There is no objective, universally agreed list of the best anime films. This ranking weighs artistic craft, influence, storytelling, emotional force, distinctiveness and historical importance, while also asking which films make good starting points. It ranges from cyberpunk and psychological thrillers to war drama, romance, fantasy and comedy. Anime is a medium, not a genre—and it is not automatically for children.
How this ranking works
The order is an editorial judgment, not a scorecard. It balances the films’ achievements on their own terms with their lasting influence and ability to show the range of anime feature filmmaking. Familiar Studio Ghibli classics have a substantial place, but they do not stand in for the whole medium.
Other published lists take different approaches: Rotten Tomatoes ranks by Tomatometer, while Men’s Health describes balancing genre impact and artistic quality. Rotten Tomatoes’ Certified Fresh label requires at least 75% on the Tomatometer after 40 or 80 critic reviews, depending on release type; that threshold describes its rating system, not a universal measure of artistic greatness. Rotten Tomatoes
The 25 best anime movies, ranked
1. Spirited Away (2001)
Director Hayao Miyazaki’s fantasy follows Chihiro, a young girl navigating a spirit world after her parents are transformed. Its imaginative settings and precise character work make it an unusually welcoming gateway into anime, while its strange, dreamlike details reward repeat viewing. Its international recognition includes the Golden Bear and the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, as recorded by the British Film Institute.
#1 Best Overall
- Textless Opening Song
2. Akira (1988)
Katsuhiro Otomo’s adaptation of his manga turns a volatile, futuristic Tokyo into a landmark of animated science fiction. Its speed, scale and dystopian atmosphere helped introduce many Western viewers to anime and influenced filmmaking well beyond Japan. It is an essential pick for viewers drawn to cyberpunk, but its violence and bleakness make it a very different first film from a family fantasy. Time Out
3. Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Isao Takahata’s war drama follows siblings trying to survive in Japan during the final months of World War II. Its intimate focus makes the consequences of war painfully immediate. This is a powerful, somber film, not light family viewing; its emotional intensity is part of its achievement, but also a reason to choose it deliberately.
4. Princess Mononoke (1997)
Miyazaki’s historical fantasy follows Ashitaka into a conflict between a settlement built around iron production and the forest beings resisting its expansion. Rather than reduce the struggle to simple heroes and villains, the film gives force to competing needs and harms. It is a strong choice for viewers who want action and myth with ecological questions at the center.
5. Perfect Blue (1997)
Satoshi Kon’s psychological thriller follows a former pop idol whose attempt to change careers becomes entangled with stalking, violence and an increasingly unstable sense of reality. Its controlled editing makes the viewer share the protagonist’s uncertainty. This is adult-oriented, disturbing material, not a casual introduction for every viewer.
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Miyazaki’s gentle story follows sisters settling into the countryside while their mother is in hospital and encountering mysterious forest spirits. It earns its place through observation and warmth rather than plot twists: everyday childhood anxieties coexist with a wonderfully strange natural world. A particularly approachable choice for families and first-time viewers.
7. Paprika (2006)
Kon’s science-fiction fantasy follows a therapist who enters patients’ dreams using experimental technology, then confronts the consequences when the boundaries between dream and waking life begin to collapse. Its transformations and visual invention make it one of anime’s most exhilarating explorations of the unconscious. The shifting logic is part of the appeal, though viewers seeking a straightforward plot may prefer another entry.
Rank #2
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- English dubbed, Japanese language, English subtitles
8. Your Name (2016)
Makoto Shinkai’s romance begins with two teenagers who inexplicably wake up in each other’s bodies and develops into a story about memory, distance and connection. The body-swap premise gives the film comic energy before its emotional and science-fiction elements come into focus. It is one of the easiest contemporary features to recommend to someone who wants romance with a speculative twist. The BFI discusses the film’s reach and identifies Shinkai and CoMix Wave Films in that context. BFI
9. Tokyo Godfathers (2003)
Kon’s Christmas-set drama follows three unhoused people who find an abandoned baby and try to reunite the child with its family. It trades the disorientation of Perfect Blue and Paprika for a more direct, character-led story, without losing Kon’s interest in coincidence and unexpected connections. A good pick for viewers who want comedy and humane drama rather than fantasy or a thriller.
10. Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989)
Miyazaki’s coming-of-age fantasy follows a young witch who leaves home to establish herself in a seaside city, using her flying ability to start a delivery service. Its gentle humor and attention to work, independence and confidence make it especially accessible. Choose it for a warm, low-stress entry point rather than a high-stakes adventure.
11. The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (2013)
Takahata retells a Japanese folktale about a mysterious child discovered inside a bamboo stalk. Its hand-drawn, brushlike look makes the animation feel in motion even in quiet scenes, and the story’s growing tension between freedom and social expectation gives the beauty a sharp edge. A distinctive choice for viewers curious about animation that looks unlike polished digital spectacle.
12. Only Yesterday (1991)
Takahata’s reflective drama moves between an adult woman’s present-day visit to the countryside and memories of her childhood. It finds emotional weight in recollection and ordinary decisions rather than fantasy or spectacle. This is a quieter recommendation for viewers who enjoy character studies and the ways adulthood revisits the past.
