Last Update: March 1, 2022
Anime is a famous Japanese word that means hand-drawn or computer animation. Colloquially, anime is the shortened form of animation. The English "anime" describes all forms of animated movies, regardless of the origin or style.
Outside of the Japanese culture, anime similar to Japanese anime is referred to as anime-influenced animation. There are many free anime sites where you can access free anime for your viewing pleasure.
The earliest form of anime dates back to 1917 as a commercial. It, however, developed a large domestic audience in the 1960s and the following years after the works of the cartoonist Osamu Tezuka. Anime is distributed in many forms, such as video games, light novels, and Japanese comics, also known as manga.
The major anime-producing studios are Sunrise, Toei animations, and Studio Ghibli. There are, however, more than 430 companies that produce anime. With programmed subtitles and foreign dubbing becoming very widespread, anime has become an international success.
Anime is distributed through several platforms, including theatres, direct home media, television broadcast, and the internet. Over the internet, there are many sites to download anime for free. Of all the free websites to download Anime from, here are ten of the best free anime sites in 2021.
The anime industry grows by a compounding 9.5% every year. It saw an astonishing growth in 2020 due to the pandemic. Many sites offer free anime. However, we have curated the 10 best free anime sites in 2021.
Crunchyroll is a licensing company concerned with producing, publishing, and distributing manga, dorama, and streaming anime. It is an American company established in 2006 by a couple of graduates from the University of California, Berkeley.
Crunchyroll has its headquarters in San Francisco, California, USA. It is a member of The Association of Japanese Animations. Crunchyroll users continue to increase constantly. In 2021, the number hovered around 120 million.
There are over 1000 anime shows available on its website for its numerous users. Since 2017, Crunchyroll has organized the "Crunchyroll Anime Awards," where they make their users vote for the best Anime of the previous year.
Crunchyroll selects 20 judges who have different backgrounds. These judges in each category of Anime select six nominees, then make voting available to their users to choose the winners.
9Anime is a free site for anime. There are many 9Anime clone sites. However, https://9anime.to/ is the official website for 9Anime. 9Anime offers Anime in 720p and 1080p resolution. English dub and subtitles are also available on 9Anime.
9Anime was established in 2016. It has an extensive collection of Anime, from older anime like the early episodes of Naruto to more recent Jujutsu Kaizen.
9Anime is very popular in the United States and Japan as a free anime streaming site. 9Anime has both dubbed and subbed anime episodes on the website to give you versatility.
9Anime allows you to stream anime on HD quality for free. It is easy to locate anime on this site, as it offers genre-specific search and selection. Downloading or streaming anime on 9Anime is legal as the copyright is present on the website. 9Anime is updated every day to ensure that the content on the site is up-to-date.
KissAnime was established in 2012 as a file-sharing website that is focused on anime. It allows its users to stream and download anime, movies, and TV shows for free. An article published in 2020 referred to KissAnime as one of the largest anime streaming websites in the world.
KissAnime is one of the reasons manga and anime gained traction among the internet community. The website is known to have scarce anime titles, such as the original Battle Angel anime of 1993. KissAnime allows users to watch anime episodes free of charge, without any form of registration.
KissAnime features many thousands of anime episodes ready for streaming on the website for free. They do not allow for downloads. The site is responsive and user-friendly. It allows for a seamless anime streaming experience on mobile devices due to its mobile-friendly interface.
Funimation has American roots and specializes in dubbing and distributing media from far Eastern Asia, specifically Japanese Anime. Gen Fukunaga, in May 1994, together with his wife Cindy, established the Funimation website in Silicon Valley.
Funimation offers offline downloads for their animes. About 600 anime are available on Funimation. The site has a stylish interactive interface. Funimation offers anime in 1080p resolution across many platforms like Amazon Fire TV, Android, Chromecast, iOS, Apple TV, smart TVs, and gaming consoles.
Funimation is the only anime streaming app that the Nintendo Switch can download. The website is fun and easy to use. Switching between languages, turning on the subtitles, and switching between resolution choices on the website is a piece of cake because of the very responsive design.
Funimation is one of the best sites to watch and download episodes of your favorite Anime.
Anime planet is famous around the world and has visitors from all around the world. Anime-Planet teamed up with Crunchyroll to provide brand new episodes of new anime in HD quality. Anime-Planet started way back in 2001 and has quickly gained popularity among the anime-watching community.
Anime-Planet allows you to stream and download your favorite anime episodes in HD quality. It is free of charge and has about 45,000 anime episodes on the site for your viewing pleasure.
It is easy to get lost in the overwhelming number of anime on the site. But, the website keeps track of the episodes you watch, giving you a seamless anime streaming experience.
Content is neatly organized on the homepage to aid navigation on the website. Newly uploaded content is also shown on the homepage. Anime-Planet suggests new anime based on your watching history. A column on Anime-Planet is dedicated to ranking the most loved and most hated anime characters.
Gogo anime allows you to watch and download anime of your choice in high quality. It has a fantastic collection of anime suitable for a range of viewers. Therefore, it is suitable for the viewing pleasure of a family.
It was founded in 2006 and has since risen to stardom among anime streaming sites. Dubbed and subbed anime are present on Gogo anime, and the collection is updated every day, ensuring they serve their users the freshest anime content. It allows you to stream and download your favorite anime episodes.
Gogo Anime gives you a range of genres to choose from, such as mystery, game, action, comedy, romance, kids, adventure, fantasy, and so on. Gogo Anime allows you to reach out to its management in the case of any inquiries, business or otherwise.
