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If harem stories are rare, thenreverse harem animeare endangered. Despite being common enough in the manga and light novel industry, these types of romance stories tend not to receive adaptations. Most years might produce two or three shows that fit the reverse harem descriptor, and even that minuscule supply is not guaranteed. In fact, 2024 ignored this subgenre almost entirely, and 2025 is only marginally better.
Even if the options are not abundant, there are still enough reverse harems to keep fans busy for a while. They might not all be great or complete, but there are plenty of gems out there. Consequently, let’s take a look at thebest reverse harem animeever.
Updated June 21, 2025, by Mark Sammut:Spring 2025 is fairly lacking inreverse harems, with only one show threatening to scratch that itch. As the options are so lacking, a divisive Winter 2025 anime has been added to the discussion. Click below to jump directly to this new entry.
Best Spring 2025 Reverse Harem Anime
While not quite attracting as much attention as its predecessor, theSpring 2025 seasonhas been decent so far. Even if it might be somewhat lacking in all-time big shows, the lineup is arguably one of the most well-rounded in recent years. Action fans can check outFire Force,Wind Breaker,MHA Vigilantes, andFrom Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman, while romance lovers have options thanks toCan a Boy-Girl Friendship Survive?,Kowloon Generic Romance, andAharen Is Indecipherable. Comedy is well-represented byWitch Watch,Mono, andA Ninja and an Assassin Under One Roof, and the same can be said for slice of life, drama, and fantasy. Overall, Spring 2025 has a good mix of genres.
Harems are not in short supply either, although stories with male protagonists are (unsurprisingly) the main focus. When it comes toreverse harem anime, only a single Spring 2025 series seems to fit the descriptor, and it is not guaranteed to go in this direction either. That said, the first few episodes suggest that romance will be a relatively major part of the experience, even if it might be secondary to humor.
The Gorilla God’s Go-To Girlis the only Spring 2025 anime that sets up something resembling a reverse harem, and it is doing a pretty good job. Set in a world where people receive gifts from animal gods, Sophia becomes empowered by a gorilla, which is rare and instantly makes her among the strongest people around. As she mostly wants to keep a low profile, she is not particularly excited by this turn of events, and she is even less thrilled when she is pushed to join the Royal Knights.
Fairly quickly, Sophia finds herself surrounded by a gaggle of guys, all of whom attract instant attention from pretty much every other girl. While not every potential member of the harem has been spotlighted significantly,The Gorilla God’s Go-To Girlhas introduced a few likable candidates already, with Louis, Isaac, and Eddy being especially charming. They lean into tropes to an extent, but they have fun chemistry with Sophia. That said, Louis is very clearly presented as the main love interest, so the others seem destined to be primarily friends.
Consideringreverse harem animeare so rare nowadays, newcomers should be celebrated since they are such a rare treat, particularly ones that confirm they will be returning for a sequel season.Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with Youis, arguably, 2025’s most “traditional” entry in the genre, in the sense that it revolves around a high school girl and four guys who may or may not be interested in her. The story has no fantastical elements and, refreshingly, opts for a purposefully slow and melancholy pace. The latter fits the framing device, which involves an adult Mizuho, the female protagonist, reminiscing about her teenage years. The anime is even set during a pandemic, serving as a rare example of a show that directly references 2020.
Even the characters' dynamics are interesting, as Mizuho has been friends with the four guys since childhood. They arrive pre-installed with history, and the inciting incident sees one of the boys reveal that he is romantically interested in Mizuho. The latter struggles to process this information as she has always just seen him as a friend rather than anything else, and she fears that this revelation will change the whole group’s relationships.
Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with Youis an acquired taste, way more so than the typical reverse harem. The anime’s slow pace could be seen as both a blessing and a curse, as there are fairly long stretches when nothing seems to happen. The framing device arguably undermines one of the main appeals of these types of stories: learning who will win. Finally, the story does not make particularly great use of the pandemic setting.
