The MCU has introduced audiences to a wide range of different characters since its conception in 2008, some of whom are clearly much smarter than others. And intelligence is one of the most important traits for any superhero or special agent, so the race to be Marvel's smartest character is a surprisingly close one.
To make this decision a little easier, Ranker has put together an extensive list of the MCU's most intelligent characters, as voted for by Marvel fans themselves. The results may be somewhat surprising, but they represent an accurate selection of the smartest scientists and heroes that the Marvel universe has to offer.
Note: Ranker lists are live and continue to accrue votes, so some rankings may have changed after this publishing.
Professor Erik Selvig
Although he isn't the most present character in the MCU, Professor Selvig has proven throughout the Thor series that he's one of the human race's smartest and most intelligent assets. He has a great knowledge of cosmic science and astrophysics, which has made him a huge help to both S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers.
Although he hasn't physically appeared in the MCU since Age Of Ultron, there's nothing to say that Selvig couldn't return at some point in the future. The Avengers are mostly disbanded now, but he could definitely act as a kind of mentor for the new wave of heroes that the MCU is clearly setting up.
Rocket Raccoon
Rocket Racoon might be better understood as one of the MCU's funnier characters, but he also has a great level of intelligence when it comes to science and mechanics. Throughout the Guardians of the Galaxy films, he's proven several times that he knows how to scientifically engineer all sorts of complicated machinery.
Rocket's personal history hasn't been explored that thoroughly in the MCU yet, but it's clear that he has much higher intelligence than a lot of other lifeforms as a result of the cybernetic enhancements that he was given when he was young. After all, most raccoons don't go around saving the universe.
Loki
Ever since he was introduced as the underappreciated younger brother of Thor in the MCU's first phase, Loki has always been one of the franchise's most interesting characters. He's clearly very intelligent, even if he doesn't always make the most sensible decisions.
As despicable as a lot of his actions have been, there's no denying that he's an incredibly smart warrior. He did manage to invade and conquer most of New York City, falling only at the hands of Earth's strongest defenders. Since then, he's been on a journey of self-discovery and improvement - but his cunning intelligence still often gets in the way of his morality.
Peter Parker
Although he's only a teenager, Peter Parker has already proven that he's one of the MCU's smartest characters. Not only did he manage to hand-craft his own Spider-Man suit and web fluid, but he also possesses plenty of scientific knowledge that makes him stand out from his peers.
Parker is admittedly presented as much more intelligent in the comics than he has been so far in the MCU, but those smarts are likely going to be explored further in the character's future - either in his own solo movies or as part of the new Avengers roster.
Vision
Of all the characters on this list, Vision might just be the one who possesses the rawest intelligence. He was crafted from a combination of Tony Stark's technology and granted the artificial intelligence of Stark's previous robot JARVIS, so there's plenty of processing power in that mind that makes him very difficult to outmatch.
Although Vision's relationship with Wanda in the MCU has taken up much of the character's time in the past few years, he played a huge role in the Avenger's defeat of Ultron in Age of Ultron - proving just how smart and intelligent he is capable of being.
Shuri
Many comic fans will say that Shuri is one of the smartest individuals in the Marvel universe, even though audiences haven't really been given many opportunities to see that in action in the MCU yet. She's undoubtedly one of Wakanda's most intelligent fighters, but the true heights of her smarts go much further than what we've seen.
Hopefully, Shuri will get more chances to express her intelligence in the upcoming Black Panther Sequel, where she's expected to take a much more prominent role in the absence of Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa. Her character is one that's full of potential, so it's likely that audiences will be seeing much more of her in the future.
Doctor Strange
Doctor Strange has recently demonstrated the heights of his intelligence in Multiverse of Madness, and it's clear that he's not only one of Earth's strongest fighters, but also one of its most impressive minds. His knowledge of the Mystic Arts sets him far apart from many of the MCU's other heroes, although his arrogance and confidence can often get in the way.
Multiverse of Madness also introduced a variant of Stephen Strange who was involved with the Illuminati - an organization that comic fans will know consists of Earth's most intelligent heroes and smartest minds. Perhaps this is coming in the future for Earth-616's version of Strange.
Hank Pym
Hank Pym hasn't really had much presence outside of the Ant-Man movies so far, but even from those two films, it's clear that his knowledge of science and physics is practically unrivaled. It's thanks to Hank Pym's research of the Quantum Realm that the Avengers were able to travel back in time and save the universe in Avengers: Endgame.
The Ant-Man suit itself is one of the most impressive technical feats that we've seen in the MCU so far, so it's incredibly impressive to think that Pym manufactured that technology by himself. He's clearly one of Earth's most talented scientists.
Bruce Banner
Ever since Earth's Mightiest Heroes came together for the first time in The Avengers, it was clear that Bruce Banner's level of technical intelligence was completely unmatched. He was practically in charge of the team's research on the Tesseract, which audiences now know to have been a cosmic Infinity Stone.
Even since The Avengers, Bruce Banner has been a huge technical help for the team at almost every turn. He's even managed to create a seemingly successful symbiosis between himself and The Hulk so that the two can work in harmony - with Bruce's brains and Hulk's strength.
Tony Stark
Almost every time he appears, Tony Stark is the smartest person in the room. His knowledge of science, mechanics, and engineering is completely unmatched - who else in the MCU would be capable of creating an entire army of Iron Man suits to use at their disposal?
Even without the superhero side of his life, Stark's intelligence has been a huge asset in his development of Stark Industries and his weapons manufacturing in the early days of the MCU. He's both an incredibly smart businessman and a super-intelligent fighter, which makes him one of Marvel's most compelling heroes.