It's October, which means it is spooky season, and what better way to celebrate the month than some spooky anime? It’s time to grab your blankets and dakimakuras to build your forts because Halloween is right around the corner. The anime on this list feature themes such as monsters, ghouls, vampires, and other spooky supernatural creatures.

Some of the anime on the list aren’t overly spooky. For people who don't like horror, these are the shows to watch. The fall 2023 season of anime is currently airing simultaneously. Be sure to check out those anime as well.

Updated on October 8, 2023, by Alexandra Locke: As Halloween approaches, fans are looking for new, spooky anime to accompany the eerie season. There are many unsettling shows to keep fans occupied throughout the month of October and beyond. This article has been updated to include even more of the spookiest anime available.

20 Danganronpa: The Animation

Based on a video game, Danganronpa: The Animation is a Battle Royale/Murder Mystery anime that follows a class of students at Hope’s Peak Academy. The students are forced to participate in a murder game where they either have to kill and get away with it or find all the culprits to survive.

This show is incredibly campy and has a unique design that stands out from other anime. The story is for more mature audiences, but those who watch it are in for a chaotic and horrifying ride. The unique mysteries are sure to entice mystery fans and spooky anime fans alike.

19 The Promised Neverland

The Promised Neverland may not have a stellar second season, but its first season is the perfect accompaniment to a spooky evening. The children of Grace Field House are perfectly happy with their lives until Emma and Norman discover the reality of their situation.

What follows is a terrifying and daring escape as Emma, Norman, and Ray try to help all the children out of Grace Field House and get them away from their terrible fate. The show is suspenseful, and the villains are enticingly horrifying. The Promised Neverland is a show that sticks with audiences long after the final credits roll.

18 Junji Ito Collection

Junji Ito is the master of horror manga. He has an almost Lovecraftian quality to his work, playing (and preying) on fears of the unknown. Stories of his like Tomie and Uzumaki are considered among the greatest manga in the horror genre, but his short stories are just as terrifying.

These episodes will claw their way through audiences' subconscious long after they have finished watching the series. Additionally, there is a two-part OVA that adapts Tomie, one of the most chilling stories Ito ever created.

17 Death Parade

Death Parade is a psychological horror anime about what happens in the afterlife. Decim and his new human partner decide on the fates of the newly departed by making them play games for their eternal resting places.

Unfortunately, the games aren’t as fun as they sound. Many of them involve grotesque body horror and agonizing pain. Plus, Decim isn’t always infallible in his decisions. It's an eerie anime that will have audiences questioning life and what it means to be human. Anime fans looking for something spooky to watch should give Death Parade a try.

16 Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Puella Magi Madoka Magica is a magical girl anime with a twist. This surprisingly spooky anime follows Madoka Kaname and her friends. They are a new group of magical girls who quickly learn that their new powers come at a great cost.

Madoka Magica shines for its experimental visuals and bleak story. It highlights the pratfalls of wishing for different circumstances and emphasizes the impact of depression. The central villain is also deceivingly terrifying in how adorable he looks. It's a dark anime that is the perfect spooky show to watch his Halloween.

15 Elfen Lied

It is hard to pin down just what makes Elfen Lied so great. More than anything, it is the contrast between sweet childlike innocence and savage horrifying brutality.

Half of the story concerns a budding romance and two cousins caring for an amnesiac girl with childlike tendencies. The other darker half features twisted medical experiments, trauma-inducing torture, and inhuman creatures that warp reality with invisible arms. The series aired throughout the summer of 2004 and had thirteen episodes, but sadly, not all of it has aged well.

14 Berserk

There have been numerous Berserk anime over the years, but by far the best is the original 1997 series which encompassed twenty-five unforgettable episodes. The pilot episode follows a scarred one-eyed demon hunter named Guts, known as the Black Swordsman. Then, it flashes back to a younger version of Guts fighting as a mercenary through a hundred-year-long war.

The story focuses on the hardships of mercenary life, feudal politics, and the struggles of the poor in the Middle Ages — all horrors in their own right. However, the story is interrupted by encounters with demons called Apostles. This slowly reveals the true terrors waiting to prey on humankind.

13 Hellsing: Ultimate

The story of Hellsing follows the vampire Alucard, bound to serve the English government and hunt down other supernatural threats, including other vampires, murderous priests, or undead Nazi armies.

This shonen series mixes action with macabre elements of horror. Characters can transform into many-eyed beasts or mindless ghouls. In one iconic scene, clouds cross the blood-red moon as Alucard’s body is broken to a bloody pulp. Then, he gets up, and as he descends on his enemies, he reveals what a monster he really is.

12 Devilman: Crybaby

As people begin to transform into demons throughout Japan, tearing them to shreds, the high school student Akira Fudo takes on a different form, becoming Devilman, a creature with the powers and form of a demon who still retains the essence of his humanity.

But even he cannot save those around him from the hellspawn that take human form to better stalk their prey. Meanwhile, a new drug craze and rising xenophobia lead to a moral panic, eventually unleashing a full-on genocide.

11 Another

Another is a horror-thriller anime released during the winter 2012 season. The show follows class 3-3 of Yomiyama North Middles school. The class partakes in a tradition each year when they pretend one of the students doesn’t exist. This is because a traumatic death happened in the past when one extra student had joined the class.

This year it’s Mei Misaki. When Kouichi Sakakibara transfers to class 3-3, he refuses to ignore her. This causes a series of inevitable deaths among the class in a very gory fashion. Another is one season and aired for twelve episodes.

10 Devils' Line

Devils' Line is a vampire-romance drama released during the spring 2018 season. The show is set in a world where vampires live alongside humans. These vampires are different from traditional vampires as they don’t require blood to survive. However, it calms them when they go into outrage.

Taira Tsukasa meets Anzai Yuuki — a half-human, half-vampire hybrid — after he saves her from an outrage. The two get close to each other but Anzai is worried that he is putting Taira in danger. Anzai must balance his vampire tendencies as well as his responsibilities with the police squad. Devils' Line is one season and aired for twelve episodes.

9 Blood Blockade Battlefront

Known by its Japanese title Kekkai Sensen, Blood Blockade Battlefront is a supernatural comedy anime released during the spring 2015 season. The show is set in a world where supernatural creatures live with humans in New York City. The residents can no longer leave the city and must get along with each other. An organization called Libra keeps the peace.

A photographer named Leonardo Watch lives in the city and receives the “All-seeing Eyes of the Gods” when his sister goes blind. Joining Libra, Leo searches for a way to help his sister. Blood Blockade Battlefront has twelve episodes and aired for two seasons.

8 Soul Eater

Soul Eater is a supernatural fantasy anime released during the spring 2008 season. The show takes place in Death City, at Death Weapon Meister Academy, run by Lord Death. This academy creates weapons for Shinigami made from human hybrids that can transform into weapons.

Death the Kid is one of the protagonists of Soul Eater and is a Shinigami that dual-wields two sisters, Liz and Patty as pistols. The story also centers on the Meister and Weapon duo, Maka Albarn and Soul Evans as they become stronger. Soul Eater is one season and aired for fifty-one episodes. Additionally, it has a spin-off series titled Soul Eater NOT!

7 Rosario + Vampire

Rosario + Vampire is a harem rom-com anime released during the winter 2008 season. The show takes place at Youkai Academy, a boarding school for the supernatural. The school teaches the monsters to live with humans. Tsukune Aono, a human teen, is transferred into the academy where he meets Moka Akashiya, a vampire.

Moka takes an interest in Tsukune, and they get caught up in crazy adventures where Moka’s inner personality must bail them out. Along the way, Tsukune meets other girls including a witch, a succubus, and a yuki-onnna spirit. Rosario + Vampire has thirteen episodes and aired for two seasons.

6 Tokyo Ghoul

If you were looking for a reason to finally start Tokyo Ghoul, now is the time. Tokyo Ghoul is a supernatural drama released during the summer 2014 season. The show is set in Tokyo which is filled with ghouls living alongside humans. However, these ghouls can conceal themselves as humans.

Some ghouls choose to feast on humans, while others like Ken Kaneki abstain from eating them. Ken is also a hybrid ghoul and struggles to survive in the ghoul-infested city. The show is incredibly gruesome and has a lot of unnerving scenes. Tokyo Ghoul has twelve episodes and aired for four seasons.

5 Higurashi: When They Cry

Higurashi: When They Cry is a horror-thriller anime released during the spring 2006 season. In the village of Hinamizawa, a group of friends spends the summer together. A tradition in the village is to celebrate a festival held each year. Around the time of the festival each year, there are a series of murders that relate to each other.

Things take a turn when the friends get involved with the antics of the village. Fans of gore will love this grotesque anime. There is lots of blood and murder throughout the series. When They Cry is twenty-six episodes and aired for two seasons.

4 Interviews with Monster Girls

Interviews with Monster Girls is a comedy school anime released during the winter 2017 season. The story follows Tetsuo Takahashi, a biology teacher at Shibasaki High School. In addition to studying biology, he studies demi-humans.

At the high school, different types of demi-humans attend the school including a vampire, a yuki-onna spirit, a Dullahan, and a succubus. If fans don't like Rosario + Vampire, this is a good alternative. Interviews with Monster Girls is one season and aired for twelve episodes.

3 Corpse Party

Corpse Party is an anime based on an RPG Maker game by the same name. It follows the students of Kisaragi Academy who find themselves transported to the old Heavenly Host Elementary School where a great tragedy occurred. As the night progresses, each of the students meets an increasingly gruesome fate as the ghosts from the elementary school take out their revenge on the living.

This anime is not for the faint of heart. It is full of gore and horrific images, making it the perfect anime for a spooky evening. Fans who would like to brave this gruesome show may want to keep the lights on after they watch it.

2 Mononoke

Mononoke is a psychological horror anime released during the summer 2007 season. The story follows Kusuiuri Apothecary, known as the Medicine Seller. While not entirely human, Medicine Seller takes an elf-like look. The Medicine Seller kills spirits known as Mononoke as he travels across Japan.

Along his journey, The Medicine Seller meets a pregnant woman staying in an inn. Her room is filled with Mononoke and Medicine Seller investigates the spirits to see where they come from and what they want. Mononoke aired for twelve episodes and has a prequel season titled Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales.

1 Parasyte: The Maxim

Parasyte: The Maxim is an action-horror anime released during the fall 2014 season. After aliens have come down to earth, they have taken host inside the brains of humans. One of the humans attacked is Shinichi Izumi.

However, instead of giving up control of his brain, the parasite has taken control of his hand. Shinichi and his parasite Migi, must defend themselves from other parasites. This anime features horrific body horror since the parasites can manipulate their new hosts. Parasyte: The Maxim is one season and aired for twenty-four episodes.