13. A Silent Voice (2016)
Naoko Yamada’s drama follows a young man seeking to make amends with a deaf former classmate he bullied as a child. Its treatment of guilt, isolation and communication gives the story an emotional seriousness that extends beyond a school setting. It is a thoughtful contemporary choice, though its bullying and distressing themes may be difficult for some viewers.
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14. Castle in the Sky (1986)
Miyazaki’s adventure sends two young protagonists in pursuit of a legendary floating city, with pirates and government forces close behind. It offers a classic mixture of invention, movement and clear-hearted adventure, making it an effective pick for viewers who want a plot-driven fantasy with a younger audience in mind.
15. The Castle of Cagliostro (1979)
Miyazaki’s feature debut follows master thief Lupin III on a rescue mission in the small European country of Cagliostro. It is a nimble caper, built around chases, comic timing and an expressive sense of space. The film is a useful reminder that anime’s history includes playful action-adventure as well as later prestige fantasy and science fiction.
16. Weathering with You (2019)
Shinkai’s fantasy romance centers on a runaway teenager in Tokyo and a girl with an extraordinary ability to bring sunshine to a rain-soaked city. The urban setting and weather imagery give its love story a contemporary scale. It pairs naturally with Your Name for viewers who want romance, striking cityscapes and supernatural premises.
17. Millennium Actress (2001)
Kon follows a documentary crew interviewing a retired actress, but her memories continually turn into scenes from the films she made. The result moves fluidly between personal recollection and cinematic history, using animation to make the act of remembering visible. Choose it for formal playfulness and a story about devotion to art and the people one leaves behind.
18. The Wind Rises (2013)
Miyazaki’s historical drama imagines the life of Jiro Horikoshi, the aeronautical engineer associated with Japan’s wartime aircraft. It is a contemplative film about ambition, beauty and the moral unease of creating something that can be used for destruction. Its more adult, reflective tone distinguishes it from Miyazaki’s adventure fantasies.
19. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)
Mamoru Hosoda’s science-fiction coming-of-age story follows a teenager who discovers she can leap backward through time. The early fun of correcting small mistakes gradually gives way to questions about consequence and growing up. It is an approachable option for viewers who want a youthful premise with real emotional stakes.
Rank #4
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- Factory sealed DVD
20. Wolf Children (2012)
Hosoda’s family fantasy follows a mother raising two children who can transform into wolves, and the different paths they take as they grow older. Its central interest is less the supernatural premise than the demands of care, independence and letting children become themselves. A good choice for viewers seeking an emotional family story rather than a conventional action plot.
21. The Boy and the Heron (2023)
Miyazaki’s fantasy follows a grieving boy who enters a mysterious world after meeting a gray heron. Its symbolic, sometimes elusive storytelling invites interpretation more than it explains every turn. Viewers who enjoy wandering through a film’s images and ideas may find it especially rewarding; those wanting a tightly signposted adventure may prefer an earlier entry.
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Eiichi Yamamoto’s experimental historical fantasy is a visually unusual, adult-oriented film, using stylized imagery and limited movement to tell a disturbing story of exploitation and power. It broadens this list beyond the familiar post-1980 landmarks, but its sexual violence and challenging material make it an emphatically selective recommendation.
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23. Night Is Short, Walk on Girl (2017)
Masaaki Yuasa’s comedy follows a young woman on an increasingly improbable night out in Kyoto, while a lovestruck student repeatedly crosses her path. Its playful visual style and buoyant pacing make it a lively counterpoint to the heavier dramas here. Best for viewers who enjoy surreal comedy and stories that delight in digression.
24. In This Corner of the World (2016)
Sunao Katabuchi’s historical drama follows Suzu, a young woman building a life in wartime Hiroshima. It pays close attention to domestic routines and community even as war steadily alters the world around her. The film offers a different kind of war story from Grave of the Fireflies: measured, observant and rooted in the texture of daily life.
25. The Secret World of Arrietty (2010)
Hiromasa Yonebayashi’s fantasy follows a family of tiny people living unseen beneath the floorboards of a human home. Its carefully scaled environments make ordinary objects feel enormous, while its gentle story centers on friendship and the risks of being discovered. A charming, accessible final pick for viewers who want a compact fantasy.
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- For a first anime feature: try Spirited Away for fantasy, Kiki’s Delivery Service for a gentler coming-of-age story, or Your Name for contemporary romance.
- For science fiction and cyberpunk: start with Akira; choose Paprika if you want dream logic rather than dystopian action.
- For psychological tension: Perfect Blue is the most unsettling option here; Tokyo Godfathers offers Kon’s character writing in a warmer, more direct mode.
- For war and historical drama: Grave of the Fireflies is devastating; In This Corner of the World is more focused on the rhythms of civilian life.
- For family-friendly fantasy: My Neighbor Totoro and Kiki’s Delivery Service are gentle choices; Princess Mononoke has more intense action and conflict.
Anime is a medium, not a single kind of story
These films range from child-friendly fantasy to adult psychological horror, from intimate family drama to science-fiction spectacle. Studio Ghibli is central to the conversation, but it is only part of it: the work of directors such as Satoshi Kon, Makoto Shinkai, Mamoru Hosoda and Sunao Katabuchi offers very different ideas about what animated cinema can do. The BFI has likewise highlighted anime films beyond Ghibli in its guide to 21st-century work. BFI
Quick Recap
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