Top 35 Best End of World Anime (Post-Apocalyptic Anime) Ranked In 2023

It’s always a thrill to watch any post-apocalyptic anime where the world has been destroyed and our main characters struggle to survive. As a result, fans were always looking for some of the best end of world anime that were set in a captivating post-apocalyptic world and featured a unique storyline.

So, you don’t have to search further; you will definitely find something to your taste in this fantastic list of the top 35 best end of world anime. So let’s get started!

Notes: Each of the anime on the list is ranked according to their IMDb ratings.

Top 35 Best End of World Anime (Post-Apocalyptic Anime)

35. Blue Gender 

The protagonist, Yuji Kaido, is sent into cryogenic stasis after contracting a disease, and 20 years later, he finds himself waking up to a total nightmare of a world. The human population has decreased dramatically, and the world is overrun by insectoid beings called Blue, who prey on humans.

As he journeys to regroup with surviving humans, he is forced to fight to survive and ends up in a spaceship heading to what the humans called “second Earth“. There, he discovers that he isn’t the only one of his kind and resolves to join them in fighting against the insectoid beings to preserve humanity.

34. Coppelion 

Influenced by the Chernobyl nuclear incident, this best end of world anime takes place in a now radiation-contaminated Tokyo, caused by the nuclear meltdown at the Odaiba Nuclear Power Plant. With the entire place evacuated and declared off-limits by the government, you’d think it would be a ghost town forever.

This, however, changes when the Japan Ground Self-Defence Force receives a distress signal from there and dispatches a trio of genetically modified girls, immune to radiation, to intercept it.

33. Blame! 

Set many, many years into the future, Blame! focuses on the downfall of mankind after our excessive reliance on technology pulls the rug under our feet after a virus causes the automated systems to crash and hunt humans.

With the drastic population decline, Killy the Wanderer, our protagonist, seeks to find a gene that happens to be the solution to the problem. Armed with an incredibly powerful gun, Killy ventures down a road of alliances, action, and brilliant fight scene animation.

32. Expelled from Paradise 

Angela Balzac is an agent of a spaceship in a very futuristic setting that relies on technology and coding who is sent to the now barren planet Earth by her superiors to track down a hacker called Frontier Setter.

But on a planet with less than 2% population, this task is not easily completed without some help. As she spends time on Earth and relearns human necessities, she completes her task and finds the “hacker”.

However, as she finds out that the hacker means no harm and reports exactly that to her superiors, tensions grow, and she ends up on death row. Following which, we venture to see how the “hacker” might jump into action and achieve his personal goals.

31. Guilty Crown 

After a biohazard outbreak of a virus called the “Apocalypse Virus” plunges Japan into chaos, officials have no choice but to ask the United Nations for aid in the form of a quasi-government called the GHQ.

Although the GHQ manages the outbreak and provides citizens with resources, the country is in a state of unrest that gets channelled into rebel groups like the Funeral Arlor.

Years later, as Shu Ouma is caught up in the conflict between the GHQ and the rebel group after encountering a wounded girl who is a member of the funeral parlour, his life is forced to change.

This change especially occurs as he breaks a vial of a genetic variant of the Apocalypse Virus that infects him, grants him the “Power of King”, and forces him to engage in combat.

30. Planetarian: Storyteller of the Stars 

In a world laid waste by nuclear and biological warfare, a young scavenger explores abandoned places. He soon stumbles upon an abandoned department store and finds a service robot awaiting the arrival of customers outside the store’s planetarium.

As we embark on a journey with an old storyteller who wishes to spread the word about the stars, emotional connections are made, hearts are broken, and legacies are passed on.

29. Black Bullet 

After an outbreak of a deadly parasitic virus, Gastrea, humans are now confined to monolithic walls created from a special protective material that keeps the citizens protected. Considering the complexity of the situation, it’s only natural for genetic mutations to occur, and that’s exactly what happens to the genetic code of young girls.

A side effect of the mutation causes the girls to gain superhuman abilities that are now used to fight monsters that evolved from the virus. As the adults entrust their futures to their youngsters, who work in pairs, this anime takes you on a beautiful journey of love and self-sacrifice.

