20 anime similar to High School of the Dead based on genre, format, studio, and popularity
Looking for anime similar to High School of the Dead? Here are 10 anime recommendations that share similar themes, genres, or storytelling styles.
We selected these anime based on shared genres (Action, Drama, Ecchi), similar narrative structures, comparable art styles, and positive fan overlap. If you enjoyed High School of the Dead, these series should appeal to your taste.
They arrive in silence and darkness. They descend from the skies. They have a hunger for human flesh. They are everywhere. They are parasites, alien creatures who must invade–and take control of–a human host to survive. And once they have infected their victims, they can assume any deadly form they choose: monsters with giant teeth, winged demons, creatures with blades for hands. But most have chosen to conceal their lethal purpose behind ordinary human faces. So no one knows their secret–except an ordinary high school student. Shin is battling for control of his own body against an alien parasite, but can he find a way to warn humanity of the horrors to come? (Source: Del Rey)
Magic is a product of neither legends nor fairy tales, but instead has become a technology of reality since a time unknown to people. Supernatural power became a technology systematized through magic, while magic became a technical skill. A "Supernatural Power User" became a "Magic Technician." Magic Technicians (in short, Magicians) are nurtured through Magic High Schools and Universities. This is a story about: Tatsuya, a defective elder brother low achiever. Miyuki, a perfect, flawless younger sister high achiever. After both siblings entered a Magic High School, The stage of daily turbulence was unveiled—.
A new adaption of the manga of the same name by Togashi Yoshihiro. A Hunter is one who travels the world doing all sorts of dangerous tasks. From capturing criminals to searching deep within uncharted lands for any lost treasures. Gon is a young boy whose father disappeared long ago, being a Hunter. He believes if he could also follow his father's path, he could one day reunite with him. After becoming 12, Gon leaves his home and takes on the task of entering the Hunter exam, notorious for its low success rate and high probability of death to become an official Hunter. He befriends the revenge-driven Kurapika, the doctor-to-be Leorio and the rebellious ex-assassin Killua in the exam, with their friendship prevailing throughout the many trials and threats they come upon taking on the dangerous career of a Hunter.
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.
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)
The Diclonius, a mutated homosapien that is said to be selected by God and will eventually become the destruction of mankind, possess two horns on their heads and have a "sixth sense" which gives them telekinetic abilities. Due to this dangerous power, they have been captured and isolated in laboratories by the government. Lucy, a young and psychotic Diclonius, manages to break free of her confines and brutally murders most of the guards in the laboratory where she is being held, only to be shot in the head as she makes her escape. She survives, falling off a cliff into the ocean and manages to drift along to a beach where two teenagers, Kouta and Yuka, discover her. Having lost her memories, she was named after the only thing that she can now say, "Nyuu," and the two allow her to stay at Kouta's home. However, it appears that the psychotic side of Lucy is not dead just yet... (Source: ANN - Revised)
When two people die at the same time, they’re sent to a place that’s neither heaven nor hell—a lavish bar between worlds where the stakes are high and the rules are simple: if you win you live again, if you die… you’re gone for good. Decim is the bartender charged with serving the souls who enter Quindecim. He may make a mean cocktail, but his true profession is to play the role of arbiter—a judge who determines whether or not a soul is worthy of reincarnation. To aid in his judgment, the bar’s patrons are forced to play simple games laced with sadistic twists designed to bring their true natures to light. To Decim, judgment has always been black and white—that is—until he meets a mysterious young woman whose fate seems impossible to decide. His indecision shakes the very foundation of the games and raises the biggest question of all: Who is fit to judge the dead? (Source: Funimation)
Okajima Rokuro is a Japanese businessman in a town full of Japanese businessmen. His normal day consists of social drinking with clients and being kicked around by his bosses. He finally gets a break though, as he's sent by his company to the tropical seas of Eastern China to deliver a disc. But his boat gets hijacked by a band of mercenaries hired to retrieve the disc. Rock (as he is newly dubbed by his captors) catches the interest of the only female merc Revy as she thinks he's worth a ransom, taking him hostage. However, the disc that was stolen has a terrible secret that's unknown to Rock, which causes massive confusion and chaos for both him and his kidnappers.
