Every Star Trek Show’s Flagship, Ranked Worst To Best

For almost 60 years, fans of Star Trek have followed the adventures of its iconic captains and crews, and that means they’ve also spent decades exploring the show’s famous spaceships. These vessels are more than just ways to travel; they’ve served as command centers, places where new life begins, and true homes for the characters. Some ships are built for war, others for discovering new worlds, and some are either cutting-edge experiments or dependable workhorses.

Every Star Trek series revolves around a heroic spaceship that viewers grow to cherish, much like any beloved character. This list isn’t about ranking the most powerful ships in Starfleet, but the ships that define the franchise itself. To be fair, we’ve judged them based on things like their technology, design, how they look, fighting ability, comfort, and significance to the show’s history. Here’s our ranking, from least to most impressive, of the ships that truly feel like home.

9) USS Cerritos (Lower Decks)

The USS Cerritos isn’t meant to stand out. As a California-class support vessel, it typically handles follow-up work after major events – things like repairs, cleanup, and second contact with planets. Within the show, it’s seen as a reliable but unglamorous workhorse, and its appearance reflects that – many fans jokingly compare its shape to a frisbee with handlebars due to its short, unusual design.

Even though the Cerritos isn’t the most impressive ship, it’s ideal for the Lower Decks series. The show focuses on the often-overlooked crew members who keep Starfleet running, but rarely get recognized. The Cerritos is full of hardworking, underappreciated officers and ensigns. While it might be considered the least important ship, it’s a fan favorite because it perfectly embodies the show’s spirit.

8) USS Protostar (Prodigy)

The USS Protostar is a truly unique and experimental starship created by Starfleet. Designed by Vice Admiral Kathryn Janeway, it utilizes a groundbreaking proto-warp drive powered by a contained protostar, allowing for incredibly high speeds – far beyond what traditional warp drive can achieve. This technology theoretically makes the Protostar one of the most advanced ships the Federation has ever built.

Despite being a cool idea and a clever storytelling tool, the Protostar isn’t a major ship in the Star Trek universe. It’s quite small, only holding around twenty people, and lacks the size, resources, and overall influence of more famous Starfleet vessels. While Prodigy successfully brought Star Trek to a new generation, the series itself and the Protostar haven’t had a large impact on the broader franchise, leaving it relatively low in importance.

7) USS Athena (Starfleet Academy)

I was immediately struck by the USS Athena when it appeared in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. It’s such a departure from what we usually see! The ship—an Academy-class vessel—has this really unique circular band around it, and the nacelles are flattened, giving it a completely different look. Honestly, it feels less like a typical starship and more like a campus that can actually move. What’s even cooler is that it connects directly to Starfleet Academy when it’s docked, acting as both a place for training and a real learning environment.

The Athena is a unique ship, but opinions are mixed. Some viewers appreciate its bold new direction, while others think it departs too much from the traditional look of Starfleet vessels. It’s also very new, so it hasn’t had time to truly connect with audiences. We haven’t seen how it will perform over longer story arcs, and it’s still unclear what role Starfleet Academy will play in the overall franchise. Despite this, the Athena shows a lot of promise.

6) USS Discovery (Discovery)

The USS Discovery is a groundbreaking ship thanks to its unique spore drive. This allows it to travel instantly to any location in the galaxy, and even to different dimensions, by tapping into a network of interconnected fungal pathways. Because of its incredible speed and range, the Discovery is arguably the most powerful ship Starfleet has ever had.

The show’s unique teleportation technology is proving to be a major point of contention among fans. Some believe it doesn’t align with the established scientific principles of Star Trek and feels more like something from a fantasy story. The ship’s design is also being widely discussed, and it’s been dramatically altered several times throughout the series. Discovery embodies the bold creativity of modern Star Trek, but it’s also sparked a lot of debate.

5) Enterprise NX-01 (Enterprise)

The NX-01, captained by Jonathan Archer, was the first starship to truly take humanity into deep space, reaching Warp 5. This Enterprise—a century before Captain Kirk’s famous ship—showed us Starfleet in its early days, as it was still figuring out how to deal with other civilizations. In the beginning, it didn’t even have shields, and depended on its basic hull for protection.

Although not the strongest ship in the series, the NX-01 is incredibly important to the overall story. Its weaknesses are actually a strength, making it feel authentic and fitting the realistic, ‘hard sci-fi’ style. The ship’s design was believable – it seemed like something humans could realistically build for their first journey between stars. Throughout its four seasons, the NX-01 was instrumental in the events that led to the creation of the Federation, particularly during conflicts with the Xindi and the Romulans.

