It's Halloween, and the one monster anime never gets tired of is the vampire. Over three decades it has been a gothic action hero, a tragic schoolgirl swordswoman, a gag character who turns to dust when startled, and a bored night-owl who just wants a friend. This week TMS announced a TV anime for Miki Yoshikawa's Hiragi-san's House of Vampires, so we ranked the whole coffin: every vampire anime with a real vote base, ordered by SenpaiRanks Consensus, one entry per franchise.
Quick answer
According to SenpaiRanks, the best vampire anime is the Kizumonogatari film trilogy (Part III peaks at 8.24 Consensus), followed by Castlevania (Season 4 at 8.16) and Hellsing Ultimate (8.11). Kizumonogatari is Shaft's 2016–2017 Monogatari origin story about Koyomi Araragi and the vampire Kiss-shot. Castlevania is the Netflix original from Powerhouse Animation. Hellsing Ultimate is the 10-episode OVA that adapts Kouta Hirano's manga in full. For something lighter, Call of the Night (7.71) is the best modern pick, and The Case Study of Vanitas (Part 2 at 7.84) is the best-looking gothic one, from studio Bones.
The ranked list
1. Kizumonogatari trilogy — 8.24
Shaft, three films (2016–2017). Koyomi Araragi saves a dying vampire over spring break and pays for it with his humanity. Part I sits at 8.10, Part II at 8.14 and Part III at 8.24, so the trilogy gets better as it goes. The 2024 re-edit Koyomi Vamp is shorter but scores lower (7.11). Watch the original three films.
2. Castlevania — 8.16
Powerhouse Animation, Netflix, 2017–2021. Trevor Belmont, Sypha and Alucard against Dracula's war on humanity. Season 1 is only four episodes (7.97); the show peaks in Season 4 (8.16). The Nocturne follow-up scores 7.15 and 7.37. It's Western-produced, but the anime crowd adopted it.
3. Hellsing Ultimate — 8.11
Ten OVA episodes, released 2006–2012. Alucard, the Hellsing Organization's pet monster, against Nazi vampires and the Vatican. It's loud, gory and true to the manga, which the 2001 TV series (7.44) is not.
4. The Case Study of Vanitas — 7.84
Bones, 2021–2022, 24 episodes over two cours. A human doctor carrying a cursed grimoire tries to "cure" vampires in steampunk Paris. Part 1 rates 7.56 and Part 2 climbs to 7.84. Crunchyroll streams it.
5. Call of the Night — 7.71
LIDEN FILMS, 2022. An insomniac middle-schooler wants a vampire to turn him, and she wants him to fall in love first. It's a moody, neon-lit romcom. Season 2 (2025) sits at 7.26.
6. Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust — 7.68
Madhouse, 2000 film, directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri. D hunts a noblewoman's kidnapper across a far-future wasteland. It's one of the best-drawn films of its decade (see our best anime films of the 2000s). The 1985 original rates 6.89.
7. Shiki — 7.54
Daume, 2010, 22 episodes. A rural village starts dying one household at a time. It's the slow-burn horror pick, and it turns the hunters into the monsters by the end.
8. Blood+ — 7.53
Production I.G, 2005, 50 episodes. Saya, a schoolgirl with a katana and no memory, hunts the Chiropteran across Vietnam, Russia and Europe. It's the long-form follow-up to the Blood: The Last Vampire film (6.76).
9. Seraph of the End — 7.50
Wit Studio, 2015, two cours. Vampires rule a post-apocalyptic Japan and the human army fights back. Season 1 rates 7.39; the second cour, Battle in Nagoya, is better at 7.50.
10. The Vampire Dies in No Time — 7.25
Madhouse, 2021–2023. Supposedly the most feared vampire in town dies of shock at the slightest provocation. It's the comedy pick. Season 1 rates 6.90; Season 2 is the stronger one at 7.25.
11. Vampire Knight — 7.19
Studio Deen, 2008, two seasons. A boarding school splits into a Day Class and a vampire Night Class. It's the shōjo-romance entry (Season 1 7.03, Guilty 7.19). Our Vampire Knight guide covers where to watch.
12. Trinity Blood — 7.18
Gonzo, 2005, 24 episodes. A Vatican priest who is secretly a vampire-eating "Crusnik" works through a cold war between humans and the Methuselah. It's the most overtly gothic-Catholic entry on the board.
How we ranked it
One entry per franchise, by SenpaiRanks Consensus, ranked by the franchise's best-scoring entry. Monogatari would otherwise take four slots and Strike the Blood (7.21) would take five. Monster-adjacent shows like Tokyo Ghoul are on our best horror anime ranking and best supernatural anime ranking instead. Think Shiki deserves the top spot? Rate Shiki. Votes move the board.
More SenpaiRanks rankings: best anime films of the 1990s, best Madhouse anime and what to watch in winter 2027.
Frequently asked questions
Q: What is the best vampire anime?
A: According to SenpaiRanks, the Kizumonogatari film trilogy leads at 8.24 Consensus (Part III), ahead of Castlevania at 8.16 and Hellsing Ultimate at 8.11.
Q: Is Hellsing Ultimate better than the Hellsing TV series?
A: On SenpaiRanks, yes: Hellsing Ultimate rates 8.11 against 7.44 for the 2001 TV series, which drops the manga's story halfway through.
Q: What is a good vampire romance anime?
A: Call of the Night (7.71) for a modern romcom, or Vampire Knight (7.19 for Guilty) for classic shōjo drama.
Q: Is there a funny vampire anime?
A: The Vampire Dies in No Time. Season 2 rates 7.25 on SenpaiRanks, and the whole joke is a vampire who crumbles to dust at the slightest shock.
Q: What vampire anime is coming next?
A: TMS is adapting Miki Yoshikawa's Hiragi-san's House of Vampires as a TV anime. No premiere date has been announced yet.