Chiyo Miyamo is a book-loving, nerdy school girl who finds it difficult to get to school each day. Though she takes the same route every day, Chiyo finds a strange adventure waiting for her each time, preventing her from getting to class on time. We’re all late sometimes, but for Chiyo, it’s an everyday struggle!

Fairly simple in its premise, Chio-chan no Tsuugakuro focuses on the main character trying to get to the school setting. Chiyo’s life seems to be cursed with being late, as she runs into one situation after another that makes her route to school more difficult. This anime is still new and we’re not sure how it will end, but it is interesting in its unique take on the school genre. As a school anime that barely even shows the character in school, it is certainly one in a million. We wonder if Chiyo will ever be able to make it to class on time!

Makoto Naegi gets accepted into the prestigious Hope’s Peak Academy full of talented students, despite the fact that he is just an ordinary individual with a large amount of luck. However, Naegi and his 15 other classmates are only excited for a short while, as they soon find themselves locked into a dangerous game. In order to escape and graduate, one of the class members has to successfully murder another without getting caught – and if they are caught, the punishment will take their life instead!

The Danganronpa franchise has grabbed our attention in the past with its various games. The anime follows the same sort of storyline as the games, full of all its psychological warfare and despair. Obviously, we wouldn’t want to be a part of the classroom at Hope’s Peak. But watching Danganronpa: The Animation is enlightening, especially if you can imagine how you might be able to get out of that situation alive!

When five students who don’t fit in band together to form their own club, they have little idea of the strange events that will unfold! Taichi Yaegashi, Iori Nagase, Himeko Inaba, Yui Kiriyama and Yoshifumi Aoki begin to experience a supernatural phenomenon wherein they switch bodies with one another! As the friends learn each others’ deepest secrets, they will either grow closer for it, or their group will be ripped apart…

It’s easy to get engrossed in this anime, as each character’s relationships with one another gets put to the test. The members of the Student Cultural Society might seem lighthearted or easy to figure out on the surface, but each one hides some emotional trauma. Kokoro Connect has a little bit of everything. This anime deals with some tough questions about relationships and the choices we have to make for our friendship with others. Though we may not have the supernatural issues that these friends do, we can easily relate to some of their ongoing drama!

An unusual creature appears out of nowhere, destroying the moon and threatening to do the same to the Earth! When the creature shows up as the new homeroom teacher for the discarded class of 3-E at Kunugigaoka Middle School, the students are tasked with finding a way to assassinate their teacher to prevent this disaster. However, their strange teacher, called Koro-sensei, is actually the best instructor they’ve ever had!

Ansatsu Kyoushitsu is one of the most inspiring school anime out there despite its strange premise. The anime can be lighthearted and humorous, but it still manages to stick with its audience because of the depth of love Koro-sensei shows his students. You will watch each character grow up and develop, both in their studies and in their personal growth. What begins as a ridiculous show about students having to kill the strange alien creature that is their teacher becomes something really beautiful and heartwarming in the end. Each character learns valuable life lessons as they struggle against the oppressive school system and the people seeking to hold them back – something we can all learn from!

Once a prodigy pianist, Kousei Arima is left reeling after the death of his mother, causing him to lose his ability to play. Even two years after her death, Kousei still refuses to play, living an ordinary life alongside his two friends, Tsubaki Sawabe and Ryouta Watari. But when Kousei meets a beautiful violinist named Kaori Miyazono, he begins to find the music inside himself again. Is it too late for Kousei’s music to surface again?

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is one of the most popular romance anime around. It’s nothing new to say that the music is moving and emotional, or that the story will make you cry. Of course, there is much more depth to this anime than many of the typical choices found in the school genre. While it is an important addition, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is not entirely focused on the school itself. That’s why we have moved Your Lie in April a bit further down on our list. Granted, it is a brilliant anime with plenty of emotional depth and great music, but it is less of a school anime than some of the other choices on our list. If you haven’t seen this anime yet, you should give it a watch!

