The Crunchyroll Anime Awards, also known simply as The Anime Awards, are awards given annually by the anime streaming service Crunchyroll to recognize the best anime of the previous year. Announced in December 2016, the awards were first presented in January 2017. Crunchyroll describes it as a "global event that recognizes the anime shows, characters, and artists that fans around the world love most."
The Anime Awards were originally held in California in the United States. In 2023, the Awards moved to the Grand Prince Hotel New Takanawa in Tokyo, Japan for the 7th ceremony and have been held there ever since. The most recent ceremony was the 10th ceremony, held on May 23, 2026, where the eighth and final season of My Hero Academia won the Anime of the Year award.
Process The awards have two rounds of voting. Initially, each judge will submit up to five potential candidates for each category. Six candidates that received the highest amount of nominations from this round will be included in the final list for the next round, which is a one-week public voting. Winners for each category are determined by the most judge and public votes weighted in a 70:30 ratio respectively since at least the 6th edition.
For the first six editions of the awards, any anime that was produced primarily in Japan and released legally on television, cinema, or online from January to December of the previous year were eligible for nomination. The eligibility period was changed for the 7th and 8th editions, from October of the previous two years (Fall season) to September of the previous year (Summer season). However, in December 2024, Crunchyroll announced that starting from the 10th edition onwards, the eligibility period will return to its previous format of eligibility from January to December, with the eligibility period for the 9th edition covering October 2023 to December 2024 to accommodate the change in format. Eligible nominations for non-Japanese VA Performance are based on the initial release of the dub irrespective of when the anime was originally released.
The set of categories that will be presented varies for each edition, with categories added, removed, or otherwise renamed. The 9th edition, for example, featured 32 categories.
Categories Current Crunchyroll announced the categories for each edition around December. The following list are the awards featured on its latest edition. Of these, only four awards (Anime of the Year, Best Animation, Best Opening Sequence and Best Ending Sequence) are currently active in every editions since its inauguration in 2017.
Anime of the Year (since 2017) Film of the Year (2018–2019; since 2022)
Series awards Best Continuing Series (2018–2019; since 2023) Best New Series (since 2023) Best Original Anime (since 2023)
Production awards Best Animation (since 2017) Best Character Design (since 2019) Best Director (since 2019) Best Background Art (since 2024)
Music awards Best Opening Sequence (since 2017) Best Ending Sequence (since 2017) Best Score (since 2018) Best Anime Song (since 2023)
Voice acting awards
Japanese (JP) (since 2019) English (EN) (since 2019) German (DE) (since 2022) French (FR) (since 2022) Latin American Spanish (LA) (since 2022) Castilian Spanish (SP) (since 2022) Portuguese (PT) (since 2022) Arabic (AR) (since 2023) Italian (IT) (since 2023) Hindi (HI) (since 2025)
Genre awards Best Drama (2017–2018; since 2020) Best Comedy (2017–2018; since 2020) Best Action (2017–2018; since 2022) Best Romance (since 2022) Best Slice of Life (2018; since 2024) Best Isekai Anime (since 2025)
Character awards
Best Main Character (since 2023) Best Supporting Character (since 2023) "Must Protect at All Costs" Character (since 2023)
Special These are awards uniquely given on certain editions, and are not part of the voting process. In 2023, two special awards were announced: Special Achievement Award and Presenter's Choice; however, both were not given during the ceremony.
Industry Icon Award (2018–2020) Global Impact Award (since 2025)
Retired Best Character Best Protagonist (2017–2022) Best Antagonist (2017–2022) Best Boy (2017–2022) Best Girl (2017–2022) Best Fantasy (2020–2024) Best Fight Scene (2017–2022) Most Heartwarming Scene (2017) Best CGI (2018) Best Cinematography (2024) Best Manga (2018) Best Couple (2017; 2020–2021) Best Voice Artist Performance Russian (RU) (2022)
Editions Ceremony Date Anime of the Year Film of the Year Most Nominations Most Wins 1st Crunchyroll Anime Awards January 28, 2017 Yuri on Ice Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress with 9 nominations Yuri on Ice with 7 wins 2nd Crunchyroll Anime Awards February 24, 2018 Made in Abyss Your Name My Hero Academia (season 2) with 10 nominations My Hero Academia (season 2) with 8 wins 3rd Crunchyroll Anime Awards February 16, 2019 Devilman Crybaby My Hero Academia: Two Heroes Megalobox with 8 nominations My Hero Academia (season 3) with 4 wins 4th Crunchyroll Anime Awards February 15, 2020 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Carole & Tuesday, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, and Vinland Saga with 9 nominations each Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Kaguya-sama: Love Is War with 3 wins each 5th Crunchyroll Anime Awards February 19, 2021 Jujutsu Kaisen Great Pretender, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! with 10 nominations each Jujutsu Kaisen with 3 wins 6th Crunchyroll Anime Awards February 9, 2022 Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 1 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train Jujutsu Kaisen (cour 2) with 16 nominations Jujutsu Kaisen (cour 2) with 6 wins 7th Crunchyroll Anime Awards March 4, 2023 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Jujutsu Kaisen 0 Spy × Family with 19 nominations Spy × Family, Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2, and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc with 6 wins each 8th Crunchyroll Anime Awards March 2, 2024 Jujutsu Kaisen (season 2) Suzume Chainsaw Man with 25 nominations Jujutsu Kaisen (season 2) with 11 wins 9th Crunchyroll Anime Awards May 25, 2025 Solo Leveling Look Back Dandadan with 22 nominations Solo Leveling with 9 wins 10th Crunchyroll Anime Awards May 23, 2026 My Hero Academia: Final Season Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle Dandadan (season 2) with 20 nominations Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle with 7 wins
