Kenner released different editions of Superman: Man of Steel action figures and vehicles in 1995 and 1996. The line was advertised on television commercials that aired during after-school programming.

The toyline was accompanied by a set of 13 trading cards printed by SkyBox International. All of the cards in this series feature original artwork painted by fantasy illustrator Joe Jusko. There are seven different incarnations of Superman that appear on cards. "Power Flight Superman" features a traditional version of Superman during the long-hair era.

"Laser Superman" dons the black Kryptonian regeneration suit from the "Reign of the Supermen!" storyline. The regeneration suit was designed by Superman: The Man of Steel artist Jon Bogdanove. The suit first appeared with the S-shield emblem on the last page of Action Comics #690 (August 1993).

The 1995 cards are individually packaged with figures in the basic series. Conduit, Lex Luthor, Steel, and Superboy (Kon-El) also appear in the card set. The 1996 Limited Edition "Cyber-Link Superman" and "Cyber-Link Batman" are packaged together with cards or an exclusive comic book.

A ponytailed Clark Kent is packaged with a "Matrix Conversion Coupe" vehicle. "Hunter-Prey Superman" and Doomsday are sold together with an exclusive comic book. "Full Assault Superman" and Massacre are also packaged with a comic book. In 1998, ToyFare magazine released an exclusive Eradicator figure that did not include any extras. A limited 12-inch "Ultimate Superman" figure sold at K-Mart stores does not include a card.

Cyborg Superman Hank Henshaw is curiously absent from the series. A "Street Guardian Superboy" figure was advertised but never released. Unmarketed prototypes for Metallo and King-Shark were displayed at the 1996 Toy Fair. Some models from the Superman: Man of Steel line were repurposed for later collections released by Kenner and Hasbro.

Some of the original paintings used for the card series have been observed in private collections. Joe Jusko also contributed a painting of Superman and Doomsday for the DC Villains: The Dark Judgment series. An "All Superman! All Joe Jusko!" Superman trading card set was originally scheduled for release in the summer of 1996, but the series was cancelled during development.

In 1994, Kenner and SkyBox released a similar action figure and card series titled Legends of Batman.

The complete Superman: Man of Steel checklist consists of 13 cards.