The ten most powerful rockets ever flown, ranked by total sea-level thrust at liftoff.
Quick answer: 1. SpaceX Super Heavy / Starship, 2. N1, 3. Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1, 4. Energia, 5. Saturn V, 6. Space Shuttle, 7. Falcon Heavy, 8. Ariane 5 ECA, 9. Long March 5, 10. Delta IV Heavy.
Raw liftoff thrust is the most visceral way to measure a rocket: the combined push of every first-stage engine firing at once, straining against gravity to lift a fully fueled stack off the pad. It is the number that decides how much a rocket can throw toward orbit and beyond, and it separates the true heavy lifters from everything else. This list ranks the ten most powerful rockets that have actually flown, from SpaceX's Super Heavy to ULA's Delta IV Heavy. It spans six decades of spaceflight and mixes flying hardware with retired legends, because thrust is thrust whether the vehicle is still on the manifest or in a museum.
The most powerful rocket ever flown, by a wide margin. Its current Block 3 booster clusters 33 Raptor 3 engines for 80.8 MN of liftoff thrust, nearly double the runner-up.
The Soviet Moon rocket's first stage packed 30 NK-15 engines for 45.4 MN, the most powerful single stage ever flown. All four launches failed before staging and it never reached orbit.
NASA's Artemis rocket pairs two five-segment solid boosters with four RS-25 core engines for 39.1 MN at liftoff. It first flew on the uncrewed Artemis I in November 2022.
The Soviet super-heavy launcher combined four RD-170 strap-on boosters with four RD-0120 core engines for 35.8 MN. It flew just twice, carrying Polyus in 1987 and the Buran shuttle in 1988, before cancellation.
The Apollo Moon rocket's five F-1 engines produced about 33 MN at sea level. It remains the only rocket to have carried humans beyond low Earth orbit.
Two solid rocket boosters plus three RS-25 main engines gave the Shuttle stack about 30.16 MN at liftoff. It flew 135 missions between 1981 and 2011.
SpaceX's three-core rocket fires 27 Merlin 1D engines for 22.82 MN at liftoff. From its 2018 debut until Starship, it was the most powerful operational rocket in the world.
Europe's workhorse heavy-lifter combined two solid boosters with a Vulcain 2 core engine for about 15.12 MN. It retired in 2023 after more than 100 flights.
China's largest operational rocket uses two YF-77 core engines plus four kerolox strap-on boosters for about 10.6 MN at liftoff. It first flew in November 2016.
ULA's three-core rocket produced about 9.42 MN from three RS-68A hydrolox engines. It flew from 2004 to 2024, mostly carrying U.S. national-security payloads.
| # | Name | firstFlight | engines | payloadToLEO |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SpaceX Super Heavy / Starship | 2023 | 33 x Raptor 3 (methalox) | 100+ t |
| 2 | N1 | 1969 | 30 x NK-15 (kerolox) | 95 t |
| 3 | Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1 | 2022 | 4 x RS-25 + 2 solid boosters | 95 t |
| 4 | Energia | 1987 | 4 x RD-170 + 4 x RD-0120 | 105 t |
| 5 | Saturn V | 1967 | 5 x F-1 (kerolox) | 140 t |
| 6 | Space Shuttle | 1981 | 3 x RS-25 + 2 solid boosters | 27 t |
| 7 | Falcon Heavy | 2018 | 27 x Merlin 1D (kerolox) | 63.8 t |
| 8 | Ariane 5 ECA | 2002 | 1 x Vulcain 2 + 2 solid boosters | 21 t |
| 9 | Long March 5 | 2016 | 2 x YF-77 + 8 x YF-100 (on boosters) | 25 t |
| 10 | Delta IV Heavy | 2004 | 3 x RS-68A (hydrolox) | 28.4 t |
Rockets are ranked by total sea-level thrust at liftoff of the fully-stacked launch vehicle, combining all first-stage and strap-on booster engines that fire at ignition. Inclusion is limited to vehicles that have flown at least once (reaching orbit is not required, so the N1, which failed on all four launches, still qualifies). Figures are standard published specifications from manufacturer and agency sources; actual measured in-flight thrust varies slightly. Where a rocket has multiple flown versions, the current flying configuration is used and prior versions are noted in the item. Rank 1 is the highest liftoff thrust. Thrust is stated in meganewtons (MN); 1 MN is roughly 225,000 pounds-force.
SpaceX's Super Heavy is the most powerful rocket ever flown. Its current Block 3 booster produces 80.8 MN (about 18.2 million pounds-force) of thrust at liftoff from 33 Raptor 3 engines, nearly double the Soviet N1 that ranks second.
Super Heavy is well over twice as powerful. Its current booster produces 80.8 MN at liftoff versus about 33 MN for the Saturn V's five F-1 engines. The Saturn V, however, remains the only rocket to have sent humans beyond low Earth orbit.
The list ranks rockets that have flown at least once, not just those that succeeded. The N1's first stage of 30 NK-15 engines produced 45.4 MN, the most powerful single stage ever flown, even though all four launches failed before stage separation.
It is the combined sea-level thrust of every first-stage and strap-on booster engine firing at the moment of launch, for the fully-stacked vehicle. It determines how much mass a rocket can push off the pad and toward orbit, and it is measured here in meganewtons (MN).