High school can be one of the hardest, strangest, and most eventful time of our adolescent lives. While high school isn’t always enjoyable for all, if you’re lucky enough to get a classmate like Akane Kikuchi from Wasteful Days of High School Girl then you might truly love this turbulent 4-year experience. Akane is a girl who wears her strangeness on her sleeves showing the world—and us otaku—that you can make anything mundane into something interesting. Watching Akane fills our needed cuteness tanks as she is just a bundle of kawaii. When one talks about Akane you can never use the word cute enough…that’s just a written anime rule!

Catgirls aren’t a new theme to us here at Honey’s Anime. Usually, most catgirls are quite adorable—with the exception of some here and there—but none can match the cuteness that is Chocola from Nekopara. Originally a visual novel, Nekopara became an anime series back in early 2020 and with it our beloved Chocola became animated and the world was given just a little bit of enjoy. Chocola is full of energy and almost always smiles making her more than just a pet but a truly kawaii catgirl. Now let’s all pray to the anime gods above for more Nekopara in the future so we can indulge in the kawaii energy that is Chocola.

Our definition of God has always been quite debatable, especially in the world of anime. We have seen old men as God and even business-like men as God. In the series The Day I Became a God, our latest version is quite…cute. Hina’s appearance doesn’t start with the best news in The Day I Became a God but her continued presence is enough to fill our otaku hearts with smiles and anime energy. Hina is the reason us otaku will always believe in the power of kawaii.

Quick, what is the first thought that comes to mine when you hear the title princess? Many of you out there probably imagined a princess like Euphemia Li Britannia from Code Geass or Asseylum Vers Allusia from Aldnoah.Zero. In the case of Aurora Suya Rhys Kaymin, these depictions would fail to describe our super kawaii princess. Aurora tends to be more like a lazy child than princess as noted from her often sleepy looking face or the fact she’d prefer to nap her life away. Our poor Aurora needs her beauty sleep though as we are convinced this is what keeps her face looking super kawaii and pinchable. Seriously, when can we buy Aurora figures!?

Those who already know of the surprise element to the Higurashi franchise probably knows that Rena Ryuuguu can be quite…terrifying. Despite that dark element with such a cute frame, Rena—when she’s normal—is the definition of kawaii! Rena has crawled her way into our hearts—pun not intended—by saying lines like kyute and making some of the most adorable sound effects we’ve heard in anime history. Yes, Rena might have a powerful evil within her spirit but we can never deny the fact that she is the cutest anime girl of recent memory and worthy of our kawaii list.

Kashiwagi Sora is a diligent young boy living alone while his father is out travelling the globe looking for adventure. Sora sometimes receives exotic souvenirs from his dad that are usually cursed objects out to kill him. This time though, Sora has received a huge coffin from his dad and what’s inside is not Dracula or Ramses II but rather a palm-sized mummy whom he named Mii-kun.

So a coffin with a cross, excavated from Egypt and there’s a tiny mummy inside of it… Yeah, we know, Japan is weird. But that what makes Japan great though because you’ll never know what crazy and unique stories they’ll cook up next! Right then! At its core, Miira no Kaikata is a cute and cuddly story of master and pet with a dose of serious character background and origin. Fortunately, the cute stuff is abundant in quantity, very inoffensive that you’ll have the urge to grab your pillow, or pet, or anyone close with your arm’s reach and cuddle them non-stop.

Much 3D. So Doge. Muco is an energetic Shiba Inu who loves her owner Komatsu very much and the show is mainly about our cute dog doing cute doggie things every day.

You’ve seen the memes, you’ve seen videos from popular Twitter and Youtube personalities, and you’ve read an article about a dog managing a store in Japan; the Shiba Inu breed is quite popular and it’s still a popular breed with or without the Doge meme. Itoshi no Muco isn’t an accurate portrayal of a typical life of a Shiba Inu, but it’s nonetheless a cute show of the energetic Muco and her daily adventures with her human master, as Muco tries to figure out what is her master trying to or say. The show lacks any story, but that’s not the point of Itoshi no Muco. If you’re looking for anime featuring cute dogs, then Itoshi no Muco is the best pick, especially if you’re a fan of the Shiba Inu breed.