Ouran Koukou Host Club revolves around the story of Haruhi Fujioka, a bright young woman who enters the prestigious Ouran High School on scholarship. When Haruhi accidentally stumbles upon the school’s Host Club, she attempts to flee the room but ends up destroying a vase worth 8 million yen! To pay off the debt, Haruhi joins the Host Club as one of its hosts, becoming involved in all sorts of crazy escapades that only the wealthy hosts could pull off.

If you have never heard of Ouran High School Host Club, where have you even been? This anime holds a special place in many viewers’ hearts for its romance, drama, comedy and all-around wholesomeness. Truly a classic to be remembered, this is a school unlike any that we’ve ever seen, and it speaks for itself!

Tootsuki Culinary Academy is an elite cooking school where only the top 10% of students graduate. Souma Yukihira is sent to this academy to learn after his father closes down the restaurant that Souma hoped to inherit someday. As Souma joins his classmates in the extreme “food wars,” his cooking skills will truly be put to the test…

If you have not yet heard anything about Shoukugeki no Souma, it is one of the most unusual school anime in the genre. Entirely based around the idea of a fast-paced culinary school, this show has a few unique twists that make it so popular, especially with the delicious dishes Souma and his classmates manage to cook up! It also introduces an ecchi element that is quite unusual for an anime about cooking. With plenty of characters to face off against, Souma is able to show off his prowess in the kitchen and work toward achieving his goals. Shoukegeki no Souma is in a unique spot of anime all its own, making it truly stand out from the rest.

Kusuo Saiki hates the psychic abilities that he was “blessed” with. All he wants is a completely ordinary life – one that seems impossible with all the complications his gifts seem to get him into! Kusuo finds the strangest people drawn to him, and despite how hard he tries to keep his weird abilities hidden, an ordinary life is far from his reach…

We’ve had school anime with superpowers before, but they are nothing like the ridiculousness behind The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.! Kusuo just wants to live a dull life, unlike many of the character tropes we’ve come to expect with this type of power. The antics Kusuo gets up to with the airheaded Riki Nendou, delusional Shun Kaidou and obsessive Kokomi Teruhashi are the best parts of the show, making us laugh out loud every time. The daily life of a psychic is certainly not an easy one, and we get to see every hilarious moment of it!

Izuku Midoriya spends his days wishing that he could be a hero, like those that he admires, even though he doesn’t have a quirk. When Izuku meets his favorite hero All Might and is gifted All Might’s quirk, it seems like his dream might finally become a reality! As Izuku enrolls in the prestigious UA High, he will endure plenty of difficult training and challenges, along with his other gifted classmates on their journeys to become heroes.

This anime is another popular one, well known for its vibrant characters as well as an exciting storyline. Boku no Hero Academia shows what it might be like to be a part of a superhero school. The relationships between the characters grow and develop throughout the anime as the characters grow in their personal emotional depth as well. Just watching what Izuku and his classmates accomplish will have you wishing you could go to UA High as well!

When he was young, Shouya Ishida could be a bit of a bully, alongside a few of his other classmates. After bullying the deaf Shouko Nishimiya so much that she left the school, Shouya alone is blamed for her treatment and shunned by his classmates for years. Now in his third year of high school, Shouya still struggles with feelings of guilt and loneliness, so he decides to seek Shouko out. Trying to redeem himself from his past actions, Shouya starts to befriend Shouko, changing both of their lives forever. This is a story of overcoming past events and the delicate balance that real relationships have.

Koe no Katachi is one of the best anime films to come out recently! The dynamics between all of the different characters feel real, and it’s a shining example of the way that real relationships work, especially in a school-like setting. It helps that this film is beautifully animated and given a great soundtrack, really immersing the audience into the whole experience. The themes behind Koe no Katachi are many, but the film deals with many of the most painful emotions people have as they go through school and life. The complex illnesses and emotions that this film deals with do not have easy answers. But Koe no Katachi does not try to answer them easily either. The film really makes you think about relationships and life in a way that not many anime can!

