Best Horror Anime

It might not look like it, but making an anime that’s pure horror isn’t that simple. For one, hand-drawn animations can’t quite capture the frame-by-frame tension and shock value of the horror media. That’s why scary horror anime are rare. Consequently, the few true horror anime in existence hold a special place in everyone’s hearts.

The best horror anime give goosebumps, a feeling of dread, and unsettling scenery that utilizes the medium in ways that live-action films cannot. If that’s what viewers are looking for, the upcoming shows are among the freakiest, scariest, and most horrific to ever come out of the industry.

Updated on November 25, 2024 by Mark Sammut: Fall 2024 seems set to end its run without any great horror anime. As new shows are not really an option, a controversial older series has been added to this discussion.

Monster
,
Berserk
,
Attack on Titan
,
Tokyo Ghoul
,
Made in Abyss
, and
Blood+
have too few proper horror moments to qualify. However, they are fantastic and incredibly dark.

24 The Grimm Variations

MyAnimeList: 6.79

Airing during the Spring 2024 anime season, The Grimm Variations fully embraces its iconic horror-fused origins by giving modern makeovers to six Brothers Grimm fairy tales. Stories like Cinderella and Hansel and Gretel have been done to death, and the world does not need any more faithful adaptations of the original shorts or Disneyfied takes that strip away all nightmarish moments in favor of talking animals (note: Disney has produced plenty of great movies).

Now, a lack of competition can only carry a show so far, and The Grimm Variations needs to offer something more than just being the only new horror anime. So, how good is Wit Studio’s anthology series? Well, it is a mixed bag, as many of these types of series tend to be. To the studio’s credit, the episodes provide very imaginative spins on these classic tales, including subverting themes and character roles to provide a different perspective (“Cinderella” does this particularly well). Each story feels fresh not only from the source material but also from each other, with some stories focusing more on action or psychological drama compared to pure horror.

Still, The Grimm Variations can be confusing, particularly its later storylines. When good, the show is very good; when bad, the show can be frustrating. However, the anime is never boring, and it makes good use of its anthology structure. Honestly, The Grimm Variations is more than the sum of its parts.

23 Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales

MyAnimeList: 7.39

Utterly overshadowed by its successor, the vastly superior Mononoke, Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror is an anthology series consisting of three storylines: Yotsuya Ghost Story, Goddess of the Dark Tower, and the Medicine Seller. The latter introduces Mononoke‘s protagonist and is a must-watch for anyone who loves the sequel series since it is essentially another arc. It is also Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales‘ strongest story and arguably the only reason to seek out this compilation.

That’s not to say that the other arcs have nothing to offer, as they both feature occasional moments of brilliance; however, they are let down by uninteresting characters and a severe lack of notable surprises. They are also not really all that scary, despite being based on classic Japanese horror stories. Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales is serviceable but nothing more.

22 Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror (Mainly For Episode 1)

MyAnimeList: 6.15

Uzumaki has been begging for an anime for decades, and its long-form structure raised hope that it could result in a worthwhile series rather than just another lackluster Junji Ito adaptation. Slated for just four episodes, this Fall 2024 season had a lengthy and troubled production cycle, one that seemed destined to either never materialize a show or produce an all-time stinker. However, the anime had a surprisingly fantastic trailer that demonstrated great visuals, tone, and atmosphere. Suddenly, Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror gathered momentum, becoming one of its season’s most highly-anticipated outings. Even the fact it was airing on Adult Swim and Max did not neutralize the enthusiasm, and people were genuinely, truly looking forward to giving this a fair shake.

Then, the first episode dropped…and all that optimism exploded into excitement! Yes, it finally happened – a good Junji Ito anime exists. Stylishly unsettling and packed with creepy imagery that captures the mangaka’s unique body horror, Uzumaki‘s first episode is nearly everything that an adaptation should be, at least when it comes to this genre. Sure, the pacing was a bit too quick, causing things to escalate far faster than the manga, but an adaptation should not be a one-to-one translation anyway. Also, the episode seemed to abandon the source material’s anthology structure to position Shuu and Kirie as the protagonists, but that change could work.

Then, the second episode dropped…and all that excitement evaporated in a sea of frustrated laughter. What happened? How could a series decline so much so quickly? A notable dip in animation quality is the most obvious answer, transforming scenes that should have been surreal and terrifying into awkwardly stiff messes. However, Uzumaki‘s biggest issues can be traced back to the first episode: the pacing and structure. Once the animation declined, these elements became far more problematic. The show just did not have enough time to allow any moments to breathe, which is a death sentence for horror. Suddenly, the anime just felt like a cliff-note version of the manga, one stripped of any nuance and foreboding. Really, really disappointing.

