Who is the strongest Upper Moon in Demon Slayer? Kokushibo, the demon who holds the top spot as Upper Moon One, and the one it took four Demon Slayers to bring down. Is he stronger than Muzan? No: the Upper Moons are second only to Muzan. If you have just watched Infinity Castle and want the full order, or you are weighing Akaza against Doma, this is the ranking, with the reason behind every placement. Spoiler warning: this covers deaths and fights from the manga and the Infinity Castle arc.
The short version
- Kokushibo is the strongest. He is Upper Moon One, and the story needs four fighters to defeat him.
- Doma and Akaza follow. Doma takes second place, Akaza third, and Akaza ends his own fight by destroying his own body.
- None of them tops Muzan. The Twelve Kizuki are second only to Muzan, so even Upper Moon One sits below him.
- The bottom is a debate. The numbers shift as demons die, so we rank by what each one did on the page.
- Where to see it: Infinity Castle Part 1 has three of these fights. Check your streaming service or cinema listings for the next films.
How we ranked them
The official numbering tells you the rank Muzan gave each demon, but a ranking by strength needs more than a number.
The Twelve Kizuki are led by Muzan and are second only to him, and after Rui's death Muzan kills the Lower Ranks and keeps only the Upper Ranks. So every demon here is a top-tier threat. To split them we asked three questions: who did they kill, how many fighters did it take to stop them, and did they lose to a trick or to brute force? This is our judgement from what the story shows, not an official power scale, so expect some arguments from fans, and that is half the fun.
1. Kokushibo: Upper Moon One
Kokushibo is Michikatsu Tsugikuni, the older twin brother of Yoriichi, who became a demon out of envy so he could perfect his swordsmanship without fear of death.
His Moon Breathing is derived from Yoriichi's Sun Breathing, which is a strange kind of compliment to the brother he could never match. Why does he top the list? Because Muichiro, Genya, Sanemi and Gyomei have to fight him together, and Muichiro and Genya die of their wounds soon after. No other Upper Moon takes four fighters at once.
2. Doma: Upper Moon Two
Doma is the Upper Moon with the darkest backstory.
He was born with rainbow eyes and pale-blonde hair, which led his parents to start a cult around him. After they died he led it and began eating his followers. In the series he kills Kanae Kocho, Shinobu's sister, and then kills Shinobu herself. Why is he this high? Because it takes a plan, not a clash: Shinobu poisons herself and lets him consume her, and only then can Kanao and Inosuke kill him. A demon who needs that much setup to beat is dangerous.
3. Akaza: Upper Moon Three
Akaza is the demon who killed Kyojuro Rengoku in the Mugen Train arc, and that single result is why fans rate him so highly.
His human name is Hakuji. He was adopted by the martial artist Keizo and loved Keizo's daughter, Koyuki, before a rival dojo poisoned his family and Muzan made him a demon. In Infinity Castle he fights Tanjiro and Giyu, and the cut to his neck does not end it. Why third and not higher? Because the fight ends when he regains his human memories and destroys his own body, so he is stopped by his own past as much as by the Slayers.
4. Hantengu: Upper Moon Four
Hantengu is a coward who turns fear into a weapon.
He divides himself into clones that stand for emotions: anger, pleasure, sadness, joy, hatred and resentment. Why is he in the middle of the pack? Because he is a fear-driven fighter who dies to Tanjiro, with no feat on the level of the three above him. Tanjiro kills him in the Swordsmith Village attack, though Mitsuri is also pivotal, and he lives long enough to tell Muzan that Nezuko is immune to sunlight, which changes the whole war.
5. Gyokko: Upper Moon Five
Gyokko is the unsettling artist, with eyes on his forehead and mouths where his eyes would be.
He builds grotesque living sculptures from the bodies of his victims, and he attacks the Swordsmith Village alongside Hantengu. Why fifth? Because Muichiro kills him one on one, which is a clean result that no other Upper Moon above him gets.
6. Gyutaro and Daki: Upper Moon Six
Gyutaro and Daki share the sixth rank, because Gyutaro raised Daki, and the two fight as one unit.
