Disney has been the king of animated movies for almost a century, and the legendary cartoon characters they created are among the best the world has ever seen. After decades of ruling the animated box office, the company even bought out one of its top competitors when it merged Pixar into the family to add to its quality of output.
From the early releases, which included both Disney princesses and the more risqué, somewhat disturbing movies like Pinocchio, Dumbo, and Fantasia, Disney released some genuine masterpieces. Those films and cartoons featured some legendary characters, but there have also been later releases with characters who also match up well.
Donald Duck
Donald Duck is one of the original Disney cartoon characters, a friend to Mickey Mouse and Goofy, but he has one thing that really makes him stand out. He has a short temper, and when he blows his top, no one understands a thing he says, making him a very relatable character, especially for young kids who understand frustration well.
However, as much as he blows up when he reaches his limit, it remains a very funny moment. It brings about a lot of laughs for the audience while allowing Donald to get all his frustration out before he finally settles back down. This, if anything, makes Donald one of the most relatable Disney characters from the classic era.
Donald Duck is so famous that he has his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and he has appeared in more movies than any other Disney cartoon character in history. He first appeared in the 1934 release, The Wise Little Hen, and has since been in a total of 197 different films.
He also spawned the popular Huey, Dewey, and Louie series, featuring his nephews. Finally, his uncle, Scrooge McDuck, became a legend in his own right, but it all started thanks to the popularity of Donald Duck.
Peter Pan
Some fans might consider Tinker Bell the more iconic of the two, and she might be, but when it comes to the characters, Peter Pan remains the better of the duo. This character is the most accurate representation of the young male brain of any other cartoon character in a Disney movie or the stories on which the films are based.
Released in 1953’s Peter Pan, he is the leader of the Lost Boys, a group of kids who went to Neverland so they would never have to grow up. He battles with the evil pirates led by Captain Hook and meets a puzzling girl named Wendy. He was also close friends with the jealous fairy known as Tinker Bell.
Based on the J.M. Barrie play of the same name, Peter Pan, as a character, came to represent the idea of always remaining young, at least inside, and remembering the importance of playtime in a world that is often overly serious and drab.
Stitch
When Lilo & Stitch came out in 2002, Lilo was cute, and everyone loved her, but it was Stitch who was destined to become an icon. That is what happened too, as Stitch broke out big time and ended up finding roles all over Disney television and in DTV sequels for the next decade. Everyone loved Stitch.
To prove how much people love Lilo and Stitch both, 2025 saw a live-action version of the movie, which had a CGI animated Stitch and a live-action Lilo. The Lilo & Stitch remake broke $1 billion, making it one of the highest-grossing films of the year. The story was great, once again, and Stitch still stole the show.
Stitch appeared in the first movie, the sequel, Stitch Has a Glitch, his own sequel, Stitch! The Movie, and the 2006 release, Leroy and Stitch. He also appeared in TV shows Lilo & Stitch: The Series and one titled Stitch! Finally, add in one more Chinese animated series called Stitch & Ai in 2017, and this little alien has reached icon status.
Moana
Moana might be a newer Disney cartoon character, but she secured her spot as one of the best, thanks to her getting a successful sequel from a company that mostly avoids making them. Moana is a new-era Disney princess because she is a warrior who has help from a demigod, but really saves her kingdom mostly alone
In the end, Moana is a modern-day Mulan with a little bit of the underrated Merida (from Brave) thrown in. The first movie was a huge success, making $687.2 million, and while a lot of the success goes to its catchy songs, it was Moana’s hero’s journey that really sold the film and made her an icon.
The sequel was even more successful. While it didn’t rate as high critically, it broke $1 billion at the box office and proved that she was a character who could bring audiences into theaters. Moana is so iconic that she is the next Disney cartoon character to get her own live-action remake.
Goofy
While Donald Duck was the most relatable Disney cartoon character from the golden age of Disney cartoons, Goofy remains the most lovable. He has been around since the 1932 release of Mickey’s Revue, and is a hopelessly clumsy and dim-witted friend of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, and one who will do anything for his friends.