Gogo Anime, in 2021 is one of the best sites to watch and download episodes of anime.
AnimeFreak offers subbed and dubbed anime content on its website. AnimeFreak offers great anime content for free. It has an extensive collection of anime across all categories, making AnimeFreak one of the most preferred anime streaming sites. The extensive collection of anime episodes is arranged alphabetically to allow for easy access and navigation.
AnimeFreak is an authority in the anime-watching community. It is a trusted and safe site for streaming anime free of viruses. The site is updated regularly to ensure fresh and engaging content is served to its numerous users.
AnimeFreak has an integrated video player. Therefore, you can enjoy an excellent streaming experience without downloading additional video players. It has an excellent interface which makes its users enjoy it above other streaming sites.
The most preferred feature on AnimeFreak's website is the ongoing anime tab which gives you the ongoing anime in alphabetical order for easy access. AnimeFreak has a user rating of 3.0 out of 5 stars.
Masterani is another interesting site for popular anime series. Anime fans love Masterani because it is free and has an extensive collection of the latest anime episodes. It has a very easy-to-use interface, allowing you to access your favorite anime collection episode by episode.
Masterani has an extensive collection of genres of anime, ranging from sci-fi to action and everything in between. With Masterani, streaming anime just got better. Masterani started in 2001, and today, it has millions of users. Masterani as a streaming website is an excellent choice as it offers free Anime of high quality.
Masterani has a collection of over 2500 anime movies, all available in HD quality. The anime on Masterani are either subbed or dubbed in English since it is a widely spoken language. Above all, Masterani has a very user intuitive and easy-to-use user interface.
All genres of anime are present for your viewing pleasure on AnimeDao. The anime collection on AnimeDao is regularly updated to ensure their viewers do not miss any actions on the anime space.
Your data is protected on AnimeDao, as you do not necessarily have to register to watch or download episodes of your favorite anime on AnimeDao. AnimeDao is also relatively safe in terms of viruses and malware gaining access to your device. Downloading and streaming anime on AnimeDao is legal and safe.
AnimeDao has a fascinating user interface that gives users easy access to downloading and streaming their favorite anime from the website. It is important to note that apart from the fact that there's no registration, there is no form of payment at all on the website. Watching and downloading anime on AnimeDao is free.
Soul Anime is another free anime website that provides animation videos to every anime lover out there. It has an organized menu that shows anime episodes as they emerge.
Soul Anime has a lot of categories that would naturally get an anime lover excited. The latest anime episodes are added to the collection regularly.
The best anime-free sites on the internet are the sites that allow you to stream or download your favorite anime without having to pay any fees. The absence of malware or viruses on the website also improves the usability and the number of visitors.
For an added level of protection, browse the free anime sites using a VPN. Browsing using a VPN protects your device from malware and viruses that could be present on any of these websites. Here are five of the best sites to stream or download anime in no particular order:
Anime sites can be blocked for many reasons from a location. In many schools, for example, anime sites and other fun sites for music, games, and so on are blocked, denying you access to them.
Some anime sites are also geo-blocked in some locations due to issues relating to legality and copyright infringement.
You would need a VPN to unblock these anime sites for access to your favorite anime show. A VPN is a virtual private network that masks your IP address by routing your browsing through an intermediary server, giving you access to any blocked content on the internet.
All you have to do is activate your preferred VPN to unblock anime sites using VPNs. Choose a location that is not blocked, and then start browsing through your favorite anime collection.
Using a VPN also adds a layer of protection over your device to protect it from viruses and malware that could be present on these sites.
Some anime sites allow you to download your favorite anime collection, while some others allow you to only watch these anime on their sites without the possibility of downloading.
Some other sites offer both downloading and streaming of anime on their website. Here are the best sites to watch Anime for free:
Many users of free online anime sites have preferences. Some online anime sites are preferred to others. According to user ratings, these are the five best online anime sites:
Funimation comes in the first place according to user ratings. It is available in significant locations like New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, etc. It has a user rating of 5 out of 5 stars.
Crunchyroll is available in about 180 countries. It makes anime and manga available to its users all around the world. Users gave it a rating of 5 out of 5 stars.
9Anime comes in third place according to the ratings given by users. 9Anime comes in third place with a 4 out of 5 stars rating. Old and new anime episodes are available on 9Anime for free.
In fourth place, with 3.5 out of 5 stars, is GogoAnime. GogoAnime is available in prominent locations worldwide and offers a good streaming experience for its numerous users.
AnimeFreak comes in 5th place with 3 out of 5 stars. It is free and is supported in significant regions of the world. Every form of anime title is available on AnimeFreak's website.
The best site to watch Anime for free can be very relative, depending on the region you reside, the kind of device you use, and even the internet connection. Regardless, the ten sites listed above are excellent free sites to watch Anime for free.
KissAnime is not an illegal site to watch free Anime. It is safe and legal to watch your favorite anime series on KissAnime. The legality of KissAnime cannot be questioned, as there is no form of copyright infringement.
Streaming from free anime sites is technically not illegal, provided it is streamed for personal use.
Many free anime sites are protected by the Title II of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. This act permits the use of copyrighted items for personal use.
Anime is an ancient Japanese form of hand-scripted or computer-curated animation that has spread around the world.
Many anime lovers are constantly searching for the best sites to watch and download anime for free.
This article has pointed out ten of the best free anime sites where you can download and stream episodes of your favorite anime video.