28. God Eater 

This series is set in a post-apocalyptic world where people protect themselves against mysterious monsters. In order to fight against monsters, they form a group of warriors called God Eaters who use powerful divine weapons called God Arcs.

The series is packed with incredible action sequences and features plenty of the deadliest battles. As a result, it is not wrong to consider it one of the best End of the World anime.

27. Chrome-Shelled Regios 

Overrun with nanomachines called “Filth Monsters”, the earth is no longer a haven, and so mankind is now confined to mobile cities called “Regios”. With a deeper truth to their existence looming over their heads, humanity now uses the power of “Kei” and weapons called “DITE” to defend themselves.

In a Regios christened the Academic City, we meet the main character, Layfon Alseif, a young boy hoping for a fresh start away from his haunting past. Things don’t go as planned as Layfon is forced to deal with his past and the filthy monsters that threaten the safety of their cities.

26. Casshern Sins 

It is a reboot version of Casshern 1973 and is set in a world where robots declare war against mankind. In order to save mankind, people summon Luna, a mysterious girl, to fight against Braiking Boss, the leader of robots.

Later, Braiking Boss sent his three powerful warriors: Casshern, Dio, and Leda, to kill Luna first and then annihilate the entire mankind. Whether you are familiar with its old version or not, this series is a great pick for you to explore mankind’s survival against powerful robots.

25. Deadman Wonderland 

Deadman’s Wonderland is another best end of world anime that follows Ganta Igarashi’s tragic life. One day, Ganta went on a trip to an amusement park with his entire class for enjoyment and thrills.

However, a mysterious red man appeared and massacred his entire class, leaving Ganta alive. Now, he is charged with murdering his entire class and has gone to prison, where he meets other mysterious criminals.

24. Humanity has Declined 

It is one of the best end of world anime that focuses on the brighter side of a post-apocalyptic world inhabited by knowledgeable fairies and a declining population of humans.

As the main unnamed character completes her studies and returns to her hometown, she is assigned to be the arbitrator between fairies and humans by the United Nations.

As the girl goes about her days to persuade and befriend the candy-loving fairies, she also uncovers dark themes with an interesting comical twist.

23. High School of the Dead 

After a sudden pandemic that turns people into zombies breaks out in broad daylight, those who wish to survive are forced to fight. Unfortunately, the same applies to a group of high school students, aided by the school nurse, as they struggle to keep themselves and their acquaintances alive.

Arming themselves with military-grade weapons, they aim to fight to the bitter end to save themselves and find strength in numbers while struggling with situations that question their morals.

22. Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress 

Produced by Wit Studio, this anime gives off a Tokyo Ghoul-x-Attack on Titan vibe. The events of the Industrial Revolution resulted in the outbreak of a deadly virus that turns people into ‘kabane’.

The kabane can only be stopped by decapitating them or by piercing their glowing, iron-covered hearts. To help with this, our protagonist, Ikoma, who resides within an iron fortress like the rest, creates a new weapon.

However, things go downhill as he gets infected during its testing. However, protected by the plot armour, he only ends up turning into a hybrid that can now protect humanity.

21. Desert Punk 

Desert Punk is set in a world that completely transforms into a big desert due to a nuclear attack. Kanta Mizuno, the main character of the series, embarks on a thrilling adventure to survive this desert land.

Throughout his journey, he meets several other survivors and takes them under his wing to explore the world. Moreover, Kanta is an exceptionally skilled warrior, which greatly helped him survive and fight against powerful enemies.

20. Darling in the Franxx 

This is one of the best end of world anime where children are artificially created to save their civilization against the enemy’s forces. Hiro is the main character of the series and is chosen as one of the most skilled pilots along with his partner, Zero Two, a hybrid human.

While spending lots of time with each other for training and fighting against the enemy’s forces, they gradually develop feelings for each other. Aside from fighting and surviving, this series also features a beautiful love story between Hiro and Zero Two.

19. Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet 

After humanity has taken to the stars in space due to an Ice Age on Earth, 16-year-old Ensign Ledo, a soldier of the Galactic Alliance, fights outer space squid-like enemies called ‘Hideauze’.

However, during one of his missions gone wrong, he is sucked into a wormhole with his AI assistant and finds himself aboard the Gargantia, a ship on the water-covered and forgotten Earth.

