20 supernatural anime with ghosts and ghouls | Recommend me anime (2023)

Are you intrigued by the unknown? By a world whose existence you cannot see, feel or otherwise confirm? Then the supernatural anime genre might just be one of your favorite genres. While this broad genre covers everything from the incredible to the vaguely strange, if you're interested in ghosts, ghouls, or other supernatural beings, you've got a wide variety of anime series to choose from.

Whether your interest lies in creepy Japanese ghost stories or action-packed spirit fighters, there's a series to suit all your needs.

Best anime about ghosts and spirits

Anohana: The flower we saw that day

Anohana is the anime many fans turn to when they need a break from crying. It's about a group of childhood friends who drifted apart after the death of their shared friend, and when that dead friend comes back as a ghost, the feelings are exposed. While the realistic characters and fantastic script carry this anime, it only has one ghost, and it's pretty cute too. So it seemed like the perfect end cap of our top 20 anime series ghost anime series.

Hanada Shounenshi

Ichiro Hanada is a rude young thug who picks fights and talks back to his mother. However, after being hit by a truck, he recovers with the ability to see the ghosts of the recently deceased who are unable to continue. Now it is up to him as a medium to help them.

The young ghost master

Abe no Masahiro is the grandson of a prestigious Spirit Master, but he has long lost his ability to perceive spirits. By chance, however, he comes across a mononoke he can see, unaware that their partnership is all part of his grandfather's plan to awaken his true potential.

Kitarou geen Gegege

Kitarou is a ghost who spends his life in the afterlife helping people who need his skills. He also spends his time fighting evil spirits that try to torment humanity. Despite being older and aimed at a younger audience, if you like traditional Japanese yokai stories, the anime series and movies are a nice watch.

Kaidan-Restaurant

You'd expect this anime to be about a haunted restaurant, but instead it's told in three parts: an appetizer, a main course, and a dessert, if you will. The first two parts of each episode deal with the strange and creepy things that surround an average sixth grader and her friends. The last part of the episode is a random ghost story from around the world, told by the aforementioned sixth grader.

Another

After the death of a student decades ago, class 3-3 has always had to endure a curse where students begin to die one after the other. The students are now taking precautions to prevent this, but no one expected a new intro student this year.

While it's hard to give a good summary without spoiling the lot, Another presents a sometimes creepy ghost story with a serious penchant for gory carnage.

ghost dog

In Ghost Hound, three boys with a traumatic past cross their souls to the Unseen World where ghosts lie. However, it seems that ghosts can now enter the Apparent World with various effects that send these guys on a quest to unravel the mystery.

Kekkaishi

Yoshimura Sumimura comes from a long line of Kekkaishi, those who use supernatural abilities to destroy evil Ayakashi spirits. Together with his childhood friend with a rival clan, they work hard to protect their hometown.

If you're tired of the slower-paced ghost anime series, Kekkaishi and its action-oriented shounen genre keep things interesting with plenty of fast-paced combat.

Ghost stories

Satsuki and Keiichirou Miyanoshita move back to their mother's hometown after her tragic death. There, the siblings discover that their mother has banished some ghosts from the old school building, but suddenly they all start to reappear. It's up to Satsuki and her new friends, along with the help of her mother's diary, to lock them up again.

This is one anime that you need to watch dubbed no matter where you stand in the subbed versus dubbed debate. They had a lot of fun with it and it turns a "meh" anime into one that's really, really funny.

Natsuyuki Date

Ryousuke Hazuki stops by a local flower shop one day and immediately falls in love with the beautiful owner. In an effort to get closer to her, he gets a part-time job at the store. Things go well for a while until one day he finds out that her dead husband's ghost lives in her apartment and only he can see him. With her husband stubbornly unwilling to move on, leaving the flower shop owner stuck in the past, a strange relationship develops between a man, a woman and another man that only he can see.

