For many years, 9Anime was the one-stop destination for anime fans. It used to offer the latest and most popular anime shows, regular content updates, and an intuitive and well-designed interface to match.
However, in 2024, the platform was banned by the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, a global coalition, due to its copyrighted content. Many fans have thus been looking for other suitable options. Keep reading to discover the 15 best sites like 9Anime to watch anime online.
DISCLAIMER: Our guide mainly focuses on providing information. Many of the sites and services you’ll see here host copyrighted content. For this reason, ExtremeVPN doesn’t appreciate or promote these sites. However, if you still want to access them, protect yourself with a VPN and an antivirus.
The 15 Best Alternatives to 9Anime: Quick List
Short on time? Here’s a quick rundown of the 15 best 9Anime alternatives that still work in 2024:
- AniWave: 9Anime’s new home with the same quality content and beloved features.
- Tubi: Free and legal streaming site to watch the biggest titles in the anime space.
- Chia-Anime: Provides fast and unhindered access to your favorite shows.
- Anime-Planet: Created by die-hard anime fans and contains the most popular titles.
- GoGoAnime: Older and trusted 9Anime alternative with an equally impressive catalog and great features.
- AniWatch: A regularly updated website with a well-planned interface.
- Crunchyroll: The largest anime-based platform in the world, offering an extensive list of titles to stream.
- Animeland: An emerging website with dubbed animes and scheduling features.
- AnimeFrenzy: Top anime website that uploads the recent episodes of the biggest anime titles.
- KickAssAnime: Boasts a massive catalog of old and recent shows.
- KissAnime: A respected anime website and the first point of contact for many die-hard fans.
- AnimeLab: Allows you to stream anime and other East-Asian-related media in high quality.
- Animekisa: Read mangas and watch dubbed animes on this all-in-one website.
- HiAnime: A moderately-known platform that provides a safe and ad-free streaming experience.
- Anime Heaven: Discover hard-to-discover animes with great storylines and high-quality subs.
What is 9Anime, and What Happened to it?
9Anime was a well-known anime streaming website that launched back in 2016. The website brought anime closer and made it more popular with fans worldwide, reaching about 39 million monthly visits during its peak in 2020. Due to its role in the illegal but global distribution of anime, it was thus called “a major player in anime piracy.”
9Anime’s popularity largely stemmed from a growing, global anime audience and extremely limited or geo-restricted anime distribution platforms like Crunchyroll, Funimation, and VRV. Most fans, therefore, switched to 9Anime and its numerous mirrors and proxies, costing studios millions of dollars. This made shutting down the website a priority for copyright enforcement organizations.
While many enforcement agencies have targeted the website, the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment is the most outstanding and long-lasting. They targeted the website several times, especially in 2022 and 2023. Towards the end of 2023, 9Anime started redirecting to a new website called AniWave, which also offers anime content.
In August 2024, 9Anime and several other copyright-violating websites finally went offline. This was after intense pressure from the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment and the Vietnamese police, where it’s reported that the app is based.
15 Best Sites Like 9Anime: Detailed List
1. AniWave
AniWave is the new look and website of 9Anime. It retains all the qualities of its predecessor, such as an extensive list of anime titles and a highly intuitive interface. This platform is available for a larger audience through multiple mirror links.
As a free website, AniWave displays a lot of ads. This means that you’ll sometimes be redirected to inappropriate content whenever you try to stream anime.
Overall, the platform is a great option for streaming anime with a plethora of features and an impressive range of titles. Streaming content on the website is generally free, but you can also sign up and join anime-related conversations.
2. Tubi
Tubi is a great site that offers a vast library of movies and TV shows online. Not only does the site host movie titles, but it also offers content for anime lovers. You can enjoy popular shows like Naruto, One-Punch Man, and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure on this site.
The platform has a well-organized mobile app and website. It also offers limited parental control features, allowing you to record shows and even manage your watchlist. However, Tubi only works in the US. If you’re anywhere outside of the US, you will need a VPN to access its content. Moreover, as it is a free service, it might not offer all seasons of shows, and the library can change with time.
3. Chia-Anime
While there are many free anime streaming platforms available, only a few are as convenient and user-friendly as Chia-Anime. On its main website, you can quickly scroll through its list of classic and recent anime titles and easily select and stream the one you want.
Unlike most websites that redirect you to inappropriate web pages, clicking on any link on Chia Anime takes you directly to what you wish to watch. The only ad you’ll encounter on this website is well-positioned towards the right of the screen and doesn’t interfere with your browsing or streaming.
