The Best Anime Couples of 2021

Who doesn’t love to watch their favorite anime couples play out on the screen? We know we adore watching two people come together to make something beautiful. This list is dedicated to those special pairs of the year that made our hearts beat faster!

Selections for this list were chosen based on the anime’s rating from viewers as well as how cute they are. We also considered whether or not they confessed their love to each other. Better yet, we thought about the couples that actually ended up together by the end of their season! We can’t wait to see what’s in store for these couples in the future!

Contains Spoilers!


5. Legoshi and Haru from Beastars 2nd Season (Beastars Season 2)

  • Episodes: 12
  • Aired: January 2021 – March 2021

Starting out our list is a fan favorite of the year, Beastars 2nd Season! Legoshi and Haru went through some majorly traumatic events in the first season and grew closer because of it. The two are incredibly cute together, even though Legoshi has trouble admitting his feelings directly to Haru for the first half of the season. In the end, though, his ultimate confession comes in the form of a marriage proposal!! While it throws Haru for a loop, we can’t help but find it sweet that she still considers his crazy ideas, even turning down other animals’ company. Haru and Legoshi even say “I love you” this season! Had there been a bigger focus on the two’s relationship, we probably would’ve rated this anime couple even higher!


4. Bocchan and Alice from Shinigami Bocchan to Kuro Maid (The Duke of Death and His Maid)

  • Episodes: 12
  • Aired: July 2021 – September 2021

Few things are quite as sweet as the childhood romance turned wholesome courtship between Bocchan and Alice. Alice constantly flirts with The Duke of Death, often flustering but delighting him. One of our favorite moments happens out in the snow, when the two have a snowball fight. It’s difficult for Bocchan to actually land a hint on Alice, but as soon as he does, she teases him about making her all wet! He flops into the snow in an embarrassed heap! Later, she admires a snowman version of Bocchan and remembers how he comforted her after his noble friends told her she didn’t belong on the estate, back when they were children. It’s ridiculously cute.

We can’t help but fall in love with Alice’s determination to break Bocchan’s curse. On top of that, Bocchan declares his plan to marry Alice in episode one — he decides he’ll put the ring on her finger with his own hands! It was hard to not give this anime couple more of a spotlight, but there’s time for the upcoming season two to steal a better place!



3. Kyouko Hori and Izumi Miyamura from Horimiya

  • Episodes: 13
  • Aired: January 2021 – April 2021

Kyouko Hori and Izumi Miyamura are champions at breaking the mold. Hori prefers housework and simple clothing to her flashy, popular school life. Similarly, Miyamura is hiding his own secret life: nine piercings and a series of tattoos. When the two meet, it’s like they’ve finally been seen for who they really are! From the very start the two flirt in an awkwardly adorable way: things start small with Hori’s realization that she doesn’t know Miyamura’s first name, but she can’t bring herself to ask him! When she finally admits the blunder, Miyamura is so good-natured that he just laughs and writes his full name out for Hori to save forever. How cute is that?!

Horimiya plays out over the course of a little more than a school year, and in that time, the two grow closer in what might be mundane ways if they didn’t play out so cutely. The two end up being very protective over each other, even against other students. Miyamura defends Hori against the Student Council when they accuse her of losing vital paperwork, and Hori protects Miyamura from the advances of Remi, a Student Council member who is already dating the Student Council President. All of that happens in just the first three episodes, and it only gets sweeter from there! The slowburn realization of this anime couple is extremely satisfying to watch, helping them earn their rightful place on this list!


2. Rit and Red from Shin no Nakama ja Nai to Yuusha no Party wo Oidasareta node, Henkyou de Slow Life suru Koto ni Shimashita (Banished From the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside)

  • Episodes: 13
  • Aired: October 2021 – December 2021

If you want a domestic anime couple with a heavy overlay of fantasy, look no further than the adorable Rit and Red! Rit moves in with Red to help run his apothecary shop, and from then on, the flirting is nonstop. Rit is incredibly honest with her feelings, regularly causing battle-hardened Red to blush. In return, Red is ridiculously sweet with her: at one point even twirling her around in the air while he thanks her for her help in the shop. They even share a few kisses throughout the series!! By the end, Red has even decided he’s ready to call Rit his wife, making this one of the sweetest finales of the year!


1. Tooru Honda and Kyou Souma from Fruits Basket: The Final (Fruits Basket The Final Season)

  • Episodes: 13
  • Aired: April 2021 – June 2021

Tooru Honda and Kyou Souma are the ultimate fan favorites of not just slice-of-life anime, but all anime couples of the year! We loved watching the end of their struggles to be together and end the Souma curse (but especially Kyou’s). We only see two kisses throughout the season, but they are rife with emotion, making them all the more meaningful. The two are even confirmed to stay together til their very end, as we get to see their granddaughter: a sweet little girl who looks just like Tooru! It’s been a long wait to get to see the end of their story in anime format, but Fruits Basket The Final Season brought our favorite anime couple home for good.


Final Thoughts

This year was a goldmine for anime couples, even if they didn’t all make this list. It was hard to let some pairs go, but they just aren’t at that couple stage yet! Still, we got to see lots of wholesome content from all sorts of different genres. It was lots of fun seeing how these characters struggled to realize their feelings and act upon them, as well as the final products of their love!

As mentioned, this list was built upon how much viewers liked the anime in question, as well as the cuteness of the couple. We recognize that’s very subjective, so we also included whether or not they admitted their love or became an actual couple this year! Still, there were plenty that we missed. What were your favorites of the year? Who earned their spot and who would you skip? Let us know in the comments below!

by Link