21 Ghost Stories (Japanese Version)

MyAnimeList: 7.74

Ghost Stories is technically one of the better-known horror anime, although its infamy is largely due to an English dub that turns the show into a comedy. While dated in place, the latter is the more memorable iteration of this story, and it is well worth a watch by people who enjoy abridged series like TeamFourStar’s DBZ. Comparatively, the original Japanese version tends to be ignored, to the point of barely garnering any recognition in this day and age.

Although not god-awful, Ghost Stories is generally a forgettable horror anime that follows a group of children as they take on fairly generic cases. It is like a less-interesting version of Ghost Hunt or the recent Dark Gathering. Despite being the definition of mediocre, Ghost Stories warrants a mention due to the sheer lack of available horror anime out there. If someone simply wants an accessible and family-friendly show that can keep them mildly entertained for a few hours, they can do much worse than this series.

20 Gantz

MyAnimeList: 6.98 (Season 1)

While Hiroya Oku’s manga is relatively highly regarded, the same cannot be said about Gonzo’s adaptation of Gantz. Reveling in gore, the anime is a relentless exercise in excess, to the point of diminishing returns as shocking sequences clump together and gradually form a frustrating blob. To put it plainly, Gantz is not particularly good or particularly entertaining, largely thanks to a roster of one-note or annoying characters (Kei, the protagonist, is just the worst).

Still, the anime deserves a quick mention for a few reasons. Firstly, while exhausting after a while, the gore is visceral enough to get a reaction. All these years later, Gantz still manages to be unsettling through its gratuitous violence, even if genuine scares are few and far in-between. The concept is strong as well, and there is a reason the manga has a very long and successful run. Finally, Gantz:O is a pretty good CGI movie that is arguably superior to the series.

Actually, if you can find it, just watch
Gantz:O
.

19 Zom 100: Bucket List Of The Dead

MyAnimeList: 7.77

In truth, it is a stretch to describe Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead as horror since it does not try to be scary at all. Nevertheless, the show is still a great pick for fans of the genre, particularly if they are into zombie apocalypses. While oversaturated in Western cultures, the same cannot be said for anime. Sure, the industry has produced zombie stories like Highschool of the Dead and Zombie Land Saga, but they are infrequent enough to still seem fresh when they do appear. And, they tend to be diverse too, ranging from action-romps like Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress to romps like Is This a Zombie?

Zom 100 does not fit neatly into any one genre. The anime has humor but is not a comedy, and while most episodes have some action, these sequences are rarely the story’s focus. Similarly, the show gets gory and dark at times, but these moments flirt with horror without fully embracing it. Ultimately, Zom 100 is about life, reflected by the protagonist’s drive to make the most out of his remaining days after he is freed from the shackles of employment thanks to an outbreak. Weirdly enough, this zombie anime is rather uplifting.

18 Pet Shop Of Horrors

MyAnimeList: 7.24

Pet Shop of Horrors is a hard-to-find 4-part OVA series that aired over two months in 1999. The show works well enough as a teaser for Matsuri Akino’s manga, which has received a few sequels since its original incarnation ended in 1998. Although not completely devoid of an overarching narrative, each episode generally focuses on a self-contained story as the audience follows a character who purchases a unique pet from a shop run by Count D. These strange creatures can change somebody’s life for the better, but they are also high maintenance, to put it lightly; more importantly, if their owner fails to treat them right, they will face dire consequences.

Pet Shop of Horrors has an awesome concept with a lot of room for expansion, as can be seen in the source material. While the anime does not fully capture the manga’s appeal and ends too quickly to build any significant momentum, it is still a decent watch when viewed in a vacuum. Count D is a fascinating and complex character, and the individual stories produce their share of uncomfortable moments. The show looks like a horror production, although it does not produce all that many legitimate scares.

17 Mieruko-chan

MyAnimeList: 7.40

Horror anime are so rare that whenever one shows up that is actually decent, it tends to attract quite a bit of attention. Mieruko-chan‘s eponymous schoolgirl has the unfortunate ability to see ghosts, and these spirits are ripped right out of nightmares. As she is generally the only person who can witness these terrifying entities, Mieruko has to pretend they do not exist, something that often proves rather difficult.

