The life of an average anime watcher has never been an easy one. Since not many legal services are available to watch anime online, many of them resort to pirated anime websites to keep up with their favorite anime such as Attack on Titan, Steins Gate, and more. However, it is 2021, and things have changed quite a lot. To help you watch the anime you love (legally), we’ve handpicked the best anime streaming websites out there.
Best Anime Websites to Watch Anime Legally (2021)
Note: Some of the websites mentioned here are limited to specific regions. We’ve mentioned the availability in the ‘Supported Regions’ section. If you’re not in an officially supported region, you can use a VPN to access it. However, this approach may break the T&C of some services, and you’ll have to use it at your own risk. Check out the best VPNs for Windows, best free VPN services, Android & iOS, and Android TV. Grab one that suits your budget and use-case.
So, without further ado, grab some popcorn and get ready to watch some anime. You can use the table below to navigate to the website you want to read about in detail.
1. Crunchyroll – Best Anime Website Overall
Crunchyroll is the most popular website for watching anime legally. You’ll find both mainstream anime titles such as Naruto Shippuden and trending titles like Attack on Titan on Crunchyroll. The service has a vast library of anime with a total of over 30,000 episodes to choose from, but the exact availability of titles depends on your region.
Crunchyroll has an ad-supported tier to watch anime for free. However, the paid subscription gives you unlimited access to the Crunchyroll library, and new episodes become available to watch one hour after Japan’s air time. You can also download anime for offline viewing in the paid tier.
Supported Regions: Crunchyroll’s library is limited even on supported regions due to licensing issues. You can check out the library in your country here. This Reddit post from 2017 should also give you a rough estimate of the catalog in your region.
Cost: Free tier; premium plan starts at $7.99 per month
Visit Crunchyroll
2. Funimation – Best English Dubbed Anime Website
Funimation is another website you can use to catch up on all your favorite anime. This anime streaming website is home to over 10,000 episodes of different anime shows. Funimation also focuses on dubbing anime to English. While purists may argue that you should watch anime in the original language with subtitles, Funimation has you covered if you prefer watching anime in English.
You can watch anime for free via an ad-supported tier or get a Funimation Premium Plus subscription. The premium plan starts at $5.99 per month and goes up to $99.99 per year for an uninterrupted experience.
Supported Regions: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand
Cost: Free tier; premium plan starts at $5.99 per month
Visit Funimation
3. Netflix
Although Netflix primarily focuses on regular movies and TV shows, the streaming platform has an ever-expanding anime collection. You can stream anything from the critically acclaimed Death Note (no, I’m not talking about the Netflix adaptation. Don’t ever watch that) to Demon Slayer, My Hero Academia, Fullmetal Alchemist, all the Studio Ghibli films, and more on Netflix.
Netflix’s category code of anime is 7424, and you can visit the link below to browse all the anime content available on the website. If you’re looking for recommendations, do not forget to check out our article on the best anime on Netflix.
Supported Regions: Over 190 countries except for China, Crimea, North Korea, Syria.
Cost: Starts at $8.99
Visit Netflix
4. VRV
VRV bundles a collection of anime channels into a single package. As of this writing, VRV includes Cartoon Hangover, Crunchyroll, HiDive, Mondo, Rooster Teeth, and VRV Select. Although VRV previously also bundled Boomerang and Nicksplat, they are no longer available on the platform.
One disappointing fact about VRV is that it is limited to the US due to some licensing limitations. If you’re someone who already pays for Crunchyroll, you should go check out VRV to gain access to more content at a slightly higher cost.
Supported Regions: United States
Cost: $9.99 per month
Visit VRV
5. Hulu
Another US-centric streaming website you can use to watch anime is Hulu. In case you didn’t find the anime you’re looking for on Netflix or Crunchyroll, you’ll probably find it on Hulu since it has a vast collection of anime. If you’re someone who’s already using Hulu for watching movies and TV shows, you should not miss out on their anime collection.
We do have to warn you about the experience though, as it may not be good because of advertisements in the base $5.99 subscription plan. Getting rid of ads will cost you $11.99 per month.
Supported Regions: United States
Cost: starts at $5.99 per month
Visit Hulu
6. RetroCrush – Vintage Anime Website
As the name tells, RetroCrush is a service for those interested in watching vintage anime. RetroCrush’s appeal depends on the kind of anime viewer you are. If you have been watching anime for years, discovering RetroCrush is likely to be a pleasant surprise. There is an ad-supported tier that lets you watch the collection for free, but you can consider getting a premium subscription if you want an ad-free experience.
Supported Regions: United States and Canada
Cost: Free tier; ad-free premium plan starts at $4.99 per month
Visit RetroCrush
7. AnimeLab
AnimeLab is another excellent anime streaming website for staying in the loop with your favorite anime. What I like the most about Animelab is the design and user experience. The website is smooth and responsive, and there are dedicated apps for almost every platform out there.
AnimeLab is limited to Australia and New Zealand at the moment. But I hope it expands to more countries in the future because the UI/UX of this platform is excellent, and the anime collection is decent too.
Supported Regions: Australia and New Zealand
Cost: Free tier; premium plan starts at $7.95 AUD (~US$ 6.10)
Visit AnimeLab
8. HiDive
HiDive is not a website for an average anime viewer because it doesn’t include anime shows that are popular and well known. On the flipside, HiDive’s limited collection may seem appealing to those who want to expand their watching habits and explore new titles.
At $4.99 per month, HiDive is not the most expensive anime streaming website. The company also offers a 1-month trial if you want to try it out to know if you find the collection appealing.
Supported Regions: North America, Latin America, Central America, South America, United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand.
Cost: starts at $4.99 per month
Visit HiDive
9. Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video is usually not the first choice of anime fans, but it has a growing anime collection that you should check out. While I won’t recommend getting a Prime membership just for watching anime on this website, it is a bonus if you have an active Prime subscription.
Supported Regions: Over 200 countries
Cost: Prime subscription starts at $8.99 per month
Visit Amazon Prime Video
10. CONtv
While CONtv’s library is not as vast as other anime streaming websites on this list, you’re likely to find some anime that are usually not available elsewhere. CONtv lets you watch anime for free through its ad-supported tier, but streaming popular anime titles requires a premium subscription that costs $6.99 per month.
Supported Regions: United States
Cost: Free; starts at $6.99 a month
Visit CONtv
Best Websites to Watch Anime Legally
So, those are our picks of the best anime websites out there. Given the rising popularity of anime, we’re glad there are such streaming services to help fans watch anime without any added friction. Do you watch anime legally on any other streaming website that is not featured here? Do not forget to let us know in the comments, and we will check it out.