The site also has a search button if you have a particular anime title in mind. You can also filter shows by studio, genre, season, status, and categories. The videos available on the platform are relatively of high quality, similar to 9Anime.
4. Anime-Planet
Anime-Planet is a free and legal alternative to 9Anime. Unlike other entries on this list with no known owners or sources, it is run by fans for fans, has major social media pages, and even manages a Patreon where you can support its activities.
Due to partnerships with production studios, the platform is able to offer its shows and series for free. However, this significantly limits the shows you can choose from and prevents you from accessing the latest and trending releases, like One Piece and Bleach (the rereleased version).
The shows on the website are available in moderately high quality. You can also create an account and join conversations around the show you just watched or start discussions. On Anime Planet, you can discover new shows, add them to your list, and see recommendations for similar series to the ones you’ve selected.
5. GoGoAnime
GoGoAnime is among the widely known anime streaming websites. Its dark interface gives it a sleek and visually appealing look, which is further enhanced by its well-organized website.
The site allows you to stream virtually every famous and obscure anime title. Even OVAs and feature films are available on this website for dedicated anime fans who want to expand their understanding of a series.
GoGoAnime also provides direct links to KissAnime and 9Anime, two of the biggest streaming platforms for anime in the world. So, if there’s any show you can’t find on the platform, you can easily switch to either of these sites and find the show there.
The website can sometimes redirect you to harmful websites, so you must be cautious when leaving your digital footprint. Or you can explore GoGoAnime alternatives to have a more seamless streaming journey.
6. AniWatch
If you’re looking for a website to watch recent episodes of popular anime shows and even new releases, consider AniWatch. This website adds episodes to its database the moment they air in Japan, and you can typically stream them a couple of hours after release.
AniWatch has many useful features, various key selling points, and competitive advantages. The website has a spotless interface designed for quick and easy navigation. It also doesn’t have ads on its web pages, although it redirects to other websites when you sometimes click buttons. Streaming any show on the site is free, but you may need to create an account to join conversations.
7. Crunchyroll
Crunchyroll is the largest anime streaming service in the world by a mile. Already an established platform, it acquired Funimation, its closest competitor, in 2022, further expanding its dominance of the industry. Thus, it is the de facto home of anything classic or modern anime.
If there’s any anime title you want and can’t find here, it may be time to travel to Japan. This platform provides subbed and dubbed anime, catering to a diverse audience and quelling arguments. New series are added here only one hour after they air in Japan, and they are shown in exceptionally high quality.
Crunchyroll even allows you to play anime-based games, adding an element of fun to an already enjoyable experience. It has been anime fans’ top streaming choice, winning multiple awards in the process. However, it isn’t free and requires you to create an account and pay periodic subscription fees.
8. Animeland
Animeland gives you free access to some well-known and unknown anime titles. Despite some of its drawbacks, like an outdated UI and being overrun with ads, it provides some unique features like dubbed animes, video downloading, and even anime movies.
The ads littered throughout this website, though, make it very difficult to navigate and hinder a pleasant streaming experience. Aside from having a premium and working VPN service, you should also consider having an ad blocker that automatically disables or blocks all these harmful ads.
9. AnimeFrenzy
AnimeFrenzy is a new anime streaming site with great promises. While it is not necessarily in the same category as 9Anime in terms of popularity, catalog, and features, it still offers many great features. It boasts modern and well-followed anime titles, like Kaiju No 8, Solo Levelling, and Jujutsu Kaisen.
The website has a very basic and linear structure compared to other websites on this list. However, if you prefer functionality over aesthetics, this would not matter much to you. It doesn’t provide any sorting or filtering options, but if you know the anime’s title, you can find it using the search box.
10. KickAssAnime
KickAssAnime is another popular streaming service for anime with a massive catalog of content, both old and new. The platform is infamous for the Not-Safe-For-Work (NSFW) materials spread throughout the website.
The homepage contains a plethora of anime titles and provides quick navigation links to trending and random animes and other popular shows. Its search bar is located at its top center, making it easy to search and even easier to find your desired shows.
Beyond the NSFW materials, this website also contains many pop-up ads and notifications. It redirects to various harmful websites where your information could be stolen, so it is crucial to connect to a VPN while browsing the site.
11. KissAnime
KissAnime holds a special place in the hearts of many anime fans. It is one of the oldest and most dependable anime websites. Although it has faced its fair share of attacks by copyright enforcers and has been shut down on occasions – it has managed to remain active and avoid further bans and blocks by leveraging mirror and proxy links.
