2025 is a perfect year for anime fans, and 2026 is expected to be even more explosive.
Google – the world’s No. 1 search engine – has just announced its annual list of the most popular topics and series in 2025. In this list, Google has compiled new and ongoing anime series with the highest search volume in Japan.
Besides familiar names like the latest Gundam series, the Top 10 also contains interesting surprises, like Netflix’s romantic horror series The Summer Hikaru Died.
Below is the ranking of the 10 most searched anime series on Google in Japan in 2025, showing the diverse and unique tastes of fans of the land of cherry blossoms:
1. Takopi’s Original Sin
2. Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX
3. Sakamoto Days
4. The Summer Hikaru Died
5. Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express
6. The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity
7. Orb: On the Movements of the Earth
8. Secrets of the Silent Witch
9. From Bureaucrat to Villainess: Dad’s Been Reincarnated!
10. Tougen Anki
Number 1 Place Goes To The Haunting Work: Takopi’s Original Sin
The most surprising thing is that the top position belongs to Takopi’s Original Sin. This dark science fiction work has become the anime with the highest search volume of 2025 in Japan.
Takopi’s Original Sin has received countless acclaim for its chilling yet gripping exploration of physical and psychological abuse, through its protagonist, a tormented 9-year-old girl and a lovable but meddling alien in her life.
Adapted from a short manga on Shonen Jump+, the work is not afraid to delve into mental trauma in a naked way, without sugarcoating it or offering easy salvation solutions. This is a difficult film to watch, but deeply humane.
Other Notable Names
Another notable work on the list is The Summer Hikaru Died (rank 4), currently streaming on Netflix. Based on the manga by Mokumokuren, this supernatural anime follows two teenage boys living in rural Japan, as one of them realizes something is off about his longtime best friend, Hikaru.
The story raises profound philosophical questions such as: What truly makes a person? Is it memories, or is it life experiences? With resounding success, season 2 of The Summer Hikaru Died was confirmed at the end of September.
Ranked 3rd is Sakamoto Days. While it didn’t reach the global popularity of Demon Slayer or Chainsaw Man this year, the series has regained fan interest with the release of its action-packed season 2.
After season 1 was said to have toned down the madness of the original manga, Sakamoto Days season 2 delivered a more faithful adaptation. The plot of season 2 also becomes darker and more serious, delving into Taro Sakamoto’s early days as an assassin and the criminal underworld. This is considered one of the best quality action anime of 2025.
This list shows that Japanese fans are not only interested in major Shonen action works, but also pay special attention to deep, independent series that deal with psychology, supernatural and even new genres.
With the success of 2025, anime fans have every right to expect an even more brilliant 2026, with the return of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End season 2, Jujutsu Kaisen season 3, The Apothecary Diaries season 3 and many other anticipated blockbusters.