In a seemingly normal kitchen with seemingly normal bananas, one of the bananas started moving. As it turns out, there was a cat inside the banana, and apparently every banana in the kitchen are cats! This rare wildlife observation focuses on these banana cats, and the star of the group is named Bananya, and he wants to be covered in sweet, sweet chocolate!

Now don’t worry, Honey’s Anime didn’t forget the cat lovers, so here is Bananya, a cute short anime about banana cats playing in the house when the humans are away. Each episode is 3 minutes long, but it’s packed with cuteness that you many end up getting type 2 diabetes. And the short length of the episodes make Bananya a perfect intermission between anime shows, or a great way to relieve stress. If you’re feeling guilty for eating bananas now, then, well, we don’t blame you.

Ryuuichi’s parents have died in a tragic plane crash and he is left alone to take care of his baby brother Kotarou. But one day, Ryuuichi has received an invitation from a chairwoman from an elite academy to be their guardian. There is a condition, however—Ryuuichi must earn his stay by becoming a babysitter for the children of the school faculty.

It’s sort of a cheap trick to list an anime about cute babies in a list about kawaii stuff, like it’s similar to you holding your baby sibling to impress a girl in school that you’re an adorable and gentle guy but Gakuen Babysitters is… uh… actually that. Then again, the list is largely composed of shows featuring girl-only casts… *ahem* It’s not like we’re downplaying the anime and Gakuen Babysitters didn’t paint these babies as innocent angels because there are very funny moments involving Ryuuichi having to take care of his baby brother while having to deal with these little hell spawns from the school’s faculty. Babysitting is chaotic and hellish, but it’s cute to watch the little devils run amok around the daycare and breathe a sigh of relief that it’s Ryuuichi doing all the hard work, and not you. H-Honey’s Anime loves babies, by the way! Just saying!

Yuzu, a young fox girl, arrives in a small, peaceful town populated by humans and animal spirits alike. Accompanied by her guardian Bikuni-sama, Yuzu goes uphill to the magnificent hot springs inn named Konohanatei to work as a new attendant. At Konohanatei, Yuzu befriends other fox girl attendants as they greet and serve the visitors—be it human spirits, animal spirits or even gods—and help them heal their tired bodies, and rejuvenate their souls with the calming hot water and relaxing atmosphere of the Konohanatei inn.

It’s just a cute-girls-doing-cute-things show, but this time with a supernatural twist involving beings based on Japanese folklore, and has a more serious tone compared to the happy-go-lucky shows we’ve listed. Konohana Kitan certainly has lots of kawaii moments revolving around Yuzu getting used to working at the inn, to her meeting new people with a story to tell, and interacting with the rest of the fox girls working at the inn. And just like the premise of the story, Konohana Kitan has healing properties that you feel rejuvenated after watching an episode.

The story revolves around Ichinose Hana, a shy girl who is about to start her new life in high school. There she meets new friends and new experiences, and maybe perhaps, her new life may finally fix her introvert personality.

Slow Start is comparable to other slice of life shows featuring an all-girl cast like Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?, Non Non Biyori or Kiniro Mosaic. Argue all you want, but these types of shows exist because Japan loves cute things and there is nothing more adorable than watching a group of girls doing mundane everyday things while doing something random like one of the girls is attracted to older women, especially if they’re a teacher. Slow Start has your typical slice of life quirks but with some yuri bits like the aforementioned girl who is attracted to her teacher, so the anime can be watched for either the cute girls stuff to the student-teacher teasing. Oh, and the animation quality is so very good!

Some would say Hirasawa Yui has some few screws loose because who in the right mind would join the Light Music Club on their first day of school without knowing how to play a musical instrument? Jokes aside, Yui is fascinated by the idea of playing music, so she signed up, and as the club grew with other members, Yui steadily learns to play the guitar and the club start making headway in creating new songs while lazing around drinking tea, and eating sweets. Kyoto Animation has produced many outstanding shows, and a lot of them are slice of life shows that will make you laugh, or cry, or giggle in delight with their adorable cast of cute characters. In fact, Kyoto Animation can fill up this list with their shows quite easily, but for the sake of not turning this into a Top 10 Kyoto Animation Anime Shows, we’re going to pick at least 2 of them and we’ll start with K-On!.

