With the first half of 2024 coming to a close, the best-selling manga of 2024 so far has been unveiled. Although a lot could change between now and the end of the year, the current scope of the industry has shown an immense amount of change and growth as far as what fans are reading, and genres that are becoming more successful.
Like most years, there are some new and unexpected additions, some long-time veterans, and some who soared to great heights because of their anime. This year’s is particularly interesting, as fans have discovered some hidden gems that have dethroned giants, like One Piece and My Hero Academia, which is a good sign.
15 Delicious In Dungeon
1.34 Million Copies Sold
Ryoko Kui’s Delicious in Dungeon opens with Laios’ adventure party being wiped out by a dragon and Laios’ sister, Falin, being eaten alive. What’s left of Laios’ party must hurry back through the dungeon to revive Falin, and to compensate for a lack of funds, Laios, much to everyone’s chagrin, gets everyone to start eating the monsters they encounter in the dungeon, although for Laios, it’s less a survival tactic and more a dream of his he finally gets to fulfill.
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10 Best Selling Manga Of 2023
Just in time to send off one of the best years in the manga industry, Oricon has released the ranking of highest selling manga of 2023.
Studio Trigger’s anime adaptation made Delicious in Dungeon a breakout hit of 2024, and thanks to that, Delicious in Dungeon became the 15th best-selling manga of 2024 with 1.34 million copies sold worldwide. Delicious in Dungeon‘s success is great for traditional fantasy stories amid an overabundance of isekai anime, and with season 2 of Delicious in Dungeon in production, it’s bound to get even bigger in the years to come.
14 That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime
1.54 Million Copies Sold
Fuse and Taiki Kawakami’s That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime stars a mild-mannered office worker who, after dying to protect his friend in a robbery, is reincarnated into a fantasy world as a slime. As a slime, he can absorb the powers of anything he consumes, and this gradually leads to him becoming Rimuru Tempest, one of the most powerful figures in his new world who’s constantly at the center of political strife.
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime has consistently been one of the most popular isekai stories in the world, if not the most popular, and in 2024, alone, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime stands as the 14th best-selling manga with 1.54 million books sold worldwide. The series is still going strong with season 3 of its anime, and it’s sure to remain a major powerhouse for years to come.
13 Mashle
1.58 Million Copies Sold
Hajime Komoto’s Mashle: Magic and Muscles stars Mash Burnedead, a bizarre young boy who’s grown up in a world of magic as the only person without magical abilities. Mash has compensated for that by devoting his life to working out and becoming physically strong to a ridiculous extent, and after a series of events, Mash must use his abilities to rise to the top of the magical world, all while keeping his true nature a secret.
While the series ended in 2023, the breakout success of season 2, especially the memetic nature of its theme song, led to a massive resurgence of popularity, and because of that, Mashle: Magic and Muscles became the 13th best-selling manga of 2024 with 1.58 million books sold worldwide. Mashle: Magic and Muscles season 3 is currently in production, and once it premieres, the series is sure to rise even higher.
12 Spy X Family
1.82 Million Copies Sold
Tatsuya Endo’s Spy x Family takes place in a fictional Cold War setting and stars Twilight, a secret agent whose latest assignment is to start a family to eventually get close to someone who could disrupt the delicate peace between the nations of Westalis and Ostania. The people he chooses as his wife and daughter, however, are an assassin and telepath, respectively, and the daughter, Anya, is the only one of the three ever aware of what everyone is truly up to.
Between season 2’s run and the financial success of Spy X Family Code: White, Spy x Family is as popular as ever, and sure enough, Spy x Family is the 12th best-selling manga of 2024 with 1.82 million books sold worldwide. Season 3 is set to premiere sometime in 2025, and it’s sure to be just as big a boon to the manga’s popularity, if not bigger.
11 Wind Breaker
1.85 Million Copies Sold
Satoru Nii’s Wind Breaker stars Haruka Sakura, a kindhearted delinquent who’s spent his whole life being ostracized for his heterochromia and seeks to prove himself by becoming the top fighter at the legendary delinquent-filled school Furin High. As it turns out, though, the delinquents of Furin High are just as kindhearted as Sakura and protect their town from anyone who tries causing trouble, and by joining with them, Sakura finally finds a place where he can belong.
Thanks to its incredible animation and fight choreography, Wind Breaker was one of the biggest anime of 2024, and that resulted in Wind Breaker becoming the 11th best-selling manga of 2024 with 1.85 million copies sold worldwide. The manga is well on its way to becoming one of the best stories in modern manga, and with season 2 in production, it’s only going to get bigger.
