Anime fan for 15 years. Covers shonen, seasonal previews, and the occasional deep dive.
The 25 Best Anime of All Time
This is not a ranking of what is popular this season. This is the canon — the 25 anime that, taken together, represent the medium at its absolute best. Every genre. Every era. Every reason people fall in love with anime.
If you watched only these, you would understand why the rest of us are obsessed.
The List
1. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (2009)
The gold standard. A story about two brothers, alchemy, sacrifice, and what it means to be human. Currently the #1 ranked anime on MyAnimeList for good reason.
2. Steins;Gate (2011)
The best time-travel story in any medium. A slow-burn first half pays off in one of the most devastating second halves anime has ever produced.
3. Cowboy Bebop (1998)
The series that proved anime could be art. Jazz-soaked space-western noir with one of the best soundtracks ever composed for television.
4. Hunter x Hunter (2011)
A shounen that grows up with you. Starts as a fun adventure, ends as one of the most sophisticated explorations of power, ethics, and obsession in the medium.
5. Attack on Titan (2013–2023)
Love it or hate the ending, it is the cultural event of 2010s anime. The animation peaks of seasons 3 and 4 redefined what TV anime could look like.
6. Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)
The mecha series that broke and remade the genre. Required viewing if you want to understand modern anime.
7. Code Geass (2006)
Lelouch vi Britannia and a chess match disguised as a mecha war. The endings of seasons 1 and 2 are unmatched television.
8. Spirited Away (2001)
The greatest animated film ever made. If a friend says they "don''t like anime," start here.
9. Death Note (2006)
A psychological thriller that anyone — anime fan or not — can be hooked by within one episode.
10. Mob Psycho 100 (2016–2022)
ONE''s other masterpiece. Studio Bones turned a deceptively simple story about a psychic middle-schooler into one of the most visually inventive shows of the era.
11. Vinland Saga (2019)
A Viking revenge epic that transforms into a meditation on pacifism. Brutal, beautiful, and brave.
12. Made in Abyss (2017)
Looks like a children''s adventure. Is not a children''s adventure. An unforgettable descent into a fantasy world that punishes its characters and its audience in equal measure.
13. Frieren: Beyond Journey''s End (2023)
The biggest critical hit of the 2020s so far. A quiet, melancholy fantasy about the elf wizard who outlives the hero party she once travelled with.
14. Monster (2004)
A 74-episode psychological thriller from Naoki Urasawa. The closest anime has come to prestige HBO drama.
15. Princess Mononoke (1997)
Miyazaki''s most uncompromising film. An eco-fable that refuses easy answers.
16. One Piece (1999–ongoing)
The longest-running entry on this list and still going. Yes, it is over 1,000 episodes. Yes, it is worth it.
17. Your Name (2016)
Makoto Shinkai''s breakout — the body-swap romance that became the highest-grossing anime film for years.
18. A Silent Voice (2016)
Kyoto Animation at the absolute height of its powers. A film about bullying, regret, and the possibility of forgiveness.
19. Demon Slayer (2019–ongoing)
The most beautifully animated shounen of the modern era. Ufotable''s fight scenes are reference-grade.
20. Jujutsu Kaisen (2020–ongoing)
The successor to Naruto and Bleach. MAPPA at its most ambitious.
21. Gurren Lagann (2007)
The most pure-hearted, screaming-into-the-sky anime ever made. Trigger before Trigger existed.
22. Clannad: After Story (2008)
The single most devastating second half in anime. Bring tissues. Bring more tissues than you think you need.
23. Haikyuu!! (2014–2020)
The best sports anime, full stop. You will care about volleyball more than you ever thought possible.
24. Erased (2016)
A 12-episode time-travel mystery that you can watch in a single evening and think about for a year.
25. Spy x Family (2022–ongoing)
The most charming anime of the decade. A spy, an assassin, and a telepathic child pretending to be a family.
How to Use This List
Do not try to watch all 25 in a row. Pick the entry that matches your mood:
- Want to be moved to tears? Clannad, A Silent Voice, Your Lie in April
- Want non-stop spectacle? Demon Slayer, Jujutsu Kaisen, Gurren Lagann
- Want a slow-burn that pays off? Steins;Gate, Vinland Saga, Hunter x Hunter
- Want to understand the medium? Cowboy Bebop, Evangelion, Spirited Away
- Want to start anime tonight? Death Note, Spy x Family, Demon Slayer
There is no wrong place to start. There is only the next great show waiting.