Season 2 is on the way, so things could certainly improve. Could it jump up to be among thebest reverse haremsof all time?
La storia della Arcana Famigliashould have been better. Derivative as it is, the story has potential since it revolves around a mafia-run tournament to determine the female main character’s partner; understandably, Felicita also enters the competition to claim her hand and destiny. The rest of the contenders are all attractive male gangsters with fun designs, cool outfits, and either stylish or strange hair (Exhibit A: Dante). J.C.Staff was a good pick for this visual novel adaptation, and the studio’s resume is packed with fantastic anime (BakumanandThe Disastrous Life of Saiki K.).
Everything sounds wonderful on paper, butLa storia della Arcana Famigliadoes not come together satisfyingly. For one, a 13-episode cour is way too short for this type of narrative, especially when one of them is an OVA that mostly adds nothing. More importantly, the series wastes a shocking amount of time messing about with silly antics and banter, none of which is all that funny or entertaining. To be fair,reverse harem animeshould prioritize relationships over action, but the former relies on three-dimensional characterization to work, something that is mostly absent inLa storia della Arcana Famiglia. Honestly, a haremanime revolving around the mafiashould be a blast, and this series just seems like it’s playing dress-up.
The beauty inYona of the Dawn,apart from the main character and her male warrior entourage, is that it subverts some prevalent reverse harem tropes. Yona stars off as a naive and vulnerable person who needs to be regularly protected; however, she refuses to remain that way for long, and she works hard to try and change. She’sa budding warriorand an inheritor of the throne, one that has been usurped by an uprising driven by someone Yona believed to be a friend.
The anime also doubles as a coming-of-age adventure where Yona embarks on an epic journey to reclaim her kingdom after her father, the king, gets murdered. Her sheltered nature makes sense considering her upbringing, and her development naturally stems from the grave situation she finds herself in. Unfortunately, the anime only scratches the surface of the source material’s content, making it little more than a footnote in the overall franchise.
Aoi Tsubaki fromKakuriyohas always had a special vision where she cansee and communicate with man-eating spirits. For fear that these spirits might consume her, she regularly feeds them and has honed her cooking skills well enough to keep the dangerous souls fed.
Her life takes a twist when a violent king of the spirits suddenly wants to marry her as some kind of debt settlement. What does Aoi do? She vehemently refuses the proposition and instead tells the spirit king that she will open up a restaurant instead to pay off her debt. Her customers? Man-eating souls. Oh, and some of them are hot bachelors who are into the furry scene.
Kakuriyohas elements of romance as expected for the genre, but the show’s selling point is arguably its slice of life tone. The anime moves at a slow pace, allowing the audience to soak in the atmosphere as they gradually watch Aoi develop friendships with her patrons.
OK, this one is kind of a stealth reverse harem. Continuing the modern trend of each season including avillainess isekai anime,From Bureaucrat to Villainessshakes things up by casting a reincarnated dad as the eponymous baddie. Knowing very little about otome games in general, Kenzaburou has no choice but to rely on his experience as a father (who loves otaku culture) to try and embody Grace, a noble girl who is meant to make the heroine’s life a living hell. Despite occasionally attempting to play the part of a villainess, Kenzaburou is too much of a good person to fulfill that role, and he ends up becoming the heroine’s best friend.
More importantly, Grace and the heroine, Anna, join their school’s student council, which consists solely of male love interests. While none of the guys are romantically interested in the girls at first, Kenzaburou cannot help but inadvertently (or, at times, intentionally) trigger flags, both for Grace and Anna. So, technically,From Bureaucrat to Villainesscould have multiple reverse harems, along with a potential yuri romance as Anna also falls for Grace.
Due to being a parody of villainess isekai stories,From Bureaucrat to Villainessis mainly comedic in tone, so it might not satisfy viewers looking for genuine romances.
