Marvel fans may think of Thor or the Hulk when they consider the strength of the Avengers. Captain America is strong but not at the top of the list.
Although the Captain is not comparable to the mightiest Marvel characters, he does have incredible strength. He is known for lifting cars and helicopters and even Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir.
How strong is Captain America, with and without Mjolnir? On his own, Captain America is stronger than any human. With Mjolnir, he enhances his strength, but not permanently.
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How Strong Is Captain America?
Steve Rogers stands at 6 ft. 2 in., weighs about 240 lb., and can lift around 800 lb. As a Marvel comics character, Rogers was meant to be about as strong as any human could be.
Captain America does have agility, strength, and endurance that are beyond human levels. Yet, unlike the Hulk or Thor, Rogers does not reach the pinnacle of Avenger strength.
What he does have is enhanced strength, especially in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With his Super Soldier Serum, he is strong enough to lift 800 lb with ease and bench press over 1,000 lb.
The MCU wiki page describes his strength as being in the Superhuman Class. This means that Steve Rogers rises above human strength and can throw a man through a wall, as he did in Captain America: The First Avenger.
Captain America can also move a truck by kicking it. This truck weighed between 3,000 and 3,500 lb, so Rogers needed about a 1-ton kick to move it.
Marvel fans have summed it up well by saying that Captain America is “very formidable” in strength. He does not approach the level of Thor, but Rogers can push a bulldozer that weighs in at 50 tons across a field.
Other Marvel characters are as strong as the Captain, such as Black Panther and Iron Man with his armor. So, Steve Rogers has companions above and at his level.
Yet, Captain America is stronger than an average human, which is still impressive.
How Much Stronger is Captain America Than a Human?
With the above examples, we get an indication that Captain America is stronger than a human. How much stronger?
Steve Rogers has been described as reaching the top of human biological and evolutionary potential. Yet, such descriptions still leave us with a vague qualitative answer.
To get a quantitative answer, we could estimate that Captain America is about 10 times as strong as a human. This estimate is based on calculating the level of strength Rogers needed to stop a helicopter in Captain America: Civil War.
Captain America’s full lifting limit is also around 1,200 lb, which makes him stronger than the top bodybuilders on Earth.
Back in his prime, Arnold Schwarzenegger benched almost 450 lb and squatted about 475 lbs. By this measure, Captain America is about 3 times as strong as this famous bodybuilder-actor-politician.
More recently, bodybuilder Larry Wheels has benched between 600 and 700 lb, and Jimmy Colb holds the world record for bench press at 1,320 lb. This last bodybuilder reaches the Captain’s level of strength.
These are the extreme ends of human strength, though. What about an average human?
The average bench press for an untrained man (who weighs 200 lb) is about 135 lbs. So, Captain America catapults ahead of the average human by about 9 times.
This brings us back to the helicopter example, with the Captain being about 9 to 10 times stronger than the average human male.
How Strong is Captain America with Mjolnir?
Once Captain America uses Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir, his strength goes up as well. Among the Avengers, Mjolnir originally could only be lifted by Thor. Yet, Steve Rogers manages to lift it.
In the comics, Captain America lifts the hammer in Thor #390. During a battle, Steve Rogers lifts Mjolnir and throws it to Thor, who uses it to defeat their enemies.
In the movie Avengers: Endgame, Steve Rogers lifts and uses Mjolnir to fight Thanos once Thor has been defeated. Captain America thus steps in and takes over for Thor.
By carrying on the battle with Mjolnir, Captain America may have become stronger than Thor. In Endgame, Roger even conjures up the thunderous power of Thor (briefly).
The Captain has proven himself worthy to wield the hammer. Yet, his godlike strength seems temporary. Mjolnir is meant as a way for Thor to channel his power, not the source of it.
So, Captain America’s strength reaches Thor-like levels for a while and then he drops back down to his normal superhuman abilities.
However, some commentators contend that Captain America’s wielding of Mjolnir makes him the strongest Avenger. This viewpoint stresses how Steve Rogers combines Asgardian and peak human strength and demonstrates fighting expertise when using the famed hammer.
In the latest Thor movie, Love and Thunder, Jane Foster also uses Mjolnir. Her ability to do so could bring another contender for the most powerful Avenger.
Then again, lifting and using Mjolnir could come down more to worthiness and not strength. If this is the case, Captain America and Foster do not achieve Thor-level strength.
The Strength of Captain America
Captain America has superhuman strength and is thus stronger than any human, even bodybuilders.
With Mjolnir, Steve Rogers increases his strength, but only temporarily. He achieves moments of god-like strength. Yet, he returns to his base level afterward, which is still quite strong.
Todd Wahlstrom is a creative and analytical freelance writer and life-long Star Wars fan who has expanded into writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He has written about recent shows such as The Mandalorian and Andor and classic topics like Darth Vader, the Jedi, and Boba Fett. His recent articles include the MCU’s Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor. Todd is the author of a non-fiction book, holds a Ph.D. in history, and enjoys hiking, running, and reading about science.