20 anime similar to Durarara!! based on genre, format, studio, and popularity
Looking for anime similar to Durarara!!? Here are 10 anime recommendations that share similar themes, genres, or storytelling styles.
We selected these anime based on shared genres (Action, Mystery, Supernatural), similar narrative structures, comparable art styles, and positive fan overlap. If you enjoyed Durarara!!, these series should appeal to your taste.
Stalked by a beastly white tiger, Atsushi Nakajima has no idea that the menace lives inside him—a power that catches the attention of the Armed Detective Agency. Using inhuman abilities to combat crime, this team takes Atsushi under the wing of their most eccentric member, Dazai. Together, they tear through mafia-muddled mysteries while enemies keep an eye on the tiger’s lofty bounty. (Source: Funimation)
Several hundred years ago, humans were nearly exterminated by titans. Titans are typically several stories tall, seem to have no intelligence, devour human beings and, worst of all, seem to do it for the pleasure rather than as a food source. A small percentage of humanity survived by walling themselves in a city protected by extremely high walls, even taller than the biggest of titans. Flash forward to the present and the city has not seen a titan in over 100 years. Teenage boy Eren and his foster sister Mikasa witness something horrific as the city walls are destroyed by a colossal titan that appears out of thin air. As the smaller titans flood the city, the two kids watch in horror as their mother is eaten alive. Eren vows that he will murder every single titan and take revenge for all of mankind. (Source: MangaHelpers)
The second season of Bungou Stray Dogs. Despite their differences in position, three men—the youngest senior executive of the Port Mafia, Osamu Dazai, the lowest ranking member, Sakunosuke Oda, and the intelligence agent, Angou Sakaguchi—gather at the Lupin Bar at the end of the day to relax and take delight in the company of friends. However, one night, Angou disappears. A photograph taken at the bar is all that is left of the three together. Fast forward to the present, and Dazai is now a member of the Armed Detective Agency. The Guild, an American gifted organization, has entered the fray and is intent on taking the Agency's work permit. They must now divide their attention between the two groups, the Guild and the Port Mafia, who oppose their very existence.
In Victorian-era Europe, a young boy loses everything he once held near and dear to a vicious plot. In his moment of death, he strikes a deal with a demon: his soul, in exchange for revenge. Ciel Phantomhive is now the head of the Phantomhive corporation, handling all business affairs as well as the underground work for the Queen of England. His new partner is a demon butler, Sebastian Michaelis, whose powers as a butler is only surpassed by his strength as a demon. The story follows the two along with their other servants, as they work to unravel the plot behind Ciel's parents' murder, and the horrendous tragedies that befell Ciel in the month directly after.
This world consists of two dimensions joined as one, like a mirror. The first is the world in which the humans live, Assiah. The other is the world of demons, Gehenna. Ordinarily, travel between the two, and indeed any kind of contact between the two, is impossible. However the demons can pass over into this world by possessing anything that exist within it. Satan the god of demons, but there's one thing that he doesn't have, and that's a substance in the human world that is powerful enough to contain him!! For that purpose he created Rin, his son from a human woman, but will his son agree to his plans? Or will he become something else...? An exorcist?
