If you're new to anime, we're here to recommend some essential anime shows you should add to the top of your 2026 watchlist. From Cowboy Bebop to Attack on Titan, these are some of the best anime series of all time, and we recommend newcomers watch them first based on approachableness and how likely you are to fall in love with anime after watching each show.
We're living in the golden age of anime, as the medium is going global on a scale never seen before. With movies like Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle breaking box office records and recent shows like Jujutsu Kaisen considered modern classics, the world of anime is more exciting than ever. But with new anime constantly coming out it can be tricky to know where to start. That is where we come in!
Death Note
For fans of: Breaking Bad
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
What would you do if you could murder anyone in the world just by writing their name down in a book? That's the killer narrative hook of Death Note, which sees schoolboy Light Yagami stumble across the eponymous journal at the outset of this beloved anime. What starts off as a moral crusade against the criminals of the world turns into a twisting cat-and-mouse thriller that will have you rattling through the show's 37-episode run in record time.
Death Note also proves that anime can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with its live-action contemporaries. Outside of perhaps Breaking Bad, it's never been quite so fun to witness an ordinary person's descent into supervillainy.
Finished this? Try… Monster
Pokemon
For fans of: uhh, Pokemon?
Where to watch: Prime Video(Buy)
Pokemon has acted as a gateway show for many westerners to fall in love with anime. Because, yes, Pokemon is anime. You may not have been fully aware of that face while watching the show dressed in your pyjamas as part of the Saturday morning TV line-up, but Pokemon's sense of humour – Misty's lung-bursting tirades, Brock going gaga for any woman in uniform, Team Rocket blasting off again – is all standard anime fare. If you need a familiar introduction to an unfamiliar concept, you could do a lot worse than watching the first two seasons of the Pokemon anime, before going on to more daring serialised shows.
Plus, if you've missed out on the recent adventures of Ash and Pikachu trying to be the best, like no one ever was, you can rest safe in the knowledge that, A) you have lots of episodes to catch up on, and B) the later seasons are among some of the best Pokemon has to offer. The Sun and Moon series is extremely popular among long-term fans for its strong storytelling (spoiler: Ash wins) and beautiful visuals, bursting with colour.
Finished this? Try… Dragon Ball Z
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
For fans of: Final Fantasy
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is regarded as one of the best anime shows of all time. It's not hard to see why. Sporting two of television's most likeable leads in Alphonse and Elric, and a world rich with lore, magic, and more than a handful of shadowy rulers lurking in the shadows, it's pure fantasy come to life.
Brotherhood plumbs the wells of emotion better than most, too. It's the perfect proving ground to show how heavily anime can tug on the heart-strings, with several episodes revolving around familial loss and tragedy. Elric’s journey to help get the body of his brother back after an alchemy spell gone very, very wrong soon spirals into a conspiracy that leads to the very top of society. Throw in some of the greatest, most chaotic battles ever seen on screen into the mix, and you've got all the makings of a box set that rivals anything out there.
Finished this? Try… Fate/Zero
Cowboy Bebop
For fans of: Westerns
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Even without popping your anime cherry, you might have heard whispers of Cowboy Bebop, the legendary '90s anime from acclaimed director Shinichiro Watanabe. It centres on Spike, a down-on-his-luck bounty hunter looking to scrape a bit of space coin together so he can lead a comfortable life, ideally with a belly full of food.
Yet, it's so much more than that. Each episode is a beautifully-framed melody of action and comedy, while riffing on the grief that Spike (and the increasingly large Bebop crew) is trying to get over. The show eventually transforms into a character study on loss and longing, becoming a different beast entirely. It's a far cry from the jazz-heavy stylings of the bombastic, hard-hitting first episode, but it's to Watanabe and his team's credit that it feels like natural, inevitable development by the end of its 26 episodes.
Finished this? Try… Outlaw Star
Attack on Titan
For fans of: Monster movies
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Inarguably the most popular anime of the past few years, Attack on Titan has a bit of everything to entice anime amateurs. Scares, thrills, and chills – it's all here. The world of humanity is trapped within the Three Walls of its new civilization and, at its edges, the nefarious Titans roam. Far from shirking away from the horrors of the towering beasts, Attack on Titan regularly goes heavy on the body horror, with some of the most gruesome found anywhere on television.