Mieruko-chan is almost like a slice of life horror anime, in the sense that most of the episodes simply follow the protagonist during her everyday life. This repetition does hurt the show’s fear factor to an extent, but the designs of the ghosts are genuinely scary.

16 Happy Sugar Life

MyAnimeList: 6.78

Happy Sugar Life is a trip that starts messed up and just keeps on finding new ways to get messier. While there are some folks with decent intentions, there are no traditionally “good” characters, and that extends to the main girl, Satou.

The anime is filled with violent deaths, depressing themes, tragic moments, and uncomfortable scenes. While not often terrifying, Happy Sugar Life is nearly always suspenseful. This horror anime needs to be experienced blind and preferably binge-watched over a weekend.

15 School-Live!

MyAnimeList: 7.62

School-live! is often compared to Puella Magi Madoka Magica, an anime famous for turning the magical girl genre on its head. School-live! does something similar with the “cute girls doing cute things” subgenre by throwing a zombie apocalypse into the mix. These two wildly different worlds collide to form the anime’s protagonist, a girl who is in serious denial about her situation.

While not lacking in dark and intense moments, School-Live! also tries to cater to standard moe conventions as well. Consequently, the show is not that tonally consistent since it only seems to have one foot rooted in horror. Despite these points, Lerche’s anime is still enjoyable and relatively clever.

14 Ajin: Demi-Human

MyAnimeList: 7.39 (Season 1)

Look past Ajin‘s uneven CG animation to find a fast-paced action horror series with a strong premise soaked in moral ambiguity. In this world, “Ajin” is a species that cannot be killed, and if a human turns into one, they are immediately arrested for a future filled with pain. Kei Nagai learns this the hard way and quickly finds himself on the run.

Available on Netflix, Ajin succeeds because it doesn’t present either side – the Ajin or humans – are pure evil or good. It adds an element of intrigue to each situation, some of which are graphic and intense.

13 Elfen Lied

MyAnimeList: 7.48

Elfen Lied is a twisted and more modern take on a monster girl trope in horror. Instead of being a vampire or werewolf, however, the main monster human in Elfen Lied is a Diclonius – a powerful being that has become the subject of experiments in the anime until she decides that she cannot take it anymore and breaks free in the bloodiest way possible.

As the said monster girl escapes captivity and tries to live normally among human beings, certain circumstances will force her to unleash her true potential and nature. The amount of blood and violence in Elfen Lied tends to overshadow the rest of the content, including themes of human experimentation and cruelty, but the show has a few genuinely uncomfortable and disconcerting moments that will leave an impression on most viewers. While it has not aged extremely well, especially its “romance,” Elfen Lied is still one of the more popular horror-leaning anime of all time.

12 Cat Soup

MyAnimeList: 7.32

A short film released in the early 2000s, Cat Soup is far from a mainstream name, although it has acquired some notoriety over the years. Cut from the same bizarre cloth as Angel’s Egg, Cat Soup is a surreal trip that is light on story and heavy on atmosphere. After Nyatto’s soul is confiscated by Death, she and her brother go on a hellish journey to try and recover it. Along the way, they traverse unfathomable landscapes rich in beauty and dread, all the while running across larger-than-life figures that are not even human-adjacent.

Obviously, Cat Soup is not a traditional horror anime nor does it constantly attempt to horrify audiences. However, the film’s nightmarish creativity is not only a sight to behold but also punctuated with chilling imagery. While not scary, it is unnerving.

11 Hell Girl

MyAnimeList: 7.61 (Season 1)

Most horror films and shows tend to come with their own lesson or representation of social issues. Hell Girl has those in spades as it’s quite literally about a demon dishing out punishments to social deviants such as bullies, thieves, and cheaters.

In the anime, anyone with a tormentor can seek help from the enigmatic “Hell Girl” by seeking out a mysterious website and posting their grudges there. The girl from hell will then dish out her own brand of cruel justice against the wrongdoers. It’s psychologically disturbing and represents the darkest whims of society, particularly ones that deal with vengeance and retaliation.

10 Vampire Hunter D & Bloodlust

MyAnimeList: 7 (Vampire Hunter D)

Based on Hideyuki Kikuchi’s novels, Vampire Hunter D is drenched in haunting Gothic imagery. Set thousands of years in the future, humanity is on its last legs, and the few surviving people are largely fighting a losing battle against all sorts of nightmarish entities. Vampires sit at the top of the foot chain, although they do face a threat in the form of a dhampir named D. The series has spawned two anime adaptations: 1985’s Vampire Hunter D OVA and 2000’s Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust. Both releases are worth watching in their own right, and they hold up well considering their ages.

