Summary
One of the most common themes in anime is fantastical settings where the adventures never end. Add in the elements of a school setting, and you have the makings of an anime about a magical academy.Anime set at magic academieshave skyrocketed in popularity over the past decade. These shows depict epic tales of heroism, drama, and interpersonal relationships.
Fan imaginations can run wild thanks to the many anime shows depicting magic academies, such asTheMisfit of Demon King AcademyandTheIrregular of Magic High School. However, not everymagic school animeis created equally, and there are a few that truly shine.
Updated on June 21, 2025, by Mark Sammut:Thebest magic academy animedid not receive any new contenders in Spring 2025, andthe Summer seasonseems set to follow suit. Fortunately, there are plenty of older shows that can keep people busy, and I have added three new recommendations (A Returner’s Magic Should Be Special, Trinity Seven, and Gakuen Alice).
The Light Magic and the Hero Otome game is progressing as smoothly as it should. At least, until Yumiella Dolkness, the hidden boss, regains her memories of her past life as a human andrealizes that she’s inside a game. As someone who always preferred the game’s fantasy elements, Yumiella decides she won’t let her life, particularly her love life, be determined by the game mechanics and decides to level up as much as she can as fast as she can.
In all this, Yumiella made one mistake: she didn’t properly hide her powers during her enrollment into the Royal Academy and was revealed to be level 99 at just 15 years, which sends the entire otome game world into a frenzy. With this, Yumiella should be able to determine her fate, right? Amidst the uncertainty, she now must deal with constant attention, something she didn’t bargain for.
Villainess Level 99works almost solely thanks to Yumiella, who is just an awkwardly lovable protagonist who fumbles her way through social situations. The school has almost nothing unique about it, but that kind of works as the anime is, at least, partially a parody of otome game isekai stories.
I can admit,Trinity Sevenis one of those “love or hate” type shows, a statement that can be said for pretty much every harem under the sun. The 2014 series is even more divisive due to belonging to the “battle” subgenre, which is mostly associated with underwhelming fight sequences.Trinity Sevenhas fairly mediocre action, but it is elevated by a decent cast of characters and a fun magic school setting.
Arata is set to become a demon lord, but he needs to get some real education to prepare himself for the role. So, he ends up attending Royal Biblia Academy, which happens to be home to the Trinity Seven. The latter are all girls who are roughly his age, and harem shenanigans begin.Trinity Sevenis primarily for people intobattle harems, although it is a decentmagic school animeas well.
A rareanime based on a manhwa,A Returner’s Magic Should Be Specialhas a familiar but still solid hook. After failing to save the world, Desir travels back a decade, granting the opportunity to hopefully set things right. He enrolls at a prestigious academy that echoes society’s class discrimination, and he sets out to tear down those walls by forming a team designed to showcase common folks. Due to his experience, Desir focuses on speeding up his companions' growth, all in an attempt to increase their chances of surviving in the future.
A Returner’s Magic Should Be Specialis a fairly well-liked manhwa, and the anime has been decent but unspectacular. The main trio of Desir, Pram, and Romantica are likable enough, although the latter can be a bit frustrating at first. The animation is mostly just passable, but season 1 was successful enough to warrant an upcoming sequel.
Baka & Test: Summon the Beastsmight not be the firstmagic academy animethat comes to mind, mainly due to the show being remembered for its over-the-top humor rather than its incorporation of magical or supernatural elements. Furthermore, the anime has more in common withSchool RumbleandThe Daily Lives of High-School BoysthanThe Misfit of Demon King Academy, and the school’s “magic” mostly comes down to short battles that are not that important in the grand scheme of things.
Yet,Baka & Testis one of the more refreshing and memorable stories set in one of these types of schools, specifically due to its emphasis on slice of life silliness. The comedy revolves heavily around, well, idiots, so it is a bit of an acquired taste. That said, if the humor clicks with someone, they will get a lot out of this series.
Onmyodu is a form of magic technique that is dominant in the world ofTokyo Ravens.These magical powers are seen in the Tsuchimikado family, and everyone born into this family is destined to have magical powers, except Harutora Tsuchimikado. Harutora has no problems with not having magical powers and is satisfied with his ordinary life until he finds himself atOnmyou Academywith his best friend, Touji.
The Onmyou Academy was put in place to preserve the Onmyoudou magical technique. On entering the school, Harutora has no knowledge about magic, but as the anime progresses, he realizes that he has magic in him, but it was sealed, and soon enough, he can break the seal and become very knowledgeable and proficient in the use of onmyodou.
