the years and has even taken several other speedsters under his wing to help them reach even greater heights than him.

Wally West and Bart Allen would never have hit the speeds they’ve achieved without Max Mercury guiding them and helping them understand the true nature of their powers. He may not be the fastest, but his place in the family is invaluable.

12 Don Allen (AKA Tornado Twin)

The biological son of Barry Allen

The somewhat strange decision for Barry and Iris Allen to travel a millennia into the future to have children is rarely revisited in modern comics, but the legacy remains in the form of their children. Known alongside his sister as the 'Tornado Twins,' Barry Allen's son Don was granted the powers any Flash fan would expect.

Don, brother to Dawn, would actually take their heroic inspirations from Wally West, when a trip through time brough them face-to-face with their fatther's Flash successor. While Don's speed powers pale compared to his father's, it's his marriage to Meloni Thawne that cements his place in history, along with their son (and future Flash) Bart Allen.

11 Dawn Allen (AKA Tornado Twin)

The biological daughter of Barry Allen

The other half of the iconic and day-saving Tornado Twins, Dawn Allen was also blessed with a portion of her father's connection to the Speed Force. While the Twins' powers were unleashed for evil as part of an alternate reality gauntlet Barry faced in his Year One storyline, Dawn and Don would both eventually use their powers, like their father, in an effort to save others at the cost of their own lives.

Keeping the Allen family tradition alive, Dawn would marry the noble Jeven Ognats in the 30th Century, giving birth to one daughter, named Jenni. Also blessed with a genetic connection to the Speed Force thanks to her grandfather Barry, Jenni would take the name 'XS' as a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes.

10 Jonathan Chambers (AKA Johnny Quick)

The Golden Age speedster who unlocked the Speed Force (with a formula)

The mythology and lore of DC speedsters walks the line between science fiction and mysticism, and the origins of 'Johnny Quick' are no exception. Unlike other iconic members of the Flash Family, Johnny's connection with the Speed Force came not from lightning, but from a mathematical 'speed formula': "3X2(9YZ)4A".

It was that formula, discovered on a Pharaoh's tomb, which Jonathan Chambers recites to imbue his body with super-speed. When the tales of Johnny Quick were later incorporated into the DC Mulltiverse alongside many other Golden Age heroes, the so-called 'speed formula' was understood to be an alternate means of accessing the Speed Force powering all other DC speedsters.

9 Wallace West (AKA Kid Flash)

The biological son of Daniel West, the third Reverse-Flash, and nephew to Iris West

It took the new Kid Flash a bit of time to develop his own speed powers. But a future version of Wallace West sent his younger self powers back through time, giving the young man the powerful abilities of a highly-advanced speedster. Wallace was also struck by a bolt of lightning during a Speed Force storm, making his powers even greater than they were before.

Though he’s still learning how to properly hone his abilities, he’s able to bring the most out of his speed thanks to studies. If his future self is any indication, Wallace could one day become one of the fastest Flashes ever.

Despite confusion when first introduced, DC Rebirth would confirm Wallace West is the son of Iris West's brother Daniel, while the original Wally is the son of her brother Rudy. Canonically, both 'Wally Wests' are cousins.

8 Avery Ho (AKA The Flash of China)

Avery Ho may be one of the greener Flashes, but since gaining powers via the Speed Force storm in Central City, the Flash of China has focused solely on becoming faster. Not only did she receive a crash course from Barry Allen, but she had access to the best training technology the Ministry of Self-Reliance could get the Justice League of China.

Avery took her studies seriously and even found herself outpacing Super-Man before long. And considering Kenan Kong’s powers are on par with Clark, there’s little doubt that Avery is one of the closest to Barry in terms of power.

7 Dr. Meena Dhawan (AKA Fast Track)

The STAR Labs scientist who was struck by Speed Force lightning

For The Flash, the arrival of DC's Rebirth initiative meant a Speed Force storm hitting Central City, granting random civilians the same Speed Force connection as the existing Flash Family. It was the brilliant Dr. Meena Dhawan of STAR Labs who rose to the occasion, inviting all new speedsters to gather for proper training and study.

