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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 scaryhorror animeare rare. Consequently, the few true horror anime in existence hold a special place in everyone’s hearts.
Thebest horror animegive 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 July 08, 2025, by Mark Sammut:Summer 2025 has a few horror anime, and one of them is particularly great.
Monster,Berserk,Attack on Titan,Tokyo Ghoul,Made in Abyss, andBlood+have too few proper horror moments to qualify. However, they are fantastic and incredibly dark.
While Hiroya Oku’s manga is relatively highly regarded, the same cannot be said about Gonzo’s adaptation ofGantz. Celebrating 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,Gantzis 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,Gantzstill 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:Ois a pretty good CGI movie that is arguably superior to the series.
In truth, it is a stretch to describeZom 100: Bucket List of the Deadas horror since it does not attempt 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 likeHighschool of the DeadandZombie 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 likeKabaneri of the Iron Fortressto romps likeIs This a Zombie?
Zom 100does 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 100is 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.
Pet Shop of Horrorsis 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 Horrorshas 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.
Horror animeare 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-chanis 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.
Happy Sugar Lifeis 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 Lifeis nearly always suspenseful. Thishorror animeneeds to be experienced blind and preferably binge-watched over a weekend.
School-live!is often compared toPuella 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.
Look pastAjin’s unevenCG animationto 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,Ajinsucceeds 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.
Elfen Liedis 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 inElfen Liedis 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. Theamount of blood and violenceinElfen Liedtends 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 Liedis still one of the more popular horror-leaning anime of all time.
A short film released in the early 2000s,Cat Soupis far from a mainstream name, although it has acquired some notoriety over the years. Cut from the same bizarre cloth asAngel’s Egg,Cat Soupis 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.
Cat Soup is not a traditionalhorror animenor 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.
Considering the rarity of horror anime in general, a show lasting four seasons and 90 episodes is pretty much one-of-a-kind. Despite its longevity,Hell Girlis not quite as synonymous with the genre as a few other series, for a couple of reasons. For one, the full series is not that accessible nowadays, at least not legally. More importantly, the anime gets repetitive quickly, with most of the early segments being essentially the same thing. The later seasons shake up the formula and start to emphasize the eponymous Hell Girl’s backstory, but most people might not stick around for dozens of episodes that mostly consist of the same type of story.
That said, even during its early days,Hell Girlis an entertaining episodic series that can be relied upon to deliver a few mild frights. Thestorylines revolve around revenge, with Ai Enma showing up whenever someone types a target into a website. The twist is that the person seeking vengeance will also have to damn themselves to hell, adding a psychological element that forces people to reexamine their hatred. While periodically intense,Hell Girlis more atmospheric than downright scary, although it is still very much horror.