When it comes to anime about a magical school,The Misfit of Demon King Academyis up there with the most popular among them, especially its opening season. The series depicts the standard trope of a group of heroes with superpowers, but it does so in a way that puts the spotlight on more than just the main character. The anime revolves aroundAnos Voldigoad, the most powerful demon lord in history, who was reincarnated 2000 years after his death. After being resurrected in a world where its inhabitants' magical prowess has diminished, Anos works to regain his position as the most powerful demon lord atDemon King Academy.
The Misfit of Demon King Academyis kind of a difficult one to rank. Although nothing too novel, season 1 is a lot of fun. Anos is the ultimate OP protagonist, and Sasha and Misha are likable enough as the story’s main supporting characters (and Lay is great too). However, the sequels are messier and, frankly, far worse.
A slightlyforgotten 2000s show,Gakuen Aliceis well worth checking out if you are craving a quirkier-than-averagemagic school anime. For one, Alice Academy’s “powers” are quite broadly defined, allowing for a wide variety of specialties that range from the mundane to the extraordinary. While the student body’s abilities are used to relatively good effect,Gakuen Aliceis primarily a comedy that revolves around the friendship between four characters, all of whom are likable enough.
Despite only being 26 episodes and barely scratching the surface of the manga, the anime is still a bit long in the tooth at times, as the writing and tone are quite inconsistent. However, at its best,Gakuen Aliceis a cute and surprisingly nuanced coming-of-age story.
Story-wise, the show follows Mikan, a kind-hearted girl who decides to enrol at Alice Academy to stay with her best friend, Hotaru.
A common setting for magical academy anime is the institution itself.A Certain Magical Indexand its spin-off,A Certain Scientific Railgun, go even further by depicting their academies on a citywide scale.Academy Cityfeatures a wide variety of educational facilities, from pre-schools to higher institutions.
Experts in the fields of magic, esper powers, and advanced technology work hand in hand with various organizations. The so-called sorcerers of the magic faction face off againstthe espers of the single-talent factionin the anime series. Both sides are vying for Index, an entity that contains the secrets of more than 103,000 magical grimoires.
While the light novel is brilliant throughout,A Certain Magical Index’s anime is fairly inconsistent. Seasons 1 and 2 are fine, while season 3 is a rushed mess that ruins one of the best arcs. As such, the adaptation cannot be recommended wholeheartedly. Fortunately,A Certain Scientific Railgunis far better, with each season being (at least) good.
The schools claim to study science rather than magic, but the former is hardly any different from the latter.
At the center ofMushoku Tenseimight not be a magic academy, but the first part of the second season is all aboutRudeus attending Ranoa Magic Academy. During his time at the Magic Academy, Rudeus meets new friends and old allies, albeit in an unexpected manner. Seeking to cure his erectile dysfunction, Rudeus researches and tries everything he can.
However, that doesn’t exempt him from the challenges Magic School Academies tend to put their protagonists through, whether through unhinged bullying or challenges to prove himself. During his time at the magic academy, Rudeus also discovers an old love and the center of the teleport incident, who turns out to be from the same world as him, leading to one unexpected development after another.
While somewhat divisive due to a lack of action, this arc highlightsMushoku Tensei’s world-building and capacity for slice of life goodness, all the while allowing Rudy to mature slightly.
The sequel cour, Season 2, Part 2, mostly moves away from the academy, but it includes a short storyline about Norn feeling isolated at school. These episodes are fantastic and arguably better than anything in Part 1.
This anime features Chise Hatori, a young girl who is auctioned off to the mysterious magus, Elias Ainsworth, to become his bride and apprentice in magic. After the general introduction of the show and several other events, the second season comes along, and Chise Hatori is to go to college, a magic academy for sorcerers.
While Chise’s enrollment was opposed by her husband-to-be, she decided to pursue it to remove the curse on her andchange her fate with her hands. She is not accepted by everyone, and discovering and differentiating friends from foes has never been more important.The Ancient Magus' Bridefollowed up a fantastic opening season with an arguably underwhelming sequel that dropped Chise in a fairly by-the-numbers magic academy, at least initially. Part 1 can drag quite a bit due to introducing a plethora of new characters who take quite a long time to become interesting, and the main storyline only starts to shine during the sequel cour.