Goofy broke out on his own years later with his son Max, and he even got his own TV series called Goof Troop, where he was a single father raising his son Max. This even led to the extremely beloved cult classic, A Goofy Movie, in 1995, with Goofy and Max in the lead roles.
In all, there have been 45 Goofy movies over his existence, not including all the films he has appeared in with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and the other classic Disney characters.
Woody
It is not hyperbole to say that Toy Story changed everything about how animated movies were made. Pixar changed the world of animation, and this first movie remains a landmark release. It was so impressive that Disney ended up purchasing Pixar and continued making the movies under the Disney umbrella after that.
While it might be easy to name Woody and Buzz Lightyear both as great Disney cartoon characters, it is Woody who serves as the heart and soul of the entire Toy Story franchise. Voiced by Tom Hanks, Woody was the toy who was obsessed with making his owner, Andy, happy throughout childhood. Woody was the perfect toy.
Woody was also complex, and he had a lot to learn about himself and his role in the world. This was Andy’s story, but it was even more so Woody’s story, and it was his trip from Andy’s favorite toy to him finally leaving to find his own place in the world that made Toy Story one of the best animated franchises of all time.
Genie
The early 1990s were considered the Disney Renaissance because that era turned the company’s fortunes around after a couple of decades of lackluster box office releases. This included titles like Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, and Aladdin. It was the latter movie that delivered a memorable icon.
There was a lot to love about the Genie from Aladdin, not the least of which was Robin Williams’ incredible voice-over performance. The movie was about a street urchin named Aladdin, but when the film was said and done, the only character people talked about was the blue Genie who helped his dreams come true.
Genie was so popular that he landed in the DTV sequel The Return of Jafar and a television series as well. Williams even returned and voiced him again for Aladdin and the King of Thieves. Genie was added to the Kingdom Hearts game series and was played by Will Smith in a live-action remake that grossed over $1 billion.
Snow White
There are lots of Disney Princess characters who deserve to be listed among the best Disney cartoon characters of all time. Names like Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella deserve their spot on the list. However, if only one classic Disney Princess makes the cut, it has to be the original as Snow White was the first ever Disney Princess character.
While Disney had short cartoon movies before this, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first-ever animated feature film ever produced in the United States, Disney or otherwise. Based on the Grimm fairy tale story, it has since become an iconic film and created the template for what a Disney Princess looked like for years to come.
Snow White was the first female fictional character ever to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and she has the title of “The Fairest One of All.” Several books were released, all based on the Disney cartoon version and not the Grimm fairy tale version, and Snow White is the greatest Princess of them all.
Winnie The Pooh
Sometimes it is easy to forget that Winnie the Pooh and his friends from the Five Hundred Acre Wood are Disney characters. That is because they initially were storybook characters created by A.A. Milne and E.H. Shepard in 1925. However, when it comes to their movies and TV shows, Disney got the license for them in 1961.
It was when Disney began making the Winnie the Pooh features that he became a household name and a beloved addition to the Disney library. There are some beloved characters in the stories, with the always depressed Eeyore the most beloved, but Winnie the Pooh is the face of the franchise and the greatest of them all.
In the end, Winnie the Pooh is about childhood innocence and nostalgia, and no character has ever done it better.
Mickey Mouse
Mickey Mouse doesn’t match up to most Disney cartoon characters when people are talking about their favorites. However, at the end of the day, none of them would exist without Mickey and his friends paving the road that they all traveled down. Mickey debuted in 1928, replacing Oswald the Lucky Rabbit as the icon representing Disney animation.
He officially debuted in 1928’s Steamboat Willie and has appeared in over 130 films over his existence, including the feature-length release, Fantasia in 1940. He was also a comic strip character and had a comic series released for over 45 years. Add in the TV series, The Mickey Mouse Club, which ran for 41 years, and nobody was bigger.
Ten different Mickey Mouse cartoons were nominated for an Oscar, with Lend a Paw winning in 1941. Mickey was also the first-ever cartoon character to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, making him the most iconic of all Disney cartoon characters.