Ghost Killers Ayashi

While externally they are an organization dedicated to the study of foreign books, the Bansha Aratemesho is an organization that actually fights Yoi, spiritual monsters that occasionally attack Edo. This is the story of strange spiritual monsters in Japan and the equally strange people who fight them.

Blue Exorcist

In Blue Exorcist, the world of the demons and the world of the living are at constant war. One day, normal Rin Okumura is attacked by demons where he learns that his real father, Satan, wants to possess his body so that he can get to the other side. Rin denies him and decides to train as an exorcist to fight for the living.

Bakemonogatari

After being saved from a vampire attack, high school student Koyomi Araragi discovers he has several supernatural side effects. While trying to live a normal life, he eventually catches a classmate after falling down the stairs and finds her almost weightless. Those are the stories told in Bakemonogatari. Although mostly stories about demons and gods, a whole range of supernatural beings are present, including ghosts.

Hell girl

Hell Gill tells the story of Ai Enma, a girl who fulfills revenge requests submitted on a special website that can only be accessed at midnight. While Hell Girl is worth the creepiness alone, it succeeds in the way it presents its moral choices.

Mokke

This is the story of two sisters. Shizuru has the power to see ghosts, while Mizuki has the unnatural affinity to be haunted by them. Frustrated with their powers, their parents send them to the countryside to live with their grandparents. There both sisters learn the importance of living together with nature and the spirits.

Ghost hunt

Mai Taniyama is a high school freshman and enjoys telling ghost stories with her friends. One day she hears a ghost story about the old school building and decides to check it out. There she finds a camera and by a twist of fate she finally breaks it. It appears the camera belonged to Shibuya Kazuya, a high school senior and full-time paranormal investigator. To repay her debt, Mai becomes his assistant.

Don't be fooled by the premise that sounds suspiciously like Ouran High School Host Club, Ghost Hunt is easily one of the most popular ghost-related anime series out there. Not only does it provide accurate knowledge of ghost hunting, but it can also tell some pretty creepy stories.

Mononoke

Mononoke follows the story of a man known simply as the Medicine Seller. However, it is not drugs that he sells, but he travels through feudal Japan to free villages from evil spirits called mononoke. However, to kill any ghost he encounters, he must first learn its form, truth, and reason.

While stylistically it borders on weird at times, this bright anime is an excellent way to learn more about traditional Japanese spirits.

xxxHolic

To his chagrin, Kimihiro Watanuki can see ghosts. One day he is mysteriously drawn to a strange house, where he meets Yuuki. She claims she can strip him of his gift - at a price. In return, he must work in her shop, where wishes are granted from a wide variety of strange and wonderful people.

Although xxxHolic, like many CLAMP series, is considered a girl anime, it presents a unique story with an impressive array of interesting characters.

Busy

In this world, ghosts called Mushi go unnoticed by most people. But in addition to simply existing, Mushi can also mimic things from the living world, such as plants or diseases. Ginko is a man who travels to investigate Mushi and solve the problems they cause, trying to unravel the meaning of their existence.

Though slow-moving, philosophical and with sparse dialogue, Mushishi has a way of pulling viewers in and showing them a thoughtful and beautifully animated world. While not as action-packed as other ghost anime, Mushishi's thought-provoking atmosphere is worth watching.

Natsume Yuujichou

For as long as he can remember, Takashi Natsume has been able to see ghosts, a power that keeps him from making true friends. One day he finds out that he has this ability thanks to the Book of Friends that his grandmother left him. This book binds spirits to its owner, now it's up to Natsume to return them all.

While not suspenseful or even creepy, Natsume Yuujichou takes the top spot not only because it's fun to watch the balance between story and comedic outtakes, but it gives you real insight into each unique appearance involved in the show. Excellent character development really gives you a sense of maturity. This anime does something you don't often get. It gives you a good feeling that you may be surrounded by ghosts.

Did we miss any of your favorite ghost or ghoul anime series? Tell us about it in the comments below!