Of course, the gore can only sustain you for so long. Thankfully, the coming-of-age story surrounding Eren's ascent as a member of the Survey Corps after the loss of his mother is captivating – you'll be hard-pressed to find an episode that doesn't leave you immediately wanting to start the next one. Plus, each episode races along at a lightning-quick pace and features action sequences that rival everything but the big-budget summer blockbusters.
Finished this? Try… Neon Genesis Evangelion
Made in Abyss
For fans of: Studio Ghibli movies
Where to watch: Prime Video
Made in Abyss really doesn't get the attention it deserves, and if you love the visuals of anime films like Spirited Away as well as adventure stories with a Steven Spielberg brand of wonder, then Made in Abyss will be right up your street. However, be warned, there are some psychological horror elements in here too, but they never take away from the fantastic atmosphere of discovery and the thrill that comes with any lost civilization storylines.
The anime centres around an orphaned girl Riko, who lives in a town that surrounds a large and deep pit known as the Abyss. Cave Raiders regularly explore the Abyss for artifacts and one day, Riko's dream of becoming one of them comes true as she sets out to find her mother. The Abyss is packed with both wonder as well as horrors and makes for some of the most thrilling TV around.
Finished this? Try…The Promised Neverland
Tamon's B-Side
For fans of: Rom-Coms
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Tamon's B-Side is one of the newer recommendations on this list, and it's a great introduction to shoujo anime and all the best romance anime in general. The premise is very funny off the bat. Basically, we follow Utage Kinoshita, a mega fan of a popular idol group F/ACE who particularly supports the seemingly charismatic member Tamon Fukuhara. However, Tamon isn't like his stage persona in real life; in fact, he is a gloomy loner.
Utage must reconcile with the reality of her idol and also make it her mission to help him gain some confidence and communication skills. The two's dynamic is hilarious, the art style is also dynamic and light-hearted, and all in all, it's a very easy and fun watch. Perfect for anime first-timers looking for a feel-good show.
Finished this? Try…Komi Can't Communicate
Sword Art Online
For fans of: RPGs
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Picture, if you will, a Venn diagram. On one side, anime fans. On the other? RPG diehards, weaned on the likes of Final Fantasy and Elder Scrolls. Sword Art Online rests snugly in the crossover, fusing the best of both worlds with its use of video game tropes – including levelling up – and a burst of high-octane anime energy.
The story begins with each player of the new fictitious VR RPG, Sword Art Online, trapped inside the game and tasked with either reaching the 50th floor or perishing in the real-world. Among those doomed to play the game is Kirito, who helps lead the fightback against the game’s creator and, along the way, falls in love with a fellow player, Asuna. Later seasons keep things fresh by shaking up the formula, but never deviate too far from its core, addictive premise – and the series has spawned spin-offs and, hilariously, video games of its own.
Finished this? Try… Mirai Nikki
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion
For fans of: Game of Thrones
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Those who are well-versed in backstabbing and betrayals in their TV shows could do a lot worse than powering through Code Geass. It's also a perfect window into one of anime's most beloved sub-genres, the mecha series, thanks to its magnetic cast and ultra-tense story fitting in seamlessly alongside the bigger, more frenzied robot battles.
While the second season's quality, admittedly, does dip, Code Geass should be among the first on your watch list because it does so many things well, almost all the time. By effectively juggling horror, political intrigue, as well as some slice-of-life drama, it's able to act as an Anime 101 for almost everybody. From there, the possibilities are limitless.
Finished this? Try… Mobile Suit Gundam
One Punch Man
For fans of: The MCU
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
You know how superhero shows and movies go by now: the good guy punches the bad guy until he wins (at least that’s the case 99% of the time). Well, that's the set-up for One Punch Man, which follows Saitama, a superhero who is overwhelmingly bored by the foes he faces and instantly dispatches with just one punch. Saitama's quest for a worthy opponent ends up gravitating him towards a cast filled with superhero caricatures and moustache-twirling villains.
It's here where One Punch Man excels, thanks to its deliciously bloody face-offs and comedic moments that punctuate the bits in-between Saitama's inevitable victories. For superhero fans and non-believers alike, the first two seasons of this fan-favourite anime are worth your time.
Finished this? Try… My Hero Academia
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