Madhouse’s Bloodlust is reasonably well known, and the movie is one of the studio’s crowning achievements. While the story is decent but nothing too amazing, Bloodlust makes up for it with gorgeous visuals and a tense atmosphere. Although a bit too action-heavy to be genuinely scary, the film’s backdrops and creatures are perfect examples of Gothic horror. Madhouse also frames its environments and structures in a way that makes them feel massive and overwhelming.

While overshadowed by its (far superior) sequel, 1985’s Vampire Hunter D has many of its successor’s strengths. The OVA nails its presentation and tone; even though the animation is dated nowadays, the actual art is still impressive. The film revels in gore in a way that only old-school OVAs seem to do, but these sequences fit the story being told.

9 Another

MyAnimeList: 7.47

It’s horror and anime so if those two were to be made into a Venn diagram, then “school” would probably come out as the most common ground. Sure enough, Yomiyama North Middle School is one of the most haunted institutions in anime ever.

The haunting all began when one student committed suicide in the past and her classmates pretended that she was still alive in order to cope. This inadvertently summoned a malevolent ghost who then started causing even more suicides and deaths not just among the student population but also in the students’ respective families over the course of decades.

8 Devilman Crybaby

MyAnimeList: 7.75

More disturbing than anything else, Devilman Crybaby is quite a handful. Initially, it seems to follow a typical plot where the social outcast protagonist merges with a being in order to become more relevant. However, in the anime’s case, this being is a demon and not those friendly shonen types that are pushovers. No, Devilman Crybaby has hyperviolent and over-sexualized demons, those that the bible warned everyone about.

As such, Devilman Crybaby isn’t something viewers can watch with their families. As the main protagonist tries to wrestle with his demon host, people around also fall prey to the same affliction until everything in their world goes wrong and becomes a satellite for hell. It’s a complete horror package this one, filled with body horror, satanic imagery, and overt adult content.

7 When They Cry

MyAnimeList: 7.88 (Season 1)

Otherwise known as Higurashi, When They Cry wears a deceptively welcoming facade. Most viewers will probably think that it’s a moe and cutesy anime about provincial school life and teen hormones when it’s actually about a murder fest.

That’s no joke, in the protagonist’s hometown, there’s an annual provincial festival with a local urban legend surrounding the festivity. To make matters more suspicious, the days leading up to the festival were filled with reports of local murders and disappearances. Producing 100 episodes over more than a decade, When They Cry is a time investment that does not always pay off, and the most recent two seasons (Gou and Sotsu) are particularly divisive. That said, the 2006 original and its sequel, Kai, have a few of the most iconic horror moments in anime, and they tell an overall engaging mystery story.

6 Ghost Hunt

MyAnimeList: 7.76

For a horror anime, ghost hunting is as straightforward as it gets and Ghost Hunt revolves around that rather foolish notion. It follows the exploits of a group that calls itself the Shibuya Psychic Research who are mostly just adventurous high school students.

It’s not as horrific as some other anime but Ghost Hunt tackles several issues such as religion, different cultures, and, of course, paranormal events that mostly have tragic origins. For patient viewers, Ghost Hunt can reward its fans with some spine-chilling pay-offs, though nothing too hardcore or nightmare-inducing. Still, the cases are generally all interesting and consistently attempt to be at least somewhat horrifying, even if they generally avoid taking things too far.

5 Theatre Of Darkness: Yamishibai

MyAnimeList: 7 (Season 1)

Depending on how viewers watch their horror, Yami Shibai or Japanese Ghost Stories is like watching a sleep paralysis episode unfold. This anime consists of several short stories or episodes each of which is about particular Japanese urban legends.

The animation is a little too crude, but it’s usually the storytelling that sells the show instead of the visuals. Each story has its own lesson and narrative rooted in Japanese culture and tradition as well as some hyper-imaginative tales. Make sure to watch this one with the lights off and alone for a better atmosphere.

Theatre of Darkness: Yamishibai is great during its first few seasons, which are generally quite consistent. Around season 4, the anime becomes more hit-and-miss, which unfortunately does hurt its overall quality. That said, at its peak, Yamishibai is one of the best horror anime.