New to the environment, culture, and language of the people he is surrounded by, he is forced to adapt while sharing and learning as much as he can.

18. No. 6 

Although more famously known as a BL anime, No. 6 is also a stunning anime that unfolds in a dystopian society with a prominent yet unknown economic divide. The story revolves around the well-sheltered Shion and the unpolished Nezumi, who belong to different economic backgrounds.

Shion, who is sheltered by the government, meets Nezumi when he attempts to escape them, establishing a friendly bond between them. However, as the government tries to cover up a dark past, Shion is captured and then rescued by Nezumi after getting a whiff of the truth.

As the two struggle to uncover a mysterious virus spread by a wasp and work together to break down walls, the adventurous thrill is endless.

17. Seraph of the End 

Seraph of the End is one of the best end of world anime where every person over the age of thirteen dies due to a mysterious virus. Just after all people over the age of 13 die, vampires make their debut in the world with the intent of taking control of the entire world.

Now, the only children under the age of 13 are left to live and stop vampires before they succeed in their evil plan. As a result, all these children formed a vampire extermination unit and enrolled some talented children on the team, including Yuichiro, the main character.

16. Trigun Stampede 

Trigun Stampede is one of the most addictive anime in 2023 and gets everyone’s attention around the world. The series is set in a futuristic world where people began shifting to new planets from Earth to live.

While shifting to a new planet, the spaceship of Vash and Nai unfortunately crashed on a desert planet. Now, Vash makes a team with Meryl and Roberto and embarks on a journey to make everything right.

15. Texhnolyze 

Texhnolyze is set in an underground dark city called Lux, where several criminal gangs rule. Ichise is the main character of the series, whose hand and leg were cut out by an influential person for not pleasing him.

However, Dr. Eriko saved him by transplanting his hand and leg with cybernetic parts. Later is unintentionally involved, along with his friend Ran, who has the ability to see the future, in the biggest crisis in Lux City.

14. Girls last tour

Girls Last Tour is a good pick in the post-apocalyptic genre due to its realistic storyline and real-life experiences. This series is set in a world where the entire civilization was annihilated by an unknown apocalypse.

It follows the surviving journey of two girls, Yuuri and Chito, who try their best to survive by searching for food and supplies. Throughout their journey, they also meet other survivors and bring us some of the heartbreaking moments that make us cry.

13. Knights of Sidonia 

If you want to explore the experience of surviving in a space world, then you should watch this best end of world anime, Knights of Sidonia. This series follows the story of Nagate Tanikaze, a young guy who trained himself in an old Guardian Pilot suit.

He never met anyone in his life except his grandfather before joining the Sidonian Force as a garde pilot. Now, he is set to defend his starship, Sidonia, from Gauna, a group of mysterious alien species.

12. Wolf’s Rain

When the world is about to end, an ancient legend of the upcoming opening of the gateway to paradise for wolves causes different views to emerge. Wolves who previously took human forms now regroup and plan to return to their paradise together.

Naturally, they aren’t the only ones thinking so. And so we watch as the pack of wolves struggles through life and defends themselves against sinister intentions, all to reach their paradise.

11. From the New World

From the New World focuses on a society with a limited population in which 12-year-old Saki Watanabe lives a normal life with friends who, like her, have psychic powers. Since this is a common trend, many unusual happenings go unchecked.

This especially disturbs Saki and her friends when the adults don’t bat an eye on the abduction of children. As this anime explores some dark themes and truths about society, it reveals to us the truly ugly side of human nature and induces a thought-provoking experience.

10. Land of the Lustrous 

Land of the Lustrous is another best end of world anime filled with captivating fantasy worlds, incredible action sequences, and heartfelt moments. The series is set in a future world where most of the earth’s surface has been destroyed by meteorites.

Now, the surviving people, called jewels, are left to survive this post-apocalyptic situation and their ongoing war with the moon people. So, Phos, one of the weakest jewel people, and his friend Cinnabar embark on an adventure to protect their world from Moon people.

9. Now and Then, Here and There 

Now and Then, Here and There follows the story of Shuzo, whose life is completely turned upside down when he tries to save a mysterious girl. While saving her, Shuzo unintentionally transports her into another world that is under military rule.