This anime centers around the titular baka of the story - Akihisa Yoshii. He has failed every test since entering high school which places him in Class F, the lowest grade of the classes and the most decrepit as well. Wanting to have a better environment, Akihisa rallies his classmates in an effort to secure Class A. This proves to be difficult however as all of them will have issues passing even a single test. They can only rely on Mizuki Himeji, a girl who had a fever on that day and was placed in F. Will they eventually move into Class A?

Baka to Test occurs in a high school where all the matters is the grades you achieve in your tests. It reflects our current views of education where if you get do well, you get rewarded with the amount that is proportionate to your grades. If you're one of those who ever failed a test, maybe this anime will lighten the mood for you... Yoshii fails every test but he has a spunky personality. Typical of the high school genre, there are undertones of romance as well but never well developed. However, the main point of this anime is just to have fun as it is hilariously funny!

Tsuda Takatoshi was about to start his first year in Ousai Academy. This Academy was recently integrated males into the school which should be the dreams of every guy. Soon, he was approached by the vice-president of the student council and was invited to join. Never did he realise that the student council president is an extreme pervert with a penchant for lewd topics. Now he will start his days handling the school affairs, and the affairs within the student council as well.

Perhaps dirty jokes went a tad bit far during high school days for some. Not at Ousai Academy however! Where the jokes are rambunctious and keeps streaming out. You may be thinking that high schoolers ought to be focusing on other things instead of trying to find out as many perverted methods in this world. Truth is however, this particular topic is extremely comical back in the days and it really does not hurt to know a few more references. So if you want to relive your high school days in an ecchi fashion, look no further, you can definitely give Seitokai Yakuindomo a try!

Ryuuji Takasu has often been mistaken for a delinquent. Aisaka Taiga has a fiery temper and is known as the Palmtop Tiger. When these 2 happen to meet, they realise that they have crushes on their respective friends. Now, they form an unlikely alliance to secure those crushes together. As they support and encourage each other, feeling between the two starts to blossom. Will they eventually go for their crushes or settle for each other instead?

There is no better anime to represent the high school romance culture than ToraDora. The expertly crafted plot and the eccentricities of each character makes for a wonderful love story that is bittersweet and joyful. The aspects of high school blends well in the budding relationship between Taiga and Ryuuji as well, such as taking classes together, helping each other out in their subjects... ToraDora is an anime that will definitely remind you of the dating culture back then in school! The familiarity in this anime is sure to put a smile on your face every time you watch it.

Cool and handsome are the words to describe Sakamoto. Even on his first day of high school, he has already made all the girls swoon and all the guys jealous. His composure is top notch and is not easily rattled. Even as the other guys try to sabotage him, Sakamoto still maintains his cool and executes his escape seamlessly. He is the embodiment of suaveness and excellence. He is Sakamoto-kun.

Sakamoto is similar to high school comedy like Danshi Koukousei with the unrealism of Nichijou. The theme of the anime is excellence and perfection, even while failing, he will look awesome in it. The usual and everyday high school interactions are all exemplified all in the name of being cool. This high school anime will make you reflect on your uncool high school life and makes you wonder why you never did try to use a bamboo pole to vault over the school gate to escape being late. So what are you waiting for? Start being cool by watching this anime right now!

Kazama Kenji believes that he is a delinquent. That is until he was coerced into joining the Game Development Club where his behaviors turn out to be the most normal one amongst the group. As he tries to find reason within this chaotic clubroom, he only sinks deeper into the insanity of the club. No matter how hard he tries to escape, he is only pulled in further. Will he ever reclaim his normal, daily life?

When you start taking your club activities so seriously that you are blowing things out or proportions, you would probably get D-frag. D-frag as mentioned is an anime about club activities and the close bonds that club members will have with each other. That would usually be the case for most slice of life animes. Not D-Frag however. The whole premise of the anime is based upon ridiculous events that occurs during school and club activities. It is because of the nonsense and comical events that occurs in D-Frag that you wish that your very own school club could be as lively and interesting as this.

Whether it's an RPG re-enactment or some insane anime events that occurs in Japan, the boys of Sanada North High has it all in their creative imaginations. When it's after school, they will find ways to pass time. Nobody ever says that the daily life must be boring, if it is, just think up of something fun to do. From bizarre experiments to just plain dumb actions, the days of these high school boys are certainly filled with humour. Come and join these boys in their daily high school lives!