Bored with life and considering the real world to be just a “crappy game,” savvy sibling shut-ins Sora and Shiro have withdrawn into their own fantasy world filled with video games. However, one day they find themselves summoned to another world by a boy who calls himself “God,” their abilities are about to be put to the ultimate test! Now not only their fates — but the fate of all of humanity — will be decided by a series of games that may just be the hardest these super-geniuses have ever faced! (Source: Sentai Filmworks, edited)
Dr. Kenzo Tenma is a renowned Japanese brain surgeon working at a leading hospital in Germany. One night, Dr. Tenma risks his reputation and career to save the life of a critically wounded young boy over that of the town mayor who had been planning to support the hospital financially. A string of mysterious murders begin to occur soon after the operation, and Dr. Tenma emerges as the primary suspect despite no incriminating evidence. A doctor is taught to believe that all life is equal; however, when another series of murders occur in the surgeon's vicinity, Dr. Tenma's beliefs are shaken as his actions that night are shown to have much broader consequences than he could have imagined. Leaving behind his life as a surgeon he embarks on a journey across the country to unravel the mystery of the boy he saved.
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)
The story takes place in the year 2138 when virtual reality gaming is booming. Yggdrasil, a popular online game is quietly shut down one day. However, the protagonist Momonga decides to not log out. Momonga is then transformed into the image of a skeleton as "the most powerful wizard." The world continues to change, with non-player characters (NPCs) beginning to feel emotion. Having no parents, friends, or place in society, this ordinary young man Momonga then strives to take over the new world the game has become. (Source: Anime News Network)
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)
Denji is a teenage boy living with a Chainsaw Devil named Pochita. Due to the debt his father left behind, he has been living a rock-bottom life while repaying his debt by harvesting devil corpses with Pochita. One day, Denji is betrayed and killed. As his consciousness fades, he makes a contract with Pochita and gets revived as "Chainsaw Man" — a man with a devil's heart. (Source: Crunchyroll)
Jinta Yadomi and his group of childhood friends have become estranged after a tragic accident split them apart. Now in their high school years, a sudden surprise forces each of them to confront their guilt over what happened that day and come to terms with the ghosts of their past. (Source: NIS America)
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.
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)
Takemichi Hanagaki is a freelancer that's reached the absolute pits of despair in his life. He finds out that the only girlfriend he ever had in his life that he dated in middle school, Hinata Tachibana, had been killed by the ruthless Tokyo Manji Gang. The day after hearing about her death, he's standing on the station platform and ends up being pushed over onto the tracks by a herd of people. He closes his eyes thinking he's about to die, but when he opens his eyes back up, he somehow had gone back in time 12 years. Now that he's back living the best days of his life, Takemichi decides to get revenge on his life by saving his girlfriend and changing himself that he'd been running away from. (Source: Crunchyroll)
Ganta is the only survivor after a mysterious man in red slaughters a classroom full of teenagers. He's framed for the carnage, sentenced to die, and locked away in the most twisted prison ever built: Deadman Wonderland. And then it gets worse. At Deadman Wonderland, convicts are forced into brutal deathmatches for the amusement of the masses, the cheers of the crowd drowning out the screams of the dismembered. Even when Ganta befriends Shiro, an unusual female inmate, his dark fate crushes all hope —until he discovers the strange ability to wield his spilled blood as a weapon. Ganta learns his new skill might be related to the murderous man in red and uncovers disturbing secrets that could expose those who stole his freedom. He's determined to see justice served —but first he'll have to fight for his life in a prison that holds a million ways to die. (Source: FUNimation)
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.