K-On! is your typical slice of life show featuring a group of girls managing the light music club. While there are music-related stories within K-On!, and the music nerd in you will yelp in joy when seeing real-life musical instruments from famous brands, majority of the episodes are focused on each girl’s personality and how they interact with each other. Each character has their own quirks that you find absurd to the point every actions they take are adorable, or in this case, kawaii like Yui sleeping together with her guitar named “Gitah” and constantly clinging on to Azusa, or Ritsu mistaking Mio’s mails as love letters. Each episode is filled with cuteness that sometimes you often forget that K-On! is about music.

Lucky☆Star is a slice-of-life show about four cute high school girls going about their daily lives. Konata is the resident otaku, Kagami is the responsible big sister and resident tsundere, Tsukasa the sweetest little sister around, and Miyuki, the smart, well-mannered and big-breasted girl.

Another Kyoto Animation creation, Lucky Star is another slice of life show about a group of girls going about their daily lives. The differentiator here is Lucky Star is more on otaku culture with 4th wall-breaking jokes referencing other anime (most notably KyoAni’s Haruhi no Suzumiya no Yuutsu), gaming, and the typical life of anime fanatic in Japan. Konata, Kagami, Tsukasa and Miyuki take on popular stereotypes like the girl gamer/otaku, the resident tsundere who, for some reason, couldn’t get a boyfriend despite her cute looks, the meek and clumsy little sister, and the classy, yet clueless rich girl. Lucky Star may not stand the test of time because pop culture references will get outdated, but Lucky Star is a very kawaii anime with cute character designs, a vibrant color palette and talented voice actors that give these adorable girls souls.

Yuuki Aine is a very eccentric girl who is helping her family run a cafe. Aine’s world has completely changed after she meets the top idol Minato Mio from the prestigious idol school Star Harmony Academy. Mio has invited Aine to sing and dance together, and seeing her potential, Aine enrolled to Star Harmony Academy to become an idol to bring smiles to everyone.

The Aikatsu! series is considered, by a lot of fans, as the imouto of big-name idol anime like Love Love! or The Idolm@aster because, unlike her big sisters, Aikatsu! is more focused on the lighter side and cute stuff with little to no drama involved. Aikatsu Friends! is the 2nd spin-off series and currently, they fixed the problems the other series had like focusing more on fewer characters, removed drama and hints of boy-girl romance, and more emphasis on Aikatsu!’s greatest strengths—idol activities and great music.

The characters are extremely cute, but not in a way that is shoved into your face like a character who always trips, always acting tsundere, or a girl who wears frilly dresses and brags how cute she is. The cuteness of the girls in Aikatsu Friends! comes from within, meaning, you appreciate the girls through their action and determination of being the best idols who brings smiles to everyone. To give you an example: Mio is one of the most professional idols in the industry, but after she hangs out with Aine, we soon find out that Mio is clumsy at friendship because she was too preoccupied with work. We see her tries to be close to Aine by asking her to walk together to school, or work together to create the best dresses. Idol anime is often serious, but if you just want to enjoy idol anime without the excess baggage of angst and drama, Aikatsu Friends! is the best pick.

Sakura is your average middle schooler who is always full of energy, gets teased a lot by her big brother, has a loving father, a dead mother, has a best friend with a weird hobby and has a crush on someone who is older than her. One day, she stumbles on a book she saw in her dream, and upon opening it, the cards are magical and Sakura accidentally scatters them throughout the world. Keroberos appears before Sakura and told her that he’s the guardian of the Clow Cards, magical cards holding immense power, Sakura has released. What are they gonna do? Well, Keroberos has appointed Sakura the title of Cardcaptor and it’s up to them to find and retake the Clow Cards before they bring catastrophe to the world!