On a more gender specific anime, Danshi Koukousei really depicts the actions of high school boys to an on point level. As much as we would very much like to deny it, we more or less did the same acts as in the anime at some point of our high school lives. Danshi Koukousei is basically the high school lives of most boys but in anime form. The biggest selling point of Danshi Koukousei would be its trait to identify the behavior of high school boys and exaggerate it just a little for it to be overly humorous. If you don't believe us, do check it out and see for yourself, and for the female audiences, please don't judge us too much.

No day is a normal day in the plot of Nichijou. Assaulting a deer or talking crows are just some of the common day events in Nichijou. Filled with comical characters, these characters just go about their daily lives. The transition from normalcy to insanity occurs in a split second, affecting all of the characters. We'll leave you to question the craziness of Nichijou but don't forget to laugh along to this memorable high school anime!

Crazy antics, characters that are totally out of this world and silly situations are just a few of the words that you can describe Nichijou as. Nichijou is set in a high school setting but the events that occur in this anime is definitely not one of a typical high school setting. Nichijou has often been hailed as one of the best slice of life, high school anime and we see no reasons to doubt it, each moment is sure to leave you laughing or crying in tears. The circumstances that happens are just too random and unlikely such that they make you question on the fact of it happening rather than why it occurred. As we have said, the school genre is extremely diverse and can incorporate many different genres, even if it seems completely beyond this world.

Join Konata Izumi, an otaku that is going through high school. Together with her friends, the Hiiragi sisters and Miyuki, they spend their time together chatting. The conversation topics are endless. Be it the world around them to something familiar that is the otaku lifestyle, Lucky Star has it all. Join these high school girls as they muse about the issues that affects every high school student.

Lucky Star is perhaps the best slice of life anime to represent the school life culture. Most of the school interactions that occur in Lucky Star are not over-the-top or heavily exaggerated. It's focused on plain,simple and common dialogue with a slight twist at times to provide for humor. The simplicity of this anime is very relatable to most of us and the light nature of this show provides for good clean fun. As mentioned, Konota Izumi is a fellow otaku as well so most of her references may be easily caught on and understood as well.

Tsukamoto Tenma is on a journey to confess her feelings to her crush. But she always get shot down every time! Meanwhile, the high school delinquent Harima Kenji has feelings for Tenma but is too afraid to confess as well. He knows of Tenma's crush of Karasuma and can only watch from the sidelines. Amidst this complicated love relation lies the hectic days of school, friends, activities and rivalries for love. Join this bubbly cast of characters as they begin their school rumble!

Nothing screams slice of life and school louder than School Rumble. Albeit an old anime, School Rumble lives up to its reputation as the best school slice of life anime to date, being widely known and famous as well. The simplicity of the story is perhaps what captures most of the viewers, as they are highly reminiscent to our own high school life with dealing with school crushes being the main focus point in the anime. When you try to sneak an opportunity to talk to your crush or even to sit beside him/her during field trips, School Rumble has it all! If you are looking for an anime that best represents the school genre, we would select School Rumble as one of our top picks.

Believing that the high school euphoria is nothing but a fake, Hachiman Hikigaya is a apathetic and narcissistic individual. He was punished to join the Volunteer's Club in an effort to change his mind set. There he meets Yukinon Yukino, a snarky and sharp-tongues girl. Along the way, they helped resolved the issues of different people. It is through this journey that his teacher hope that he is able to mend his ways and see the world in a brighter light.

Yahari is the anime that is akin to our own high school life in the real world. As pessimistic as it may sound, some of his thoughts, although rotten, are actually present in the world despite being the cold, hard truth. Yahari takes the high school genre to a whole new level, it talks about the high school situation and the students as well. Like every good high school genre, there are hints of developing romance as well and you can't help but cheer him on. If you truly enjoy the high school genre, why not take a detour and check this anime out? You may even make this your new top anime as it has that potential, it's just that good!