10 Best Anime Like Death Note

What makes Death Note addictive is not the notebook. It is watching Light Yagami and L read each other over a bag of potato chips, a university entrance ceremony and a tennis match (episodes 8 to 10), each sure he is one move ahead. Madhouse's 37-episode adaptation (2006-2007) set a high bar, so each pick below notes what it shares, what differs and who it suits, with spoilers kept light.

All 10 picks at a glance

#	Anime	Shared with Death Note	Best for
1	Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion	Genius anti-hero, secret identity	The closest overall match
2	Monster	A years-long manhunt for a killer	Patient viewers
3	Psycho-Pass	Judgement without trial, a villain who argues back	The Kira morality debate
4	Moriarty the Patriot	Vigilante mastermind vs genius detective	Viewers who rooted for Light
5	The Promised Neverland (Season 1)	Kids out-plotting a watchful adult	A tight 12-episode binge
6	Terror in Resonance	Bombers leaving riddles for a detective	A short, stylish thriller
7	Classroom of the Elite	A hidden manipulator	Scheming school politics
8	Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor	Games where one misread ends you	Mind games without powers
9	Steins;Gate	A self-styled genius against fate	Slow-build sci-fi mystery
10	Summer Time Rendering	Plan and counter-plan	Fans of rules and loopholes

How we picked

Death Note runs on four things at once: a cat-and-mouse chase in which both sides are hiding, genius against genius so the drama comes from deduction rather than punches, a morally grey lead you half-agree with, and the psychological pressure of knowing one careless word gives you away. Few shows hit all four, so each entry says which ones it nails. For a refresher on how Light's game plays out, see our Death Note explainer.

1. Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion: the closest match

Give Light a mask and an army and you get Lelouch Lamperouge, an exiled prince hiding as an ordinary student in occupied Japan. In episode 1 he gains Geass: the power to make anyone obey one command, delivered by eye contact and usable once per person. Like the notebook's, those rules beg to be exploited. The shinigami role goes to C.C., who grants the power with her own agenda (a far busier schemer than Ryuk), while his best friend Suzaku Kururugi, loyal to the empire Lelouch wants to topple, fills much of L's role. Sunrise's two 25-episode seasons (2006-2008) are louder than Death Note, and episode 22 of the first flips everything. Our Code Geass characters guide maps the cast. After the finale, the 2019 film Lelouch of the Re;surrection continues the story in the timeline of the recap movies; beyond that sit the 2024 side story Rozé of the Recapture and a new TV series, Hoshi Oi no Aspal, announced in December 2025 and still undated as of September 2026.

2. Monster: the manhunt fans rate highest

Same studio, very different tempo. Madhouse's 74-episode adaptation of Naoki Urasawa's manga (2004-2005) opens in 1986 Düsseldorf, where surgeon Kenzo Tenma operates on a shot boy instead of the mayor. Years later that boy, Johan Liebert, is killing people, and Tenma follows his trail across Germany and on to Prague. The Death Note echo is Inspector Heinrich Lunge, a BKA detective who mimes typing to file facts in his memory and is certain Tenma is the murderer: Kira against L with the roles inverted, since the hunted man is innocent and the brilliant detective is wrong. Johan heads our ranking of the greatest anime villains, ahead of Light himself. Treat it like a novel: the Kinderheim 511 orphanage surfaces as early as episode 11, but the truth about Johan's childhood is pieced together slowly across the rest of the run, and the unhurried middle rewards patience.

3. Psycho-Pass: Kira's question, asked by a machine

Light wanted a world so afraid of judgement that nobody would dare commit a crime. Psycho-Pass builds a version of that world in 2112 and asks whether you would want to live there. The Sibyl System scans every citizen's mind and assigns a Crime Coefficient, and police Dominators fire only when the number allows, so people can be flagged as latent criminals before they have done anything. Rookie inspector Akane Tsunemori starts as a believer until Shogo Makishima, a soft-spoken antagonist who quotes philosophy while arranging other people's crimes, tests her faith. His debates with Akane and enforcer Shinya Kogami's obsessive hunt for him are the genre's nearest thing to Light and L's sparring. Start with Season 1 (22 episodes, 2012-2013), written by Gen Urobuchi at Production I.G; the 2014 second season had a new head writer and is, in our view, the weakest stretch.

4. Moriarty the Patriot: Light's crusade in Victorian London

If part of you cheered for Kira, start here. William James Moriarty, an orphan who took a murdered noble's identity, designs immaculate crimes to punish corrupt aristocrats and break Britain's class system. Where Light treats Misa and his other helpers as disposable tools, William trusts a loyal circle built around his brothers Albert and Louis, so early episodes feel like heists. Sherlock Holmes arrives in episode 6, aboard the Noahtic, and it becomes a duel in which the rivals respect each other far more openly than Light and L ever do. Production I.G made 24 episodes over two parts (2020-2021) under director Kazuya Nomura, who is also directing the new Code Geass series. The tone is gentler, a good fit if Death Note's final act felt too cold.

5. The Promised Neverland (Season 1): out-thinking the adult in charge

Grace Field House looks like a perfect orphanage until eleven-year-olds Emma, Norman and Ray learn what its children are really raised for. CloverWorks' first season (12 episodes, 2019) then becomes a pure battle of wits: three kids plan an escape under Isabella, the "Mother" who reads and counters them with L's unhurried calm. Norman is the strategist, Ray the cynic and Emma the conscience who won't leave anyone behind, and their double bluffs recreate the paranoia of Death Note's early episodes. The caveat: Season 2 (2021, 11 episodes) compressed most of the manga, skipped whole arcs including Goldy Pond, and was widely criticised. Watch Season 1, then continue in the manga from chapter 38.

6. Terror in Resonance: eleven episodes of riddles and bombs

Shinichiro Watanabe directed this 2014 MAPPA original, scored by Yoko Kanno. Two teenagers calling themselves Sphinx steal nuclear material, then bomb Tokyo and post video riddles drawn from the Oedipus myth. The one detective who takes them seriously, the demoted Kenjiro Shibazaki, cracks their clues one by one, giving you Kira against the task force in miniature. Later, Five, a survivor of the boys' past, turns the chase into a true genius-versus-genius contest. The difference is motive: Sphinx are not trying to rule the world, and the show is sorrowful where Death Note is smug. It is the shortest pick here, ideal for one weekend.

7. Classroom of the Elite: the manipulator hiding in Class D

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji is what Light might have become had he decided the smartest move was never to be noticed. At the elite Advanced Nurturing High School, classes compete for points in special exams, and Ayanokoji, stuck in the supposedly defective Class D, wins from the shadows while classmates such as Suzune Horikita take the credit. As with Light steering the task force, you only see the plan once it has worked, and Class C's Kakeru Ryuen keeps it a real contest. Lerche has made four seasons, the latest a 16-episode run (April to June 2026) opening the second-year story, and Season 5 was announced on 24 June 2026. Expect more fan service than Death Note, and a colder lead.

8. Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor: mind games with nothing but nerve

No notebook and no powers, only debt. Kaiji Ito, a broke drifter, boards the gambling ship Espoir to clear a loan and lands in Restricted Rock-Paper-Scissors, where losers are led away to a fate nobody likes to guess. Every game turns into psychological warfare: reading bluffs, spotting the rule nobody else