Moreover, surviving is the toughest thing in this world, and people are struggling for water and food supplies. Now, it’s very interesting to see how Shuzo survived in this world and solved the mystery behind his transportation to it.

8. Ergo Proxy 

Ergo Proxy is one of the best end of world anime where humans lived happily with Android until a mysterious virus began to spread. Due to this virus, Android developed self-awareness and began committing crimes, including killing humans.

Now, Re-L Mayer, a well-known investigator, has been assigned to find the secret of why Android kills humans and who is the mastermind behind the virus. The series is filled with mysteries, thrills, and scientific elements that will hook you until the end.

7. Akira 

In this world, a young boy called Akira possesses psychic powers and uses his powers to destroy Tokyo, which sets the ball rolling for World War 3. To prevent further destruction, he is captured by the government and then locked away.

Many years later, bad things have soaked the city to its core, and so we meet our protagonist, Shotaro Kaneda, who leads a gang called The Capsules against other gangs in the city.

After an unfortunate turn of events, Shotaro’s best friend Tetsuo has an accident with an escaped esper and is taken into custody by the government. This is where the adventure begins, as we find out that Tetsuo might possess the same powers as Akira.

6. Dr. Stone

Dr. Stone is a fairly modern anime that recently had its release and begins with the petrification of humankind by a blinding green light that turns people into stone. Millennia later, due to chemical reactions, Senku, a science geek, awakens and resolves to get everyone back through the power of science.

As he tries to reverse the petrification of his friends and revive civilization in a world overrun by nature, he faces many challenges that question his ideologies and morals.

5. Fist of the North Star 

Kenshiro, the main character of the series, is a warrior trained in martial arts who works by striking the vital points of the body, which incapacitates his opponents. As he travels through a world left barren by nuclear war, he dedicates his life to helping others by fighting bandits and gangs that threaten innocent people.

Further, as he faces trouble on his quest to find his fiance, who was abducted during a fight he lost, and realises the importance of the martial arts he learned and the presence of his three stepbrothers, we step into the world of action, gore, and impeccably animated fight scenes all from the Golden Age of Anime.

4. The Promised Neverland 

What are the children to do in a world where demons consume humans like livestock after a long war that ended in an agreement called the Promise?

Obviously, the answer is to fight, and that is exactly what Emma, the main protagonist, and her found family do as they realise the truth of their so-called home run by their ‘Mother’, and the adoption processes and results.

3. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann 

This mecha anime is based on a future ruled by a Lordgenome called the Spiral King. As he forces humans into hiding below the surface, there are also rebels who refuse to be kept down.

And so we meet our main characters, Simon and Kamina, who, despite all odds, pierce the ceiling of their hideout and venture to the surface to explore the new world. As they make new friends and enemies alike, the plot thickens and is sure to keep you on your toes.

2. Made in Abyss 

Made in Abyss depicts the adventurous journey of Riko, who went on a search to find her mother. In order to find her mother, Riko needed to go to the prohibited region, the Abyss, the deepest part of Earth, where no one was allowed to travel.

However, she made up her mind and formed a team with Reg, a robot boy, to go to the Abyss. Throughout her journey, she not only found her mother but also explored the entire abyss and uncovered all of its mysteries.

1. Attack On Titan 

Attack on Titan is a modern masterpiece in the anime world, and it also falls under the post-apocalyptic genre. The series mainly focuses on Eren Yeager, who first lived in an isolated place along with his fellow bloodline elders.

Later, he finds the history of his bloodline and decides to use his Titan powers to annihilate the entire world except his paradise island. The series excellently depicts the true meaning of freedom and how far people can go to get it.

Conclusion

That’s it for the post! We hope you found this list of the 35 best End of World anime useful and found something to your taste. Despite their ranking, each of the series has an incredible storyline and excellently depicts how people survived in a post-apocalyptic world. Their lives are filled with struggles, and they can do anything to protect their nation or peoples, no matter how difficult the situation becomes.

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Sahil Khan

I am Sahil Khan and I was born in Dhanbad and raised in New Delhi, India. I am currently pursuing my graduation while also pursuing my passion for writing about anime. This is because I have been an otaku since I was 7 and writing about anime helps me overcome my stress while also honing my writing skills. Aside from writing, I am a filmmaker and an actor.