Isekai is pretty much inescapable, with each new season producing a couple of otherworldly journeys. While not quite as common, harem stories are also staples of most seasonal lineups. Occasionally, the stars align and these two polarizing genres collide, creatingisekai harem animeseries that are the definition of an acquired taste.
Even though it might not seem to be the case at a glance, not every isekai story comes with a harem. Sure, manyOP isekai protagonistsare surrounded by waifus (or husbandos), but a show needs more than just numbers to be an enjoyable harem. Therefore, let’s highlight thebest isekai harem anime, along with also mentioning a few weaker examples.
Updated July 27, 2025, by Mark Sammut:The Winter 2025 is nearly done, and two of itsisekai anime with harems– The Daily Life of a Middle-Aged Online Shopper in Another World and From Bureaucrat to Villainess: Dad’s Been Reincarnated! – are now part of the full rankings. Also, a section dedicated to the upcoming Spring 2025 season has been created.
Does Spring 2025 Have Any Isekai Harem Anime?
The Spring 2025 anime season is surprisingly lacking in otherworldly adventures, with only three shows qualifying as isekai.The Beginning After the Endshould be by far the genre’s biggest release of the season, and hopefully, the adaptation comes close to matching the manhwa’s brilliance. However, it should not be a harem.I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Levelis making its big comeback, and season 2 should be another delightful Cute Girls Doing Fantasy Things slice of life. Again, no harem.
Fortunately, Spring 2025’s final option might be able to scratch thatisekai harem animeitch.
Another “evil” isekai protagonist, Liam gets to follow up an awful life by becoming a planet’s ruler, engaging in awesome mecha battles, leading an empire into sci-fi battles, and indulging in his worst impulses. While he seeks to be as immoral as possible, Liam’s actions might not have the desired results, and he might just not be that great at being.
Ultimately, the most important thing is that the protagonist should quickly find himself surrounded by girls, specifically Amagi, Christiana, and Nias.I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empirewill likely not prioritize the harem element, but it should be a relatively major part of the equation.
Now, let’s get down to the best isekai harem anime ever…
As one of the most recognizable isekai anime of all time,Sword Art Online’s reach exceeds most of its contemporaries. Consequently, Kirito’s adventure is likely to be the first to come to mind when many folks think ofisekai harem anime, especially since the protagonist amassed quite a collection of girls by the second cour. The thing is,SAOis a terrible harem.
To be clear,SAOhas plenty of good traits. Its harem is just not one of them.
Most harem stories identify their winning girl immediately, to the point that the rest of the competition can lack tension. However, in these cases, the main character has yet to make their choice, so the additional love interests make sense on a narrative level. InSAO, Kirito starts dating Asuna before he attracts a harem, and their relationship remains a fixture throughout the show. Consequently, the other girls have no chance at all, which just makes their one-sided interest a bit sad.
The Eminence in Shadowjust barely qualifies for this discussion as it is missing one key factor that defines harems: A male protagonist who shows interest in romantic relationships. Except for a fake romance, Cid does not appear to see female characters as potential partners; however, that has not stopped the protagonist from attracting a literal army of captivated suitors.
Reincarnated with incredible power and the will to live out his chunibyo fantasies, Cid becomes the shadow, an entity that pulls society’s strings from behind the curtain. His overwhelming strength leads to thecreation of Shadow Garden, an organization consisting of nothing but attractive women. All the female characters have great designs and most of them are completely committed to their leader, even though the latter thinks they are just playing along with his antics.The Eminence in Shadowis anisekai anime with haremtropes but not a full harem.
Mostly an honorable mention,The Strongest Magician in the Demon Lord’s Army Was a Humansets up the pieces for a harem but does not do much with them, at least when it comes to the anime adaptation. Despite being a human, Ike was raised and trained by a powerful demon, and he is now part of that race’s army. Naturally, he has to keep his status as a human hidden from most of his peers, which is easier said than done. Still, he is a powerful magician who also relies on tactics to overcome most obstacles, be it fights with other demons or an all-out war against humans.
Ike does not seem to have any interest at all in romance, and his circumstances limit what he can do and who he can date. That said, there are about three female characters who seem to be at least somewhat interested in him. Satie is a bubbly human maid, while Cefiro and Lilith are both strong demons. Except for Satie, who does not do much throughout the show, these characters have more going on than just being love interests for Ike.
OK, this is another borderline case, albeit one that sets up the foundation for a harem. While the anime is closer to a (wholesome) love triangle than a full-blown harem,Trapped in a Dating Simdoes gradually emphasize the latter aspect in its source material, so it eventually gets there. Crucially, season 2 has been announced, so Leon, Angelica, and Olivia will be making their comeback sooner rather than later.
Most importantly,Trapped in a Dating Simis just a wildly entertaining isekai animewith an awesome male protagonist and two pretty great female leads. After completing a terrible visual novel for his sister, a guy promptly dies and wakes up as a background character in that same otome game. While he wants to keep something of a low profile, Leon also knows all the tricks and shortcuts to ensure he is extremely comfortable, and he quickly becomes rich and quite powerful. That said, he is still at the bottom of the pecking order at Holfort Academy.
