2025 was the perfect year to be an anime fanand it's only going to get better in 2026. But which anime made their mark this year?
Googlethe #1 search engine worldwidereleased its annual findings of the top trending topics of 2025. It includes new and continuing anime series that trended highly in Japan this year. While there are a few obvious mentionssuch as the latest Gundam seriesthe top 10 also includes surprising inclusionslike Netflix's The Summer Hikaru Died. Google’s top 10 trending anime of 2025 is available to view below.
Google’s Top 10 Trending Anime Includes Takopi’s Original SinSakamoto Days & More
- Takopi’s Original Sin
- Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX
- Sakamoto Days
- The Summer Hikaru Died
- Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express
- The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity
- Orb: On the Movements of the Earth
- Secrets of the Silent Witch
- From Bureaucrat to Villainess: Dad's Been Reincarnated!
- Tougen Anki
Takopi’s Original Sin was the highest-trending anime of 2025 in Japanbased on Google's search results. The dark sci-fi fantasy has earned countless accolades for its hauntingyet engaging exploration of physical and psychological abuse through its tormented nine-year-old protagonist and the adorable-looking space alien thatfor better and for worseintervenes in her life.
As praised by CBR"Takopi’s Original Sin is a work that directly engages trauma without sugarcoating it or offering a convenient path towards salvation. [...] It’s an uncomfortable watchyet a deeply human one." The limited anime series is based on the Shonen Jump+ web manga by Taizan 5 and is available to stream on Crunchyroll.
Another notable and equally haunting entry is The Summer Hikaru Diedcurrently available to stream on Netflix. Based on the manga by Mokumokurenthe Netflix anime series follows Yoshiki Tsujinaka and Hikaru Indotwo teenage boys living in rural Japan. Their relationship is put to the test after Yoshiki senses something is suddenly off about his longtime friend"Hikaru."
The supernatural story is not only fascinating but also offers the perfect opportunity to pose quintessential questionssuch as what truly makes one human? Is it simply the memories of lifeeven if it isn't your own? Or is it the experience itself? The Summer Hikaru Died Season 2 was confirmed in late September.
Although Sakamoto Days didn't reach the heights of Demon Slayer or Chainsaw Man this yearit has regained fans' interest with its action-packed Season 2 release. While longtime Shonen Jump fans were underwhelmed by how Season 1 watered down the manga's crazy action scenesSakamoto Days Season 2 delivered a more faithful rendition of Yuto Suzuki's action comedy. (Orperhaps fans are now thankful for what they gotafter taking a peek at One-Punch Man Season 3.)
It certainly helps that Sakamoto Days Season 2 is darker and more serious in tone than Season 1as it plunges deeper into Taro Sakamoto's early days as an assassin and into the criminal underworld that has continued to thrive since his unannounced retirement. "The animation and the overall production quality of Sakamoto Days are only getting better day by day," CBR said in its praise of the Netflix anime"and there is no doubt that by the end of this seasonit will come out as one of the best anime of 2025."
2026 will continue the trend of excellent anime with highly anticipated premieresincluding Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Season 2Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3The Apothecary Diaries Season 3and so much more.