14 best anime like Solo Leveling you should watch next

Solo Leveling is easily the standout show of the winter 2024 anime season, and if you’re eager for something similar to Chugong’s DnD-inspired narrative, we have plenty to offer.

Solo Leveling has comfortably solidified itself as one of the best anime of 2024. And, while we wait for Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3, fans need another show to fill the void. And, as expected, A-1 Pictures has managed to release something that does just that.

It’s a story about Sung Jinwoo, an underdog who gets an opportunity to turn his life around and become the strongest hunter to ever live. Besides an engrossing backdrop that utilizes elements of Dungeons and Dragons and The Matrix, the anime show contains some jaw-dropping sequences and more than a few twists.

It’s a level of quality that not many can match, and those that do are particularly special. So here are the best anime like Solo Leveling.

1. Jujutsu Kaisen

Jujutsu Kaisen and Solo Leveling boast a similar dark theme, and they’ll both make you fall out of your seats. Like JJK, Solo Leveling features several spectacular fight scenes. While the former features sorcerers fighting curses, the latter showcases a battle between hunters and monsters.

Jujutsu Kaisen revolves around the students of Jujutsu High and their mentors. The main protagonist, Yuji Itadori, eats a rotten finger of the king of curses, Sukuna, and becomes his host. The narrative then follows him as he joins forces with the ones who hold the responsibility to fight every evil curse in existence.

2. Tower of God

Tower of God is an underrated gem that is waiting to be appreciated by fans. It focuses on Bam, who spends most of his life trapped under a Tower. However, he decides to enter this Tower to find his girlfriend, Rachael. On his journey, Bam learns to grow stronger, and on each level, he meets new people – allies and enemies.

It is a spectacular anime series that is a lot like Solo Leveling in terms of story, focusing on an underdog protagonist that gradually becomes more powerful.

3. Overlord

Overlord, like several other anime on this list, is based around a video game genre: MMORPG. The main protagonist of the anime, Ainz, finds himself transported into a game world where all the NPCs have come alive. Ainz now uses his knowledge of the game to rise to power and survive this world.

So, you could say that Ainz is a lot like Sung Jin-Woo from Solo Leveling, who also uses an RPG element to level up and become the strongest.

4. Demon Slayer

Demon Slayer is a straightforward show that is known for its battle dynamics, and that’s what makes it similar to Solo Leveling. Fans who have read the manga are familiar with what the upcoming episodes will feature. However, anime-only enthusiasts will have to wait until Solo Leveling unleashes its true nature, which will surely make you remember the brilliance of Demon Slayer.

Demon Slayer revolves around Tanjiro Kamado, a coal burner’s son whose family gets killed by the demons. The kind-hearted boy who could never think of hurting someone, even by his words, picks up the sword to slash countless demons.

5. Chainsaw Man

Chainsaw Man and Solo Leveling feature weak main protagonists who become the strongest beings alive in their respective universes. For instance, Chainsaw Man’s Denji gets devilish powers from his pet Pochita, while Solo Leveling’s Sung Jin-Woo receives God-like powers from a powerful entity during his mission in a dungeon.

Chainsaw Man is set in a world where devils exist. Our primary character, Denji, shows up as an undernourished young boy who lives with his pet named Pochita, the chainsaw devil. One day, when Denji gets betrayed and killed, Pochita merges with him, making Denji the Chainsaw Man.

6. Death Note

Death Note features Light Yagami, the protagonist who doesn’t have any physical prowess but is incredibly smart. His journey from being a nobody to becoming someone with God-like powers always gives us goosebumps. The boy receives the powers from a mysterious book of a Shinigami, the Death Note. After realizing what the book can do, Light Yagami exploits it to fulfill his evil agenda, which is to control the entire world.

Similarly, Sung Jin-Woo of Solo Leveling doesn’t have any physical strength at the start, but he becomes powerful after receiving the powers from “The System.” He uses it to become an overpowered protagonist who we all love.

7. Sword Art Online

Sword Art Online focuses on virtual reality worlds created by several companies. In the anime, you explore unique gaming worlds, including a universe that plays around the RPG elements. Similarly, in Solo Leveling, you get a protagonist who has to perform different tasks to level up his skills.

Sung Jin-Woo has to defeat several monsters to gather powerful resources, including overpowered daggers. So, in that sense, Solo leveling and Sword Art Online play around the same concept, which is inspired by Role Playing Games.

8. Goblin Slayer

Goblin Slayer revolves around a protagonist whose only motive in life is to eliminate every goblin around. He is part of an adventurers group who comes with the same aspirations, and they are often seen going to dungeons to fight numerous goblins.

Similarly, in Solo Leveling, the hunters keep on going into deadly dungeons to hunt the monsters. Apart from that, both series follow a ranking system for the adventurers/hunters. So, if you love watching Solo Leveling, you should definitely give Goblin Slayer a try.

9. Akashic Records of Bastard Magic Instructor

Based on a light novel of the same name, the anime follows Glenn Radars whos unconventional powers are kind of similar to Solo Leveling’s Sung Jin-Woo. The story is set in the Alzano Empire, home to the prestigious Alzano Imperial Magic Academy.

Sistine Fibel and her best friend Rumia Tingel are thrown off with the sudden retirement of their favorite teacher, only for the eccentric Glenn Radars to replace him. He has lazy lifestyle and is completely indifferent about magic, earning scorn from his students. However, he’s more than meets the eye as he hides a dark past and strange power hidden from others.

10. Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?

Just like in Solo Leveling, this anime also features a world where people raid dungeons and defeat monsters to make a living. Both series start off with incredibly weak protagonists, and then shows their incredible growth over time. As we follows the protagonists’ road to success, the stories only keep getting better.

This particular series is set in a world where gods and humans coexist. When Bell Cranel encounters the lonely goddess Hestia, he realizes he’s far closer to his goal than he ever imagined.

11. Death Parade

If you crave mysteries, Death Parade is an atmospheric short anime set in the afterlife that offers several. A purgatorial bartender pits people that have died at the same time against each other in to figure out the final destination of their souls.

His business becomes complicated when he develops an interest in our ability to feel, as well as an unseen God who works behind-the-scenes. The spiritualism and mythology give the narrative an intriguing edge.

12. Dragon Ball Z

The primo shonen anime, and one of the gold standards for massive fights. If Solo Leveling’s flashy battles are the selling point, you’re going to want to check out Goku fighting Frieza on Namek or Gohan running through Perfect Cell.

These matches are fluffier than what you get in the likes of Demon Slayer or My Hero Academia, but they’re absolutely exhilarating. Akira Toriyama knew the components of a memorable set-piece, and his influence endures.

13. That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime

For something more on the fantasy side, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime is an isekai anime about someone who – you guessed it – becomes a slime in an alternate dimension. Rather than trying to get home, the protagonist settles into his life as an amorphis blob, eventually becoming royalty and helping to ward off evil.

It’s a charming show, funny, but with a light bit of edge that kicks in when some extra stakes are needed. One for the DnD players.

14. One Punch Man

If only life’s problems simply required a single punch to be solved. We’d have a utopia! That’s the fantasy Saitama offers, as a superhero with an unstoppable punch that knocks out everyone with a clean shot.

The first two seasons of One Punch Man have provided huge set-pieces and clever superhero satire, and the upcoming third should continue that trend. With a film on the way, you’d be well-served to get on board now.

If you’d like to keep up with other hits, check out our list of the best anime like Jujutsu Kaisen, and our guides to Demon Slayer Season 4 and My Hero Academia Season 7.