While not a hard rule, most reverse harem anime are based on shojo properties; however, a few exceptions exist.Cheeky Angelis a minor cult classic that was quite envelope-pushing for its era, especially when it comes to gender norms. A boy named Megumi transforms into a girl thanks to a trickster genie, and they remain that way for years. As they enter high school, the protagonist quickly finds themselves attracting the attention of nearly every guy around, be it delinquents or straight-laced students. Eventually, a proper relationship develops, butCheeky Angelhas the foundation of areverse harem animeduring its earliest chapters.
Aged as it might be in places,Cheeky Angelis still a fun watch all these years later. While primarily a comedy, the anime leaves a good account for itself when shifting focus to romance; more importantly, the story does not rush this element, allowing any relationships to strengthen naturally.
Code: Realize - Guardian of Rebirthhas one of themost outlandishand ridiculous plots ever in a reverse harem anime. Its heroine, Cardia Beckford was born with what can only be described as an atomic bomb in her heart. Now, a terror organization, as well as the army, wants to keep her because she’s a weapon. Moreover, her heart makes it so that everything organic gets melted in contact with her skin. Still, that didn’t prevent a dashing thief from stealing her, who also promised that he would steal Cardia’s heart, both literally and figuratively. Now, thousands of men are chasing her, but mostly because she’s a walking time bomb.
Based on a visual novel,Guardian of Rebirthhas a cool steampunk aesthetic that sets it apart from the crowd, along with an over-the-top premise that produces quite a few exciting moments. That said, the anime is inconsistent, and plenty of episodes drag.
16
25
26
6.27 (Final OVA Season)
6.81 (Season 1)
6.79 (Season 1)
Ah,Angelique, a franchise that seems to have been forgotten over the last decade, at least when it comes to the anime.Starting as visual novels, the games eventually received an OVA adaptation, producing multiple fairly weak seasons that are difficult to recommend to anyone but reverse harem completionists. That said, these episodes have a certain charm to them and do a decent job of establishingAngelique’s central concept, which is generally fascinating. Basically, this is a multiverse story where each universe is governed by a queen, who is aided by nine male guardians. The OVA follows two girls who have been picked to become queens, chronicling the relationships they develop with their handsome support figures.
Now, toAngelique’s credit, the anime adaptations generally improve with each new season. Apart from tracking down the far-better visual novels,Loving Angel Angeliqueis the best entry point for newcomers, and the TV series shifts focus to a new female protagonist, serving as something of a fresh start (the guys carry over from the OVAs, though). The animation is decent for the era, and Ange (the new MC) develops quite a bit throughout the two seasons.
Neo Angelique Abysslargely does its own thing and shares very little in common with its predecessors, including a shift towards action and a story revolving around Purifiers charged with eliminating monsters. While watchable, this spin-off is a bit more generic thanLoving Angel Angelique.
InTricks of the Gods, the female protagonist isn’t a destitute homeless girl with no choice. Yui Kusanagi is a cushy high school student who pulls a sword in her family’s storehouse, unironically, expecting nothing to happen despite the pop culture implications. Lo and behold, she gets transportedinto another realm.
It’s not just any realm, but rather a god academy that Zeus (Greek mythology) himself created to teach five handsome, lean young men how to get in touch with humanity. And what better way to reconnect them to their human side than to introduce a high school girl to them? It’s up to Yui to teach the five divine wayward gods some human manners. Yui is a likable main character in general as she constantly tries to solve her own issues rather than settling into the damsel-in-distress role.
Here’s another romance anime that takes place in a music school, specifically Seiso Academy. The main girl, Hino Kahoko, wasn’t meant to be meant for great things in the music academy, but she joined a school-wide music competition. Luckily, a fairy gave her a magic violin so she could compete against the male heavyweights of Seiso.
As ridiculous as it sounds, that’s really what happened. But anyone who likes a dash of classical music to go along with the usual reverse harem shenanigans will findLa corda d’oroa satisfying serving and a bit of an odd cocktail.