As an old platform, KissAnime has undergone numerous changes, although all have stayed true to the original. You can browse through featured anime series by scrolling up and down on the homepage or using a quick filter on the right side to find a title faster.
You can also see the all-time most popular animes for the week and month. Additionally, the site allows you to schedule series to watch later, bookmark them, or even switch between light and dark mode at the top right corner.
The website occasionally experiences downtime and may not be accessible at times. Hence, users go with other sites similar to KissAnime to continue streaming.
12. AnimeLab
AnimeLab is among the free and legal sites that let you stream anime and other East Asian content in high quality. A treasure trove, the site offers every category of shows across different ages and genres. Streaming is almost instantaneous, and you can even download these shows to your device to stream later.
The original site was acquired by and is now a subsidiary of Crunchyroll, further expanding its streaming empire. The current active sites look like mirror links and may not have direct ties to the original network.
So, while AnimeLab offered its services in partnership with production studios, these mirror websites display inappropriate ads and scammy redirects to stay active. This makes them extremely dangerous, and we recommend extra caution when visiting them.
13. Animekisa
Animekisa is another popular alternative to 9Anime, offering subbed and dubbed anime for a wide variety of content. The site also offers anime for Chinese and Korean mangas or manhwas.
Animekisa also has a solid reputation, having been around for almost as long as 9Anime with very little law enforcement attention. However, it has also been shut down and banned on one or two occasions.
The greatest concerns regarding this website revolve around its safety and security and the sheer number of ads. There are so many ads and interruptions that simply clicking the play button on an anime episode is a serious hassle.
14. HiAnime
HiAnime aims to provide a safe and clean space for anime fans – most of whom have nothing more than to settle for the many unsafe and spammy websites online.
There was an increase in searches related to anime topics, indicating more interest in the media and HiAnime is capitalizing on this by hosting anime across different categories on its website.
This platform stands out for being safe and ad-free, providing an enjoyable streaming experience. Although it may lack some major names or recent releases, it makes up for all of that with an intuitive user interface and seamless streaming sessions.
15. Anime Heaven
If you’re looking for a platform to watch subbed anime, you may want to consider Anime Heaven. This website allows you to discover non-mainstream anime titles with surprisingly interactive plots and even better animation.
Anime Heaven has a compact design, allowing you to scroll through its featured anime quickly. If there’s a series not available on this page, you can easily search for it. Being a free site, though, you may encounter ads on occasion or not find some titles.
How to Select the Best Alternatives to 9Anime
Many features captivated fans to 9Anime, making it a number-one hub for anime content worldwide. These features include, but are not limited to, its global availability, ease of use, wide range of content, and high-quality videos.
When choosing the best alternatives, we considered the following features:
- Content spectrum: Websites with a broader range of content offerings provide users with more options and have a higher chance of making this list. Some websites that particularly excel in this area are Crunchyroll and GoGoAnime.
- Free streaming: Every website on this list offers free streaming, with the exception of Crunchyroll. This is not to say that Crunchyroll is fully paid – it offers a free plan with ads, but it requires you to make a payment to enjoy its premium experience.
- Streaming quality: All the sites on our list offer high-quality videos to enhance the streaming experience. Some let you stream in quality up to 720p, while others allow up to 1080p.
Is 9Anime Safe?
9Anime is a free streaming website that displays the same characteristics that are now typical of virtually all other free streaming sites. It contains a boatload of inappropriate ads, redirects to spammy and scammy sites, and has numerous popups. All of these make 9Anime unsafe, as they could potentially lead to data loss, data theft, or hacking.
Rather than using 9Anime, we recommend legal and safer options like Tubi and Crunchyroll, which both have strong data protection policies and some free shows. If you must use 9Anime, consider observing certain security measures, including enabling an antivirus, setting up a VPN, and avoiding dropping your personal details and information everywhere.
Are Sites Like 9Anime Illegal?
9Anime and every other similar site to it are illegal under many jurisdictions. They violate numerous copyright protection laws and are notorious for piracy. This is why they’re frequently targeted by enforcement agencies.
Some sites like Tubi, Crunchyroll, Anime-Planet, and AnimeLab are legal as they host content with proper rights. However, those sites that offer content without the consent of owners are considered illegal in many parts of the world.
We recommend checking the site’s legality status before you wish to stream anime on any of these sites. In areas with stern copyright protection laws, you could face jail terms if caught using these websites.
Where the laws are more flexible, the penalty could be fines or light sentencing. In any case, it’s important to protect yourself by checking whether or not you’re allowed to stream on these sites.