For many older fans of anime, Cardcaptor Sakura has a special place in their hearts as perhaps their very first anime they’ve seen. To some, Cardcaptor Sakura has taken them to many wonderful adventures with Sakura in her search to retake the missing Clow Cards, or probably the first anime that features a ton of cute frilly dresses. Cardcaptor Sakura is like a fashion show in a way with Sakura wearing different dresses in every episode, and that fact alone is one of the reasons fans love about the anime. Every episode will have you yelping “kawaii” every time you see Sakura in a dress more extravagant than the former, and the dedication of Sakura’s wardrobe designer and friend Tomoya will give you hints that Tomoya is obsessed with Sakura. In fact she is. But if dresses aren’t your thing, then the characters, especially Sakura are more than enough to give you a different dose of kawaii.

Story and strong characters are important, even in anime just wanting to be cute, and the novelty of kawaii quickly wears off when the object or person in question has no personality at all. Cardcaptor Sakura (new or old) is number one on the list because not only Sakura, Tomoya, or even Syaoran are cute with their quirks like a girl in love, a stalking girl or a boy too stubborn to express his feelings. The novelty of kawaii is very plentiful all thanks to the various cute dresses Sakura wears in every episode. You’ll never get bored at looking Sakura and never get bored of her all thanks to a well-developed story and character arcs that keeps Sakura interesting.

Oh and Protip: Do not watch the new Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card-hen without watching the first series because you’ll miss out on a ton of story and character development.

Kashiwagi Sora is a diligent young boy living alone while his father is out travelling the globe looking for adventure. Sora sometimes receives exotic souvenirs from his dad that are usually cursed objects out to kill him. This time though, Sora has received a huge coffin from his dad and what’s inside is not Dracula or Ramses II but rather a palm-sized mummy whom he named Mii-kun.

So a coffin with a cross, excavated from Egypt and there’s a tiny mummy inside of it… Yeah, we know, Japan is weird. But that what makes Japan great though because you’ll never know what crazy and unique stories they’ll cook up next! Right then! At its core, Miira no Kaikata is a cute and cuddly story of master and pet with a dose of serious character background and origin. Fortunately, the cute stuff is abundant in quantity, very inoffensive that you’ll have the urge to grab your pillow, or pet, or anyone close with your arm’s reach and cuddle them non-stop.

Much 3D. So Doge. Muco is an energetic Shiba Inu who loves her owner Komatsu very much and the show is mainly about our cute dog doing cute doggie things every day.

You’ve seen the memes, you’ve seen videos from popular Twitter and Youtube personalities, and you’ve read an article about a dog managing a store in Japan; the Shiba Inu breed is quite popular and it’s still a popular breed with or without the Doge meme. Itoshi no Muco isn’t an accurate portrayal of a typical life of a Shiba Inu, but it’s nonetheless a cute show of the energetic Muco and her daily adventures with her human master, as Muco tries to figure out what is her master trying to or say. The show lacks any story, but that’s not the point of Itoshi no Muco. If you’re looking for anime featuring cute dogs, then Itoshi no Muco is the best pick, especially if you’re a fan of the Shiba Inu breed.

In a seemingly normal kitchen with seemingly normal bananas, one of the bananas started moving. As it turns out, there was a cat inside the banana, and apparently every banana in the kitchen are cats! This rare wildlife observation focuses on these banana cats, and the star of the group is named Bananya, and he wants to be covered in sweet, sweet chocolate!

Now don’t worry, Honey’s Anime didn’t forget the cat lovers, so here is Bananya, a cute short anime about banana cats playing in the house when the humans are away. Each episode is 3 minutes long, but it’s packed with cuteness that you many end up getting type 2 diabetes. And the short length of the episodes make Bananya a perfect intermission between anime shows, or a great way to relieve stress. If you’re feeling guilty for eating bananas now, then, well, we don’t blame you.

Ryuuichi’s parents have died in a tragic plane crash and he is left alone to take care of his baby brother Kotarou. But one day, Ryuuichi has received an invitation from a chairwoman from an elite academy to be their guardian. There is a condition, however—Ryuuichi must earn his stay by becoming a babysitter for the children of the school faculty.