10 Oshi No Ko
1.98 Million Copies Sold
Aka Akasaka and Mengo Yokoyari’s Oshi no Ko stars Goro Amamiya, a gynecologist who is reincarnated as the son of his latest patient and idol, the famous pop idol Ai Hoshino. While initially content with simply going through his second life as Aqua Hoshino, tragedy strikes when Ai is suddenly murdered, and Aqua now decides to devote his life to tracking down Ai’s murder and avenging her death.
Oshi no Ko has continually proven itself to be just as big a success as Aka Akasaka’s previous manga, Kaguya-Sama: Love is War, if not a bigger one, and sure enough, Oshi no Ko is the 10th best-selling manga of 2024 with 1.98 million books sold worldwide. The manga is officially in its final arc, but with how popular it already is, combined with the continued success of the anime, Oshi no Ko will only get bigger as it nears its finale.
9 Kingdom
2.46 Million Copies Sold
Yasuhisa Hara’s Kingdom is a fictional account of the life of Li Xin, the general of the future legendary Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang. Much like in real life, their relationship, alongside various other historical figures, paved the way for the end of China’s Warring States period and all of China being united under the Qin dynasty, one of the most important eras in the history of the nation.
Yasuhisa Hara said he plans on ending the manga at 100 volumes, and the series is currently in volume 73.
Despite infamously never being licensed outside Japan, Kingdom has always been incredibly popular, even being one of the best-selling manga of all time, and in 2024, alone, Kingdom became the ninth best-selling manga of 2024 with 2.46 million books sold worldwide. The series shows no signs of stopping anytime soon, and with that in mind, it’s only going to become even more successful in the years to come.
8 My Hero Academia
2.5 Million Copies Sold
Kohei Horikoshi’s My Hero Academia takes place in a world where becoming a superhero has long since been a feasible goal thanks to the emergence of superpowers called Quirks. Izuku Midoriya is one such boy who dreams of becoming a hero, even though he was born Quirkless, but after a chance meeting with the world’s greatest hero, Izuku finds himself on the path toward becoming the world’s greatest hero.
My Hero Academia has always been one of the best-selling manga around, and that hasn’t stopped, even after entering its final year of serialization and ending in July 2024. In 2024, alone, My Hero Academia has sold approximately 2.5 million books to be the eighth best-selling manga of 2024, and even with the series officially over, it’s sure to remain a powerhouse for years to come.
7 Haikyu!!
2.7 Million Copies Sold
Haruichi Furudate’s Haikyu!! stars Shoyo Hinata, a short but athletic volleyball player who enters Karasuno High to both play on the same team as his idol and continue his rivalry with volleyball prodigy Tobio Kageyama. Surprisingly, Kageyama also joined Karasuno, and despite their bickering, the two slowly became an unstoppable duo that helped take their failing team to the greatest heights of their career.
Just like how Slam Dunk‘s manga saw an incredible increase in sales in 2023 thanks to the release of The First Slam Dunk, Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle tremendously boosted Haikyu!!‘s popularity, and sure enough, Haikyu!! is the seventh best-selling manga of 2024 with 2.7 million books sold worldwide. Haikyu!! continues to be a massive success years after its finale, and with another movie in development, that’s unlikely to stop anytime soon.
6 Kaiju No. 8
2.9 Million Copies Sold
Kaiju No. 8
Written by Naoya Matsumoto, Kaiju No. 8 is a Japanese Shonen Manga released in 2020. The series follows a man who suffers a terrible accident but suddenly gains the ability to morph into a Kaiju, complete with special powers and abilities.
In the world of Naoya Matsumoto’s Kaiju No. 8, Kafka Hibino has been stuck on a Kaiju clean-up crew after failing the entrance exam for the Defense Force multiple times, but a junior member of Kafka’s crew reignites Kafka’s passion and gets him to retake the exam. Things become complicated, however, when a mysterious Kaiju flies inside of Kafka and gives him the power to turn into a Kaiju, his new form soon dubbed the titular Kaiju No. 8.
Kaiju No. 8 was always one of the most popular manga to come out of Shonen Jump+, but the success of the anime led to it becoming a cultural phenomenon, resulting in Kaiju No. 8 being the sixth best-selling manga of 2024 with 2.9 million books sold worldwide. Season 2 of the anime is officially in development, and once it premieres, Kaiju No. 8 will surely become even more popular worldwide.
5 Blue Lock
3.06 Million Copies Sold
In Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yusuke Nomura’s Blue Lock, following Japan’s failure at the FIFA World Cup, eccentric sports analyst Jinpachi Ego is hired to come up with a way to push Japan into stardom. The method he came up with is Blue Lock, a grueling training regimen to turn one of 300 strikers into the greatest striker and egoist in Japan, and anyone who fails the program will be barred from playing soccer for Japan for the rest of their lives.