This psychological thriller, based on the manga written and illustrated by Sakae Esuno, is about Yuki, a loner who's not very good with people. He prefers to write a diary on his cell phone and talk to his imaginary friend, Deus Ex Machina – The God of Time and Space. However, Yuki soon learns that Deus is more than a figment of his imagination when he makes Yuki participate in a battle royale with eleven others. The contestants are given special diaries that can predict the future, each diary possessing unique features that give it both advantages and disadvantages. Within the next 90 days, the contestants must try to survive until there is only one left standing. The winner will become the new God of Time and Space. (Source: FUNimation)
The suspense horror/dark fantasy story is set in Tokyo, which is haunted by mysterious "ghouls" who are devouring humans. People are gripped by the fear of these ghouls whose identities are masked in mystery. An ordinary college student named Kaneki encounters Rize, a girl who is an avid reader like him, at the café he frequents. Little does he realize that his fate will change overnight. (Source: Anime News Network)
Beginning its tale in 19th century England, young aristocrat Jonathan Joestar finds himself locked in bitter rivalry with Dio Brando, a low-born boy who Jonathan's father took under his wing after the death of Dio's father. Discontent with his station in life, Dio's fathomless lust to reign over all eventually leads him to seek the supernatural powers of an ancient Aztec stone mask in the Joestar's possession—an artifact that will forever change the destiny of Dio and Jonathan for generations to come. Fifty years later, in 1938 New York City, Jonathan's grandson Joseph Joestar must take up his grandfather's mission and master the abilities necessary to destroy the stone mask and its immensely powerful creators who threaten humanity's very existence, the Pillar Men. (Source: Anime News Network)
Light Yagami is a genius high school student who is about to learn about life through a book of death. When a bored shinigami, a God of Death, named Ryuk drops a black notepad called a Death Note, Light receives power over life and death with the stroke of a pen. Determined to use this dark gift for the best, Light sets out to rid the world of evil… namely, the people he believes to be evil. Should anyone hold such power? The consequences of Light’s actions will set the world ablaze. (Source: VIZ Media)
Otonashi wakes up in the afterlife to find out he has no memories of his life before death. Desperate to survive in a war that could yield another unfortunate fate, he joins the SSS in the battle against Angel, whose very mission is to destroy all inhabitants of this afterlife. As Otonashi struggles to recover his memory and learn more about this world, he finds that not all is as it had seemed. (Source: Funimation)
The story takes place in a world where an unknown virus has killed the entire human population except for children under 13. Those children were then enslaved by vampires. The manga centers on Yuichiro Hyakuya, a human who dreams of becoming strong enough to kill all vampires. (Source: Anime News Network)
The Edo period is nearing its end. Gabimaru, a shinobi formerly known as the strongest in Iwagakure who is now a death row convict, is told that he will be acquitted and set free if he can bring back the Elixir of Life from an island that is rumored to be the Buddhist pure land Sukhavati. In hopes of reuniting with his beloved wife, Gabimaru heads to the island along with the executioner Yamada Asaemon Sagiri. Upon arriving there, they encounter other death row convicts in search of the Elixir of Life... as well as a host of unknown creatures, eerie manmade statues, and the hermits who rule the island. Can Gabimaru find the Elixir of Life on this mysterious island and make it back home alive? (Source: Crunchyroll)
JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Diamond wa Kudakenai adapts the fourth part of the JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken manga series. It's the year 1999, 11 years after Jotaro Kujo's desperate fight against DIO in Egypt. Jotaro meets with Josuke Higashikata, the illegitimate son of his grandfather Joseph Joestar. He discovers that Josuke also has the same "Stand" power and that a new threat is surfacing in Morioh City. (Source: Anime News Network)
Saitama has a rather peculiar hobby, being a superhero, but despite his heroic deeds and superhuman abilities, a shadow looms over his life. He's become much too powerful, to the point that every opponent ends up defeated with a single punch. The lack of challenge has driven him into a state of apathy, as he watches his life pass by having lost all enthusiasm, at least until he's unwillingly thrust in the role of being a mentor to the young and revenge-driven Genos.
With the promise of granting any wish, the omnipotent Holy Grail triggered three wars in the past, each too cruel and fierce to leave a victor. In spite of that, the wealthy Einzbern family is confident that the Fourth Holy Grail War will be different; namely, with a vessel of the Holy Grail now in their grasp. Solely for this reason, the much hated "Magus Killer" Kiritsugu Emiya is hired by the Einzberns, with marriage to their only daughter Irisviel as binding contract. Kiritsugu now stands at the center of a cutthroat game of survival, facing off against six other participants, each armed with an ancient familiar, and fueled by unique desires and ideals. Accompanied by his own familiar, Saber, the notorious mercenary soon finds his greatest opponent in Kirei Kotomine, a priest who seeks salvation from the emptiness within himself in pursuit of Kiritsugu. Based on the light novel written by Gen Urobuchi, Fate/Zero depicts the events of the Fourth Holy Grail War—10 years prior to Fate/stay night. Witness a battle royale in which no one is guaranteed to survive. (Source: MAL Rewrite) Note: The first episode aired with a runtime of ~48 minutes as opposed to the standard 24 minute long episode.