4) USS Voyager (Voyager)

The story of the USS Voyager is one of incredible perseverance. After being stranded 70,000 light-years from Earth in the Delta Quadrant, the ship and its crew were on their own, with little hope of rescue. Over seven years, they battled dangerous aliens and struggled with limited supplies, all while trying to find their way back home.

The Voyager was a remarkably advanced ship for its time, boasting cutting-edge technology like bio-neural systems, adaptable warp engines, the ability to land on planets, and sophisticated sensors. However, its legendary status comes not just from its technology, but from the incredible challenges it overcame. Facing threats like the Borg and Species 8472, Voyager’s journey is considered one of the most gripping and emotionally powerful in the entire series.

3) USS Defiant (Deep Space Nine)

Known as “the tough little ship,” the USS Defiant was the Federation’s first dedicated warship. Designed quickly after the first encounter with the Borg, the Defiant-class was built for combat. To maximize firepower, designers removed almost all non-essential features, like family quarters and comfortable living spaces, and instead filled the ship with weapons – including powerful phasers, quantum torpedoes, and reinforced hull plating. The ship later gained a cloaking device thanks to a deal with the Romulans.

The Defiant was a relatively small ship, only 170 meters long, but it packed the firepower and technology of a much larger cruiser. Throughout the Dominion War, it consistently proved its capabilities, surviving numerous large-scale battles under the command of Captain Sisko. Its small size made it hard to hit, and powerful engines allowed it to move faster than most enemy ships, like those used by the Jem’Hadar. Ultimately, the Defiant ranks among the top three ships due to its popularity with fans and its role in bringing a more realistic, military-focused style to Star Trek.

2) USS Enterprise-D (The Next Generation)

For many fans, the Galaxy-class Enterprise-D represents Starfleet at its strongest, and The Next Generation embodies the best of Star Trek. This massive, elegant ship, stretching 642 meters long, is essentially a self-sufficient city in space. Powered by a matter-antimatter core, it can travel at Warp 9.6 for years without needing to refuel. With amenities like families, schools, gardens, and the lounge known as Ten Forward, the Enterprise-D felt like a true home and captured Gene Roddenberry’s optimistic vision for the future of humankind.

For seven seasons and likely more, the Enterprise-D, captained by Picard, was the heart of the Star Trek universe. It was designed with a hopeful vision of exploration and peaceful relations, featuring innovative technologies like a separating saucer section and holodecks. However, it was also powerfully defended with multiple layers of shields, self-repairing systems, and a very strong hull. Despite its reputation as a peaceful ship, the Enterprise-D was surprisingly capable in combat. While some critics call it too comfortable or bland, it remains the most beloved and recognizable ship in the Star Trek fleet for millions of fans.

1) USS Enterprise (NCC-1701, The Original Series)

The original starship Enterprise is arguably the most iconic ship in science fiction history. Designed by Matt Jefferies using actual aerospace ideas, its unique three-part layout – the saucer-shaped section, the main hull, and the two warp nacelles – became the standard for all Starfleet vessels. Instantly famous worldwide and across generations, the Enterprise, designated NCC-1701, was built for extended deep-space missions. Measuring over 288 meters long and equipped with an early, powerful warp drive, it could travel at incredible speeds – Warp 8 – and operate on its own for years.

The ship boasts a luxurious interior with spacious living areas, medical facilities, labs, and transporters, as well as one of Starfleet’s earliest fully connected bridge control centers. It was heavily armed for its time, featuring multiple powerful phasers and both forward and rear torpedo launchers. Even its basic defensive systems proved effective against the Klingons, Romulans, and other adversaries. However, the true innovation of the Enterprise was its modular construction, enabling continuous improvements. This is why different versions of the Constitution-class ship remained in active service for decades, even appearing in later films.

The Enterprise, under the command of Captain Kirk and later Captain Pike in Strange New Worlds, boldly went where no one had gone before, making first contact with new species and rescuing entire civilizations. Its five-year voyage became the cornerstone of the Star Trek universe. While other starships might be more powerful or luxurious, none have had the same lasting influence or cleverness.

We want to know: what are your favorite Star Trek ships? Share your ranking in the comments and join the discussion in the ComicBook Forum!

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2026-02-10 02:44