The 2025 Crunchyroll Anime Awards honored anime released in 2024. This ranking brings together six Anime of the Year nominees and four standouts recognized in other categories, weighing story appeal, distinctiveness, and the awards as context—not as a definitive quality score. It includes Look Back, the Film of the Year winner, so the list covers both series and a feature film.
How this ranking works
The ninth annual Crunchyroll Anime Awards took place in Tokyo on May 25, 2025. Its Anime of the Year nominees were DAN DA DAN, Delicious in Dungeon, Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Kaiju No. 8, Solo Leveling, and The Apothecary Diaries. The nominees and results identify what the awards recognized; the order below is an editorial ranking, not an official ballot ranking. Titles from continuing-series, film, romance, and slice-of-life categories broaden the selection.
Crunchyroll’s April 3, 2025 viewing guide listed services for nominees including Crunchyroll, Netflix, Hulu, HIDIVE, Max, and Amazon Prime. That is a dated guide, not a guarantee of current or regional availability; check the relevant service’s catalog where you live.
The 10 nominated anime, ranked
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Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
For a list that values more than spectacle, Frieren is the strongest all-around choice. Its Anime of the Year nomination came alongside a win for Best Drama, recognition that makes it a particularly compelling pick for viewers drawn to reflective storytelling. Its place at the top here is an editorial judgment, not a claim that the award settles the debate.
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Readers who want to continue with the source material can find the English-language manga from VIZ.
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Solo Leveling
The clearest awards-led selection, Solo Leveling won both Anime of the Year and Best New Anime Series. It also belonged to the six-title Anime of the Year slate. Those results make it an easy starting point for anyone who wants a highly recognized 2024 series; the ranking places it just below Frieren because this list balances awards with a broader editorial view.
Rank #2
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DAN DA DAN
As an Anime of the Year nominee, DAN DA DAN represents the range of that top category. Its place here reflects its distinct identity among the nominees and its value as a pick for viewers who want something different from a conventional fantasy or action setup. The nomination is the official credential; the comparison is this ranking’s judgment.
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The Apothecary Diaries
The Apothecary Diaries earned an Anime of the Year nomination and recognition in multiple categories. It adds a character- and mystery-oriented option to a list otherwise weighted toward high-concept fantasy and action. That variety matters: a strong nominee slate is not only a contest among similar shows, but a chance to find a series suited to a different kind of viewer.
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Delicious in Dungeon
Another Anime of the Year nominee, Delicious in Dungeon broadens the selection with a fantasy premise that makes food and exploration central to its identity. It ranks in the upper half for the way it offers a noticeably different flavor from the slate’s more familiar action-forward choices.
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Kaiju No. 8
Kaiju No. 8 completes the Anime of the Year nominees in this ranking. Its nomination and presence across additional categories mark it as one of the major recognized series of the awards year. It sits below the titles above because this order gives more weight to variety and distinctiveness than to category breadth alone.
Rank #4
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Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Hashira Training Arc
The awards’ Best Continuing Series and Best Animation winner earns a place here as the ranking’s standout continuing story. Those two wins are strong signals of recognition, though they are not evidence of an objective measure shared by every viewer. Its inclusion also shows why a list restricted to the Anime of the Year nominees would leave out notable award-season choices.
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Look Back
This is the list’s one feature film. Look Back won Film of the Year, and including it makes the scope explicit: “anime” here means nominated animated works, not series alone. Readers looking only for a multi-episode show can skip to the final two entries.
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The Dangers in My Heart Season 2
The official viewing guide listed The Dangers in My Heart Season 2 among nominees for Best Romance and Best Slice of Life. Its recognition gives the ranking a romance-and-everyday-life option beyond the six Anime of the Year titles, while its position reflects the writer’s preference rather than a comparison of award totals.
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Makeine: Too Many Losing Heroines!
Makeine: Too Many Losing Heroines! rounds out the list as the Best Slice of Life winner. It is a useful reminder that the 2025 awards recognized work outside their headline category, and a fitting choice for readers seeking a lighter, genre-specific alternative to the action and fantasy titles higher up.
Where to watch
Crunchyroll’s April 2025 nominee guide is a helpful starting point for checking where each title was listed at the time. It covered multiple services rather than establishing one home for every show. Streaming catalogs differ by country and change over time, so confirm availability in your region before subscribing or planning a watchlist.
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