It’s sort of a cheap trick to list an anime about cute babies in a list about kawaii stuff, like it’s similar to you holding your baby sibling to impress a girl in school that you’re an adorable and gentle guy but Gakuen Babysitters is… uh… actually that. Then again, the list is largely composed of shows featuring girl-only casts… *ahem* It’s not like we’re downplaying the anime and Gakuen Babysitters didn’t paint these babies as innocent angels because there are very funny moments involving Ryuuichi having to take care of his baby brother while having to deal with these little hell spawns from the school’s faculty. Babysitting is chaotic and hellish, but it’s cute to watch the little devils run amok around the daycare and breathe a sigh of relief that it’s Ryuuichi doing all the hard work, and not you. H-Honey’s Anime loves babies, by the way! Just saying!

Yuzu, a young fox girl, arrives in a small, peaceful town populated by humans and animal spirits alike. Accompanied by her guardian Bikuni-sama, Yuzu goes uphill to the magnificent hot springs inn named Konohanatei to work as a new attendant. At Konohanatei, Yuzu befriends other fox girl attendants as they greet and serve the visitors—be it human spirits, animal spirits or even gods—and help them heal their tired bodies, and rejuvenate their souls with the calming hot water and relaxing atmosphere of the Konohanatei inn.

It’s just a cute-girls-doing-cute-things show, but this time with a supernatural twist involving beings based on Japanese folklore, and has a more serious tone compared to the happy-go-lucky shows we’ve listed. Konohana Kitan certainly has lots of kawaii moments revolving around Yuzu getting used to working at the inn, to her meeting new people with a story to tell, and interacting with the rest of the fox girls working at the inn. And just like the premise of the story, Konohana Kitan has healing properties that you feel rejuvenated after watching an episode.

The story revolves around Ichinose Hana, a shy girl who is about to start her new life in high school. There she meets new friends and new experiences, and maybe perhaps, her new life may finally fix her introvert personality.

Slow Start is comparable to other slice of life shows featuring an all-girl cast like Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?, Non Non Biyori or Kiniro Mosaic. Argue all you want, but these types of shows exist because Japan loves cute things and there is nothing more adorable than watching a group of girls doing mundane everyday things while doing something random like one of the girls is attracted to older women, especially if they’re a teacher. Slow Start has your typical slice of life quirks but with some yuri bits like the aforementioned girl who is attracted to her teacher, so the anime can be watched for either the cute girls stuff to the student-teacher teasing. Oh, and the animation quality is so very good!

Some would say Hirasawa Yui has some few screws loose because who in the right mind would join the Light Music Club on their first day of school without knowing how to play a musical instrument? Jokes aside, Yui is fascinated by the idea of playing music, so she signed up, and as the club grew with other members, Yui steadily learns to play the guitar and the club start making headway in creating new songs while lazing around drinking tea, and eating sweets. Kyoto Animation has produced many outstanding shows, and a lot of them are slice of life shows that will make you laugh, or cry, or giggle in delight with their adorable cast of cute characters. In fact, Kyoto Animation can fill up this list with their shows quite easily, but for the sake of not turning this into a Top 10 Kyoto Animation Anime Shows, we’re going to pick at least 2 of them and we’ll start with K-On!.

K-On! is your typical slice of life show featuring a group of girls managing the light music club. While there are music-related stories within K-On!, and the music nerd in you will yelp in joy when seeing real-life musical instruments from famous brands, majority of the episodes are focused on each girl’s personality and how they interact with each other. Each character has their own quirks that you find absurd to the point every actions they take are adorable, or in this case, kawaii like Yui sleeping together with her guitar named “Gitah” and constantly clinging on to Azusa, or Ritsu mistaking Mio’s mails as love letters. Each episode is filled with cuteness that sometimes you often forget that K-On! is about music.

Lucky☆Star is a slice-of-life show about four cute high school girls going about their daily lives. Konata is the resident otaku, Kagami is the responsible big sister and resident tsundere, Tsukasa the sweetest little sister around, and Miyuki, the smart, well-mannered and big-breasted girl.