Thanks to the breakout success of the anime, Blue Lock was the best-selling manga of 2023, and that momentum has yet to let up, as Blue Lock is the fifth best-selling manga of 2024 with 3.06 million manga sold worldwide. Blue Lock season 2 is set to finally premiere in October 2024, and it’s sure to give another massive boost to the manga’s already incredible sales.
4 One Piece
3.92 Million Copies Sold
One Piece
Created by Eiichiro Oda, One Piece is a multimedia franchise that began as a manga series and follows the adventures of the Straw Hat Pirates as led by Monkey D. Luffy. Luffy, an enthusiastic pirate with a thirst for adventure, is afflicted by a mysterious curse that gives him various powers he uses to protect himself and his friends. The manga eventually gave way to the anime series, with the two being some of history’s longest-running anime and manga series. Along with over fifty video games made over the years, the series entered the live-action world with Netflix’s 2023 adaptation.
- Created by
- Eiichiro Oda
- First Film
- One Piece: The Movie
- Cast
- Kazuya Nakai , Akemi Okamura , Kappei Yamaguchi , Hiroaki Hirata , Ikue Ôtani , Yuriko Yamaguchi
- Character(s)
- Monkey D. Luffy , Roronora Zoro , Nami (One Piece) , Nico Robin , Usopp (One Piece) , Vinsmoke Sanji , Tony Tony Chopper , Franky (One Piece) , Jimbei (One Piece)
In Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece, pirates have been searching the world for the One Piece, the fabled treasure of the legendary Gold Roger that will make its discoverer next Pirate King. Among those pirates is the young Monkey D. Luffy, and while the world might see him as just a rookie, with the power of the Gum-Gum Fruit giving Luffy a body made of rubber, he’ll assemble a crew of his own and show that he’s not one to be underestimated.
One Piece has long been established as the most popular manga in the world, and that once again shows itself in its sales with One Piece being the fourth best-selling manga of 2024 with 3.92 million books sold worldwide. One Piece isn’t always the best-selling manga of the year anymore, but even with that, there’s unlikely to ever be a manga to completely eclipse it in popularity.
3 The Apothecary Diaries
4.11 Million Copies Sold
Natsuki Hyuga, Itsuki Nanao, and Nekokurage’s The Apothecary Diaries takes place in an Imperial China-esque setting and follows Maomao, a sharp-witted apothecary who is abducted and sold into the emperor’s palace. Using her extensive medicinal knowledge and keen observation skills, she demonstrates her value beyond just being a worker, and her talents soon attract the attention of the enigmatic eunuch Jinshi, leading to a deeper and more dangerous involvement in court affairs.
The Apothecary Diaries‘ anime was one of the biggest hits from late 2023 to early 2024, and it sparked an incredible surge of popularity for the franchise, resulting in The Apothecary Diaries being the third best-selling manga of 2024 with 4.11 million books sold worldwide. Season 2 is set to premiere in 2025, and once it does, there’s no telling how much more popular the manga will become.
2 Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
4.79 Million Copies Sold
Kanehito Yamada and Tsukasa Abe’s Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End stars Frieren, the virtually unaging elf mage of the adventurer party that defeated the demon lord. While Frieren initially didn’t think much of her time with everyone, the death of the Hero, Himmel, made her realize how much she cared about them, and her regret over letting Himmel die without him seeing that pushes Frieren to go on a new journey to learn how to understand people better.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End‘s anime made the already-popular manga an even bigger success, and thanks to that, Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End is the second best-selling manga of 2024 with 4.79 million books sold worldwide. It’s unknown when season 2 will premiere, or if it even will, but with how much of a cultural icon Frieren has become, it likely won’t need to rely on its anime to be a success, going forward.
1 Jujutsu Kaisen Reigns Supreme In Its Final Year
6.27 Million Copies Sold
In Gege Akutami’s Jujutsu Kaisen, Yuji Itadori is a boy with abnormal physical abilities who one day learns of the existence of evil supernatural beings called curses. An incident with a curse forces Yuji to become a vessel to Ryomen Sukuna, the most evil curse user in history, and thanks to his unexpected ability to suppress Sukuna’s power, Yuji is tasked with becoming a sorcerer and fighting curses until his superiors can execute him along with Sukuna’s soul.
The incredible animation of Jujutsu Kaisen has made it one of the biggest stories in modern anime; the manga has continuously benefited from that with consistently high sales, and at the time of writing, Jujutsu Kaisen is the best-selling manga of 2024 with 6.27 million books sold worldwide. There are only a few chapters left before Jujutsu Kaisen‘s finale, but it’s almost certain to go out as the best-selling manga of 2024.
Source: @RoukHein on X.