In a Japanese jail sits 17-year-old Jotaro Kujo: punk, fighter, delinquent...and possessed by a force beyond his control! Around the world, evil spirits are awakening: "Stands," monstrous invisible creatures which give their bearers incredible powers. To save his mother's life, Jotaro must tame his dark forces and travel around the world to Cairo, Egypt, where a hundred-year-old vampire thirsts for the blood of his family. But the road is long, and an army of evil Stand Users waits to kill JoJo and his friends... (Source: VIZ Media)
A boy fights... for "the right death." Hardship, regret, shame: the negative feelings that humans feel become Curses that lurk in our everyday lives. The Curses run rampant throughout the world, capable of leading people to terrible misfortune and even death. What's more, the Curses can only be exorcised by another Curse. Itadori Yuji is a boy with tremendous physical strength, though he lives a completely ordinary high school life. One day, to save a friend who has been attacked by Curses, he eats the finger of the Double-Faced Specter, taking the Curse into his own soul. From then on, he shares one body with the Double-Faced Specter. Guided by the most powerful of sorcerers, Gojou Satoru, Itadori is admitted to the Tokyo Metropolitan Technical High School of Sorcery, an organization that fights the Curses... and thus begins the heroic tale of a boy who became a Curse to exorcise a Curse, a life from which he could never turn back. (Source: Crunchyroll) Note: The first episode received an early web premiere on September 19th, 2020. The regular TV broadcast started on October 3rd, 2020.
The second season of Tokyo Ghoul.The ghouls of Anteiku invaded the Aogiri's site in order to rescue Ken Kaneki who is being tortured. Due to provocation, he unleashed greater power enough to defeat Yamori. To become stronger, he decided to join Aogiri and left Anteiku. Ghoul investigators also making their moves by collecting information about the eye-patched ghoul - Ken Kaneki.(Source: Anime News Network)
Ichigo Kurosaki is a rather normal high school student apart from the fact he has the ability to see ghosts. This ability never impacted his life in a major way until the day he encounters the Shinigami Kuchiki Rukia, who saves him and his family's lives from a Hollow, a corrupt spirit that devours human souls. Wounded during the fight against the Hollow, Rukia chooses the only option available to defeat the monster and passes her Shinigami powers to Ichigo. Now forced to act as a substitute until Rukia recovers, Ichigo hunts down the Hollows that plague his town.
Fuyuki City - a city surrounded by the sea and mountains becomes the setting for an ancient ritual. Seven masters are given control of heroic spirits in order to realize the mythical Holy Grail, which is said to grant its owner any wish. These heroic spirits or servants represent legendary heroes of various classes: "Saber," "Lancer," "Archer," "Rider," "Caster," "Assassin," and "Berserker." Each master will enter into a contract with their chosen servant and battle the others to the death until only one pair remains... This is the "Holy Grail War." The young and capable mage, Rin Tohsaka, prepares for her long-awaited Fifth Holy Grail War to begin... With her servant Archer, Rin enters the Holy Grail War as the sole heir to the prestigious Tohsaka family after her father's death. But when Shirou Emiya, a boy from Rin's school, unwittingly becomes a Master and is fatally wounded in battle, she has no choice but to save him. With Shirou and his servant Saber, Rin sets out to strike down the conspiracies surrounding the Holy Grail War. Will the Holy Grail bless Rin and Shirou's path toward victory or will they be cursed with defeat? (Source: Aniplex of America) Notes: - Includes Prologue. - The first, second and last episodes aired with a runtime of ~48 minutes as opposed to the standard 24 minute long episode.