Another Kyoto Animation creation, Lucky Star is another slice of life show about a group of girls going about their daily lives. The differentiator here is Lucky Star is more on otaku culture with 4th wall-breaking jokes referencing other anime (most notably KyoAni’s Haruhi no Suzumiya no Yuutsu), gaming, and the typical life of anime fanatic in Japan. Konata, Kagami, Tsukasa and Miyuki take on popular stereotypes like the girl gamer/otaku, the resident tsundere who, for some reason, couldn’t get a boyfriend despite her cute looks, the meek and clumsy little sister, and the classy, yet clueless rich girl. Lucky Star may not stand the test of time because pop culture references will get outdated, but Lucky Star is a very kawaii anime with cute character designs, a vibrant color palette and talented voice actors that give these adorable girls souls.

Yuuki Aine is a very eccentric girl who is helping her family run a cafe. Aine’s world has completely changed after she meets the top idol Minato Mio from the prestigious idol school Star Harmony Academy. Mio has invited Aine to sing and dance together, and seeing her potential, Aine enrolled to Star Harmony Academy to become an idol to bring smiles to everyone.

The Aikatsu! series is considered, by a lot of fans, as the imouto of big-name idol anime like Love Love! or The Idolm@aster because, unlike her big sisters, Aikatsu! is more focused on the lighter side and cute stuff with little to no drama involved. Aikatsu Friends! is the 2nd spin-off series and currently, they fixed the problems the other series had like focusing more on fewer characters, removed drama and hints of boy-girl romance, and more emphasis on Aikatsu!’s greatest strengths—idol activities and great music.

The characters are extremely cute, but not in a way that is shoved into your face like a character who always trips, always acting tsundere, or a girl who wears frilly dresses and brags how cute she is. The cuteness of the girls in Aikatsu Friends! comes from within, meaning, you appreciate the girls through their action and determination of being the best idols who brings smiles to everyone. To give you an example: Mio is one of the most professional idols in the industry, but after she hangs out with Aine, we soon find out that Mio is clumsy at friendship because she was too preoccupied with work. We see her tries to be close to Aine by asking her to walk together to school, or work together to create the best dresses. Idol anime is often serious, but if you just want to enjoy idol anime without the excess baggage of angst and drama, Aikatsu Friends! is the best pick.

Sakura is your average middle schooler who is always full of energy, gets teased a lot by her big brother, has a loving father, a dead mother, has a best friend with a weird hobby and has a crush on someone who is older than her. One day, she stumbles on a book she saw in her dream, and upon opening it, the cards are magical and Sakura accidentally scatters them throughout the world. Keroberos appears before Sakura and told her that he’s the guardian of the Clow Cards, magical cards holding immense power, Sakura has released. What are they gonna do? Well, Keroberos has appointed Sakura the title of Cardcaptor and it’s up to them to find and retake the Clow Cards before they bring catastrophe to the world!

For many older fans of anime, Cardcaptor Sakura has a special place in their hearts as perhaps their very first anime they’ve seen. To some, Cardcaptor Sakura has taken them to many wonderful adventures with Sakura in her search to retake the missing Clow Cards, or probably the first anime that features a ton of cute frilly dresses. Cardcaptor Sakura is like a fashion show in a way with Sakura wearing different dresses in every episode, and that fact alone is one of the reasons fans love about the anime. Every episode will have you yelping “kawaii” every time you see Sakura in a dress more extravagant than the former, and the dedication of Sakura’s wardrobe designer and friend Tomoya will give you hints that Tomoya is obsessed with Sakura. In fact she is. But if dresses aren’t your thing, then the characters, especially Sakura are more than enough to give you a different dose of kawaii.

Story and strong characters are important, even in anime just wanting to be cute, and the novelty of kawaii quickly wears off when the object or person in question has no personality at all. Cardcaptor Sakura (new or old) is number one on the list because not only Sakura, Tomoya, or even Syaoran are cute with their quirks like a girl in love, a stalking girl or a boy too stubborn to express his feelings. The novelty of kawaii is very plentiful all thanks to the various cute dresses Sakura wears in every episode. You’ll never get bored at looking Sakura and never get bored of her all thanks to a well-developed story and character arcs that keeps Sakura interesting.

Oh and Protip: Do not watch the new Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card-hen without watching the first series because you’ll miss out on a ton of story and character development.