The story mainly revolves around Leon’s friendships/relationship with Angelica and Olivia, the game’s villainess and heroine. This trio has a charming dynamic that is clearly setting up a three-way romance, which is a lot of fun. Beyond that,Trapped in a Dating Simis constantly funny.
This anime stars a fairly young boy who is definitely not prepared to have his world rocked by four fantasy anime girls. So why not just pile on more? Yeah, there are a total of nine waifus in this show.
And yet, the main character can’t seem to make a solid move on any of them. If fans are triggered by the overly-innocent-main-character trope, don’t bother with this one. The hesitation is ever-present and can hurt the flow of the show, which is often. However, the girls are all pretty cute and there is a good variety of personalities being used.
While hardly the only option,KonoSubais unquestionably the definitive isekai parody, especially in terms of popularity (although,The Eminence in Shadowis a close second). As the show pokes fun at nearly every cliché associated with these types of stories, harem punchlines are naturally part of the equation; in fact, the core dynamic essentially mirrors a typical harem setup. Within days of landing in a new world,Kazuma finds himself in a party alongside a female goddess, mage, and knight.
The twist is that all three girls are extremely dysfunctional and cause Kazuma more trouble than they are worth, at least at first. He also does not hesitate to let them know about their incompetence, and the same happens in reverse. More importantly, while Megumin and (to a lesser extent) Darkness show some interest in Kazuma, this element takes a long time to develop and is rarely prioritized.
Basically,KonoSubais not a harem isekai anime but can still be enjoyed by people who love these types of series.
At first, this show seems like another vanilla anime. It certainly takes hints from othershows likeBakemonogatari, but this quickly develops into a rewarding harem. The main cast covers both male and female characters, each with a well-defined, if somewhat basic, personality. Though, that isn’t to say the show is devoid of a unique romance.
Almost right out of the gate, one of the lead romantic interests is chewing food and spitting it back into the main character’s mouth like some kind of bird mommy. Although that’s not exactly what most would call “sexy,” it’s certainly a nod to other popular romance and harem anime. The harem ends up lacking variety, but there’s plenty of “tongue-in-cheek” fan service and the main character is way overpowered, making the fight scenes enjoyable to watch.
Villainess isekai anime often plays around with reverse harem tropes, especially if they are set in an otome game. Usually, the protagonist goes out of their way to avoid the main love interests, or they have a specific partner in mind who is not usually an option.From Bureaucrat to Villainesstakes things in a few different directions. For one, the reincarnated protagonist is a father who is only somewhat familiar with the game he finds himself in. Secondly, cast as the villainess, he decides that the best way to handle this situation is to rely on his parental instincts.
This decision ends up paying off in both expected and unexpected ways. While trying to improve the heroine’s relationships with her five love interests, the MC accidentally causes all of them to gradually fall in love with his character. He is also largely oblivious to this development.From Bureaucrat to Villainessis a pretty hilarious example of anisekai harem anime, although it is certainly more of a parody than a sincere attempt at a romance.
Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicleshas a pretty interesting hook. A common trope of reincarnation in isekai anime is that the protagonist awakens in the body of a person, usually a member of royalty, and just takes over. Most shows tend to just ignore the body’s previous owner or frame it as them regaining memories of a past life, completely wiping out their current personality in the process.Seirei Gensoukitries something different. Haruto dies and wakes up in a fantasy world as a boy named Rio. In a refreshing twist, both characters retain their personalities, cohabiting and co-existing. Ultimately, they just combine their traits, but it is still an interesting concept.
Beyond that,Seirei Gensoukiis a rather standard isekai anime. Although not absurdly overpowered, Rio is very capable and generally idolized. He quickly forms a harem revolving mainly around Celia and Latifa, although a few other girls join in on occasion. Romance is fairly minimal, so it is more of a case that the characters have very close friendships that occasionally threaten to become something more.
While not great by any stretch of the imagination,The Daily Life of a Middle-Aged Online Shopper in Another Worldis refreshing as far asisekai harem animeare concerned. There are way too many isekai protagonists who are terrified at the mere thought of interacting with women. For all its issues,The Daily Life of a Middle-Aged Online Shopper in Another World’s Kenichi is confident and reacts agreeably to romantic opportunities. In a nice change of pace, the protagonist is not overpowered, and his core ability is access to a storefront that functions somewhat like Amazon. As long as he has the money, he can buy whatever items he wants from Earth, most of which are not available in his new world.
Kenichi’s unique talent naturally attracts the attention of many people, including women. He stumbles upon a partner pretty much instantly, with a girl at the inn taking a liking to him. After that, he quickly finds himself sharing a bed with a cat girl and a merchant, all of whom are enchanted by his relaxed personality. Look,The Daily Life of a Middle-Aged Online Shopper in Another Worldis not particularly memorable, nor is it worth seeking out if the only criteria is a “fun isekai anime;” however, decent isekai harems are hard to come by, and this show is a cut above most offerings.