Training a new generation of Flashes is no small feat, but thankfully Meena had help, both from her own knowledge and Speed Force abilities, but those of her boyfriend, Barry Allen. Eventually taking the name 'Fast Track' and a black-and-yellow superhero suit of her own, the romance wasn't meant to be. While briefly becoming a new form of villainous 'Negative Flash,' brainwashing would vindicate Meena, allowing her to save the day more than once.

6 Jay Garrick (AKA The Flash)

The first Golden Age speedster to become The Flash

One can’t discuss speedsters without talking about the man who started it all. The Golden Age Flash was the first person to develop a connection to the Speed Force in the DC Universe, and he’s had the most time to practice with it.

He pioneered some of the greatest tricks superspeed allows, such as vibrating his molecules to phase through walls or obscure his identity. He might not be a spring chicken anymore, but few people possess both as much knowledge and wisdom as Jay Garrick does, making him one of the best authorities when it comes to the Speed Force.

5 Judy Garrick (AKA The Boom)

The biological daughter of Jay Garrick and Joan Williams

In a major change to DC canon, the long-held assumption that Jay Garrick and his wife Joan had never had any biological children was corrected witth Stargirl: The Lost Children. Making a handful of tweaks to comic history, the story revealed that Jay and Joan Garrick had a daughter, before a villain removed her from existence. Thankfully, the story also saw Judy Garrick, better known as The Boom, restored to her rightful place.

With her history finally restored, fans now know that Judy assisted her father as the first Flash sidekick. Traveling back in time from her own era (1963) to assist her dad in his early '40s adventures, Judy exhibited the same powers and heroic virtue. The pair's story is finally allowed to continue in the pages of DC's new Jay Garrick: The Flash series, with Judy's true potential still yet to be explored in the years to come.

4 Jesse Chambers (AKA Jesse Quick)

The biological daughter of Golden Age superheroes Johnny Quick and Liberty Belle

Jesse Quick is another interesting member of the Flash Family in that her connection to the Speed Force comes from a Speed Formula, pioneered by her father, the speedster hero Johnny Quick. Not only does Jesse have access to the Speed Force, she also has super strength passed down from her mother.

While Jesse has properly come into her powers and knows how to use them, her lack of an organic connection holds her back from being as fast as those with direct connection. That said, She’s undoubtedly one of the fastest people who are able to tap into the Speed Force.

When Wally West uttered the speed formula aloud in Dark Nights: Death Metal - Speed Metal #1 (2020), the combination of powers allowed him to stop time completely, albeit for "a few minutes."

3 Bart Allen (AKA Impulse, The Flash)

The biological grandson of Barry Allen and Iris West

Hailing from the future, Barry Allen’s grandson Impulse made quick work of showing how fast he really was when he came back to the modern day. Training under Max Mercury and pushing himself to his limits, Bart Allen raised the bar on the speeds a young hero could achieve, moreso when he adopted the Kid Flash identity.

Upon his return from being lost in the Speed Force, Barry was amazed by Bart’s growth and admitted that the young hero had the potential to one day become the fastest Flash there ever was.

2 Barry Allen (AKA The Flash)

This Flash knows the Speed Force like the back of his hand. Ever since Barry Allen was hit by a bolt of lightning, Barry has studied his powers and applied every scientific principle he could to making the most out of them.

He was the first Flash to discover he could travel to other universes by accelerating his molecules. Not to mention, he pushed his body to a breaking point during Crisis on Infinite Earths in order to destroy the Anti-Monitors antimatter canons. Barry’s achievements have more than earned him one of the top spots in the Flash Family.

1 Wally West (AKA The Flash)

Nobody in the Flash Family has trained harder or longer at refining their speed as much as Wally West. In an attempt to live up to the legacy left behind by Barry, Wally threw himself into working on his powers, and boy did they pay off.

With his determination to become a better version of The Flash, he found new attacks like the Infinite Mass Punch and performed feats like evacuating a half a million people in a fraction of a second. Wally did everything he could to make sure he’d honor the Flash legacy, and by the things he’s done, there's no question he has.