GokuvsSuperman

This is THE debate. The internet's Infinity War. And there's genuinely no consensus because the answer depends entirely on which version of each character you're using. Post-Crisis Superman? Pre-Crisis? Cosmic Armor? Similarly, are we talking Saiyan Saga Goku or Ultra Instinct Mastered Goku?

At their current peak canon forms, Goku in Mastered Ultra Instinct has fought beings that threaten the entire multiverse. He's traded blows with Beerus (whose clash with Goku nearly destroyed Universe 7), fought Jiren (who transcends time), and has continued to scale beyond comprehension. The Saiyan biology means Goku literally gets stronger after every near-death experience, and Ultra Instinct gives him autonomous dodge that reacts faster than thought.

Superman, meanwhile, has bench-pressed the weight of the Earth for five straight days, held a black hole in his hands, and survived being at the center of a supernova. His heat vision operates at temperatures hotter than the sun's core, and his speed is comparable to the Flash when he's serious.

The critical difference is that Goku has no known ceiling. Dragon Ball's power scaling is exponential and infinite by design — every arc introduces threats that dwarf the previous ones by orders of magnitude. Superman is incredibly powerful but tends to operate at a more defined tier.