Where To Download Anime for Free

Now is a great time to be an anime fan. Gone are the days of poor quality imports from Japan or CDs bought online or at comic fairs. Now we all have simple ways to watch or download anime for free or a modest cost. As most anime fans will know about the premium services like Crunchyroll but free options aren’t so well known. That’s what this article is all about.

There is a caveat though. Many websites that allow you to download anime for free won’t be legal. They won’t advertise this fact but you will be downloading illegally. TechJunkie does not condone illegal activities but we do believe in the freedom of information and of choice. You need to perform your own due diligence before using any of these sources and use your judgment as to whether to download or not. A VPN always helps in such circumstances.

Another caveat. Some ads on some of the following websites are definitely not safe for work so be aware before visiting!

Here are some reliable websites where you can download anime for free.

Animeland

Animeland redirects you to DubbedTV which has a bunch of anime shows available for streaming or download. It doesn’t require Flash to play like Crunchyroll does either which is good news. The selection is decent but not huge but the shows play quickly and seamlessly. There is an adblock detector that can occasionally interrupt downloads though so be aware of that.

Toonova

Toonova has a huge selection of anime across many of the more popular genres. It is well organized and has all episodes within each show page making binge watching a little too easy. This site does require Flash, which is a negative and doesn’t allow you to download all of the shows. There are ways around that though if you know where to look.

GoGo Anime

GoGo Anime has anime shows and movies and works very well. The selection is huge and contains many titles I had never heard of. The site works very quickly and offers the option to stream or download. Be aware that there are popups when you initially press play that may send you to a website that spoofs your ISP. Just close it and press play again to get the show.

9Anime

9Anime is another huge repository of anime titles but is also home to lots of ads. I guess they have to keep the lights on somehow but make sure to have your adblocker on when visiting. In return for your perseverance, you have access to hundreds of titles across just about every genre there is. The sheer volume and variety is why this website made it onto the list despite the ads.

KissAnime

I was not going to put KissAnime on this list initially as the site is annoying. However, so many people I asked about sites to download anime for free said this site had to appear, that it has to appear. It blocked me for 24 hours for using uBlock Origin without warning and I would normally completely ignore a site for that. However, people who know much more about anime than me said this site had to appear. So here it is.

Masterani.me

Masterani.me brings us back on track with a tidy website that doesn’t get in the way of your enjoyment. It has a wide range of anime titles, click one, press play and you’re golden. Playback is seamless, sound quality is good and the servers work very quickly. Many are in HD and display perfectly. This site seems an underdog but from my experience it should me way more popular.

Anime Out

Anime Out is another website well worth checking out. The selection is huge and contains lots of titles I had never heard of. Quality is great, playback is smooth and audio quality is top class. Most titles will have a short description so you know what you’re in for and downloads are fast. What more could you need?

Chia-anime

Chia-anime is another good quality website to download anime for free. The interface is simple and highlights newer shows. The selection is huge and is sorted alphabetically rather than by genre. There are lots on here I haven’t seen and some top anime shows too, it’s a real mix. The site is ad driven but they don’t interfere in the way you consume your anime and downloads are fast if you don’t want to stream.

Those are some top places to download anime for free. Each offers a range of shows and movies from across the genre and many will stream if you don’t want to download. Got any other websites to recommend? Tell us about them below if you do!