Daki, whose human name was Ume, wields an obi belt made of her flesh. Gyutaro uses poisonous blood and two flesh sickles. Both must be decapitated together to die, and they are beaten by two teams: Zenitsu and Inosuke kill Daki, and Tengen and Tanjiro kill Gyutaro. Why not higher? Because the pair is only dangerous as a pair.
7. Nakime: the replacement Upper Moon Four
Nakime is the odd one out, because her power is a place rather than a punch.
She takes over as Upper Moon Four after Hantengu falls and owns the Infinity Castle, playing a biwa to rearrange it. No Slayer defeats her: Muzan kills her after Yushiro restrains her, to stop her controlling the castle. We rank her seventh because we have no fight to measure her by, only the castle she controls.
8. Kaigaku: the replacement Upper Moon Six
Kaigaku takes the sixth spot after Daki and Gyutaro are gone, and he is the weakest of the group.
He uses Thunder Breathing, the same style as Zenitsu, and Zenitsu kills him with a self-taught seventh form. Why last? Because he falls to a single Slayer, and the fight is more of a payoff for Zenitsu than a threat to the Corps.
Is Upper Moon One stronger than Muzan?
No. The Twelve Kizuki are described as second only to Muzan, and Kokushibo is his most powerful subordinate, so the top Upper Moon still sits below the demon who made them.
Why does it matter for a ranking? Because Muzan is the ceiling. Every placement above is a comparison inside the group, and the whole group sits one step under him. Kokushibo is the closest, which is one more reason he is first.
The Upper Moons at a glance
| Rank (ours) | Demon | Official rank | Who finished them |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kokushibo | Upper Moon One | Muichiro, Genya, Sanemi and Gyomei |
| 2 | Doma | Upper Moon Two | Kanao and Inosuke, after Shinobu's poison |
| 3 | Akaza | Upper Moon Three | Himself, after fighting Tanjiro and Giyu |
| 4 | Hantengu | Upper Moon Four | Tanjiro |
| 5 | Gyokko | Upper Moon Five | Muichiro |
| 6 | Gyutaro and Daki | Upper Moon Six | Tengen and Tanjiro; Zenitsu and Inosuke |
| 7 | Nakime | Upper Moon Four (replacement) | Muzan |
| 8 | Kaigaku | Upper Moon Six (replacement) | Zenitsu |
Common questions
Who is the strongest Upper Moon in Demon Slayer?
Kokushibo. He is Upper Moon One, and it takes Muichiro, Genya, Sanemi and Gyomei together to defeat him.
Is Akaza stronger than Doma?
By official rank Doma is higher, at second, with Akaza third. Akaza's win over Rengoku is the reason many fans argue the other way.
Which Upper Moons are in Infinity Castle Part 1?
Part 1 shows Shinobu against Doma, Zenitsu against Kaigaku and Tanjiro and Giyu against Akaza, with Kokushibo and Nakime also appearing. It reached Australian cinemas on 11 September 2025 and is the first film of a trilogy.
Is Upper Rank One stronger than Muzan?
No. The Twelve Kizuki, Kokushibo included, are second only to Muzan. Kokushibo is Muzan's most powerful subordinate, not his equal.
Is Nezuko as strong as an Upper Moon?
The story does not put her on the Upper Moon scale. She has regeneration, superhuman strength and a Blood Demon Art called Exploding Blood, but her defining trait is her immunity to sunlight, which is why Muzan wants her. Treat her as a different kind of threat rather than a rank.
What to do next
If you remember one idea from this ranking, make it this: the number tells you the rank Muzan gave a demon, and the feat tells you how hard it was to beat them. Kokushibo's feat is four fighters, which is why he is first. Next, read our Hashira ranking to see the Slayers who faced them, or start from the beginning with the Demon Slayer watch order. Then pick your side from the Demon Slayer collection, Kokushibo's tee included. Every placement above comes from the Demon Slayer character list.
Featured image: © Koyoharu Gotouge / Shueisha, Aniplex, ufotable, via kimetsu.com.