In the wizarding world, there exists a wide array of spells, curses, and charms. Magic can be used for all kinds of tasks, including everyday ones like cleaning or unlocking doors, or grand things like transforming the way something looks. There are many ways to be good at magic, but one of the most on display in the Harry Potter series is using magic in fights or duels.
There are many of these head-to-head battles throughout the seven books and eight movies, and some of the characters stand out as being exemplary duelists. For some, like Neville, their skill comes from practice and training while for others, like Harry, a lot of talent comes down to skill and luck.
Neville Longbottom
When fans were first introduced to Neville, they might never have imagined he'd be one of the most badass characters in the series. But, he grows out of his awkward adolescence and becomes a leader and talented wizard.
While fans don’t see him in many dueling situations, his final battle sequence, where he cuts off Nagini's head, shows that he’s able to hold his own in all kinds of fighting situations. However, in the end, he chooses to becomes a professor, which likely involves much less battling.
Hermione Granger
Hermione is clearly one of the smartest and most skilled magic users in the series, and she’s still only 17 when the series ends. However, while she definitely can hold her own in a duel, she isn’t as experienced or as natural at fighting as some of the other characters on this list.
Hermione does a bit better when she can plan things ahead of time, but she can also react quickly if she needs to. She is a great witch, but she doesn't have as much experience or natural affinity for battling as some others do.
Molly Weasley
Molly Weasley is a character that was easy to underestimate and assume wasn’t able to fight very well, but these were very wrong assumptions based on stereotypes.
Molly showed just how strong she was and how great at dueling she could be during the Battle of Hogwarts when she went up against Bellatrix Lestrange. It was clear that her protectiveness over her family, combined with her skill with magic, made her formidable.
Mad-Eye Moody
Mad-Eye Moody is an Auror, so he’s going to have more experience dealing with dark wizards and witches than most characters. Mad-Eye has years of experience, and he’s a rather terrifying presence with his scarred and grizzled appearance. He’s not someone you would want to meet face to face.
The only downside to Mad-Eye Moody as a fighter is that he is extremely paranoid. While this does serve him well at times, he can overreact or not think things through very much.
Kingsley Shacklebolt
Just like Mad-Eye, Kingsley Shacklebolt is an experienced Auror, and he later becomes Minister of Magic. Kingsley is a secondary character that isn’t shown all that often, but he is very powerful during the battle at the Ministry of Magic in The Order of the Phoenix.
He also is someone who is rather calm and collected, so he has the ability to act strategically in battle situations.
Bellatrix Lestrange
Bellatrix Lestrange is one of the scariest characters in the series, and while she might be evil, she is rather good at dueling. She doesn't care at all about hurting people, and her lack of morals means she will always go for the throat in a duel.
She’s even able to beat Sirius Black, another person who is known to be good and experienced at magic. She can be rather erratic, but sometimes this serves her well when fighting.
Minerva McGonagall
Professor McGonagall is a character who often is underrated because she’s rather serious and collected, and she isn’t as flashy as some of the others on this list. However, she’s an extremely talented and powerful witch. She has years of experience, and she’s also an expert in one of the most difficult branches of magic.
But, while we only see her duel in a couple of instances, she shows her skills right away. She is only bested when she’s hit by four stunning spells in The Order of the Phoenix. She also moves extremely quickly against the Carrows in a way that amazes Harry in Deathly Hallows.
Harry Potter
While in some ways, it doesn’t make a lot of logical sense for Harry to be so good at dueling given he’s so young, he definitely is shown to be one of the best fighters.
A lot of his success in duels does come from luck, but it also comes from intuition and knowing how to act and act quickly. But, despite this, he is a great wizard when it comes to Defense Against the Dark Arts, so it’s not all luck or intuition. He likely becomes even better as he grows up and becomes an Auror.
Voldemort
Voldemort is clearly one of the most powerful characters in the series, and while he might use magic for dark purposes, he is one of the best magic users of them all.
In a duel, he can basically kill anyone except for Dumbledore and Harry, and with Harry, it’s mostly because of deep magic outside of either of their control. Voldemort is someone that can rarely be defeated in a duel, so there’s only one character better than him at fighting.
Albus Dumbledore
Voldemort and Dumbledore have similar levels of power and magical ability, but Dumbledore does slightly beat Voldemort out. He has a deeper understanding of magic, and it’s true that he’s the only person that Voldemort fears.
The duel between these two characters in the Ministry of Magic atrium is one of the most intense in the entire series, and it’s clear they have a command of magic that hardly anyone else does.