Records
Series
The following nominees received multiple nominations (5 or more):
Nominations Title 47 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba 46 Attack on Titan 45 Jujutsu Kaisen 44 My Hero Academia 42 Dandadan 40 Spy × Family 30 The Apothecary Diaries 25 Chainsaw Man Ranking of Kings 23 Solo Leveling 22 Mob Psycho 100 20 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Kaiju No. 8 19 Kaguya-sama: Love Is War18 My Dress-Up Darling17 Oshi no Ko One Piece 16 Delicious in Dungeon Gachiakuta Vinland Saga 14 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure 13 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 11 Beastars Made in Abyss Megalo Box Odd Taxi Wonder Egg Priority 10 Bocchi the Rock! Great Pretender Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! 9 The Ancient Magus' Bride Carole & Tuesday Fruits Basket Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress KonoSuba: God's Blessing on this Wonderful World! 8 Aggretsuko Hell's Paradise Lycoris Recoil Mashle: Magic and Muscles Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid Ranma ½ Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World The Promised Neverland The Summer Hikaru Died Sarazanmai 7 86 Devilman Crybaby March Comes in Like a Lion Takopi's Original Sin Tower of God Yuri on Ice 6 Dorohedoro Dr. Stone Erased Komi Can't Communicate Land of the Lustrous Little Witch Academia Tokyo Revengers Violet Evergarden Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead 5 Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Descending Stories: Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju Dragon Ball Super Heavenly Delusion Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation SK8 the Infinity The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity Witch Watch Ya Boy Kongming! Zombie Land Saga
The following winners received multiple awards (2 or more):
Awards Title 22 Jujutsu Kaisen 19 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba My Hero Academia 17 Attack on Titan 12 Spy × Family 11 Solo Leveling 7 Yuri on Ice 6 Chainsaw Man Kaguya-sama: Love Is War The Apothecary Diaries 5 Dandadan One Piece Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World 4 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Mob Psycho 100 3 Gachiakuta 2 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Devilman Crybaby Dr. Stone Erased Horimiya JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! Made in Abyss Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid Odd Taxi Ranking of Kings That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime The Promised Neverland The Rising of the Shield Hero
Films
The following nominees received multiple nominations (2 or more):
Nominations Title 13 Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc 8 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle 6 Suzume 4 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train Jujutsu Kaisen 0 One Piece Film: Red 3 Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero Evangelion 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time Look Back 2 A Silent Voice Belle Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle
The following winners received multiple awards (2 or more):
Awards Title 7 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle 3 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train Jujutsu Kaisen 0 2 Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc Look Back
Overall [Series + Films]
The following nominees received multiple nominations (10 or more):
Nominations Title 59 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba 49 Jujutsu Kaisen 47 Attack on Titan 46 My Hero Academia 42 Dandadan 41 Spy × Family38 Chainsaw Man 30 The Apothecary Diaries 25 Ranking of Kings 23 Solo Leveling 22 Mob Psycho 100 21 One Piece 20 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Kaiju No. 8 Kaguya-sama: Love Is War 18 My Dress-Up Darling 17 Oshi no Ko 16 Delicious in Dungeon Gachiakuta Vinland Saga 14 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure 13 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 11 Beastars Made in Abyss Megalo Box Odd Taxi Wonder Egg Priority 10 Bocchi the Rock! Great Pretender Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!
The following winners received multiple awards (2 or more):
Awards Title 29 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba 25 Jujutsu Kaisen 20 My Hero Academia 17 Attack on Titan 12 Spy × Family 11 Solo Leveling 8 Chainsaw Man 7 Yuri on Ice 6 Kaguya-sama: Love Is War The Apothecary Diaries 5 Dandadan One Piece Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World 4 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Mob Psycho 100 3 Gachiakuta 2 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Devilman Crybaby Dr. Stone Erased Horimiya JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! Look Back Made in Abyss Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid Odd Taxi Ranking of Kings That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime The Promised Neverland The Rising of the Shield Hero
Criticisms
Bias towards popular shows Since its inception, the Crunchyroll Anime Awards have been criticized for its process in nominations and awarding. Its inaugural ceremony in 2017, saw allegations of possible voting fraud after the sports series Yuri on Ice won all of its seven nominations including Anime of the Year. The win caused a controversy among Crunchyroll users, who accused fans of the series for rigging the vote in a heavily aggressive campaign. Following this, Crunchyroll responded by adjusting the awards system, introducing a new weighting system favoring jury in an attempt to minimize the effect of popular shows sweeping the awards. This change stopped the extremely popular superhero series My Hero Academia from unexpectedly losing the Anime of the Year to Made in Abyss in the following edition; ultimately in the 10th edition, the eighth and final season of My Hero Academia won Anime of the Year, the first concluding season of an anime series to win.