Our first recommendation is a returning entry, Kamisama Hajimemashita, an anime about a high school girl named Nanami Momozono. She wants a normal life but becomes homeless due to her father’s gambling problem. One fateful day, she saves a man from a vicious attack and in return he offers her to stay in his house. Without any other choice, Nanami accepts but soon finds out that the man she saved was actually a god, and by accepting to live there she has to take on the duties of the shrine.

Nanami meets a powerful fox demon named Tomoe whose job is to help her become a deity, however their relationship isn’t as easy going as you’d expect, as they hate each other. Hoping to gain his trust and learn the ways of becoming a deity, Nanami soon begins to fall for Tomoe as they spend more time together.

Kamisama Hajimemashita has a lot of similar qualities to Fruits Basket, which is why we had to include it back into the new list. The main quality of which is that they both center around a girl who has nothing and ends up finding a new home with special beings. It has a similar art style and light-hearted atmosphere; Nanami also looks similar to and has a personality that resembles Tooru’s. Both series have similar romance and involve the male characters looking after the protagonist, who develops feelings for them after initially not caring at all about them.

Our second choice on this list goes to Kobato., an anime series based on the manga by CLAMP. It is about a clumsy but sweet girl named Hanato Kobato who has a wish to go to a certain place, but in order to do so she must fulfill a mission.
She has to fill a bottle with ‘healed hearts’ from people who have had their suffering hearts healed in-exchange for her wish. Kobato has no memories of her past and she is forbidden to fall in love with anyone she heals.

A spirit named Ioryogi, a dog plushie that is tasked with helping Kobato, is being forced to help her in order to save his own friends held captive in the spiritual world and to return to his true form. Kobato sincerely tries to help everyone she meets to gain their love and admiration, and ultimately their ‘heart’.

Kobato is quite similar to Tooru’s character because of their optimistic personalities and naivety. Both series have similar elements, touching upon fantasy, romance and drama. There is also an element of a curse in both series, which both protagonists have a strong desire to help the other characters relieve. Kobato. has a similar feeling to Fruits Basket that you just have to watch to understand, this is definitely a must watch if you enjoyed Fruits Basket.

The next similar anime on our list is Ouran Koukou Host Club, following the story of a high school student called Haruhi Fujioka, who enters a prestigious academy known as Ouran High School after receiving a scholarship. Upon entering the school, one day she finds herself accidentally encountering the Ouran host club in music room #3 whilst trying to find somewhere quiet to study. Haruhi gets mistaken for a boy because of her short hair and appearance, and when Haruhi tries to leave, she accidentally stumbles into an antique vase worth eight million yen. She becomes forced to do the duties of an errand boy to pay off the huge debt.

The club has six male students that participates in club activities that include entertaining female ‘clients’. In time, Haruhi’s androgynous appearance lands her a promotion in becoming a full time male host. This way Haruhi can pay off her debt faster, though the deeper she dives into the glamorous life of a host, the more she is in danger of others finding out about her true identity.

Ouran Koukou Host Club is similar to Fruits Basket in the way that it is a story about a normal girl protagonist surrounded by handsome guys. It also touches on very similar themes of comedy and love, and has the same kind of light-hearted feel. Both series have a similar art style and have many heartwarming moments. They both also feature many male side characters, each with their own problems that the protagonist tries to help with. If you enjoyed Fruits Basket, then you will most likely like Ouran Koukou Host Club.

Coming next is an anime called Starry Sky; this anime follows the story of a heroine named Tsukiko who enrolls at Seigetsu Academy where she is the only female in the entire school. This is because the school was formerly a boys-only school with an exclusive curriculum catered only for boys. Tsukiko happens to be the first and only girl to have joined the school.

During her time at the academy she meets twelve boys who are actually the twelve zodiac animals personified into young men. During her time there, she learns about each of their stories and their unique personalities. This is represented through episodic arcs, where each couple of episodes focuses on Tsukiko’s interaction with a single character.

Starry Sky also has a relaxed slice of life kind of atmosphere as with Fruits Basket. They both have a strong zodiac-related theme, and both feature protagonists that have a pure and innocent personality. With many sweet moments, Starry Sky is a unique kind of anime that is different from most; it has its own style in portraying the story that may not appeal to everyone’s taste.

Our second to last recommendation is Special A, which is an anime about a girl named Hikari Hanazono, who since a young age has been competing against a boy named Kei Takishima. When they were 6-years old, Hikari challenged Kei to a wrestling match, but lost. Ever since then she has sworn to beat Kei in everything they do, from school grades to sport competitions. In order to stay in the same league as Kei, Hikari follows him and enrolls into an elite school known as Hakusenkan. Kei holds the top place in the school rankings followed shortly by Hikari at second place.

Though Hikari thinks of Kei as just a childhood rival and friend, she doesn't realise that Kei actually loves her and wants to have a different type of relationship with her. Whilst Hikari is constantly trying to defeat Kei in everything they do, Kei tries to find love within the madness of the relationship they have.

Special A has a similar style to Fruits Basket in terms of romance and comedy. Hikari's personality is also quite similar to Tooru's in the sense that they are both hard working people who never give up and would wish for others’ happiness before their own. Both series are also quite alike in terms of the similar feeling that the story emits and the many sweet moments they show. They both center around a female protagonist that is oblivious but is essential to everyone else’s happiness and brings everyone together.

Our final recommendation is the anime Gakuen Alice, which is about a 10-year-old girl named Mikan Sakura who transfers to a prestigious school called Alice Academy, after following her best friend, Hotaru Imai, who transferred there.
Mikan discovers that the school is actually an elite academy that specializes in training ‘Alices’, gifted people who have supernatural abilities. The school was built to train and protect individuals with powers, and only people who have the abilities may enroll.

Mikan discovers that she too has an ability that allows her to enroll into the academy to see her friend once again. Mikan makes new friends with other ‘Alices’ and together with Hotaru, they uncover the secrets and mysteries behind some of the students, and within the academy.

Gakuen Alice is unique in its story but has many elements that can be found in Fruits Basket, such as involving magic and romance. The protagonists in both series are the optimistic type but have a naïve side to their personality. Gakuen Alice is a sweet and heartwarming anime that also has a mixture of drama and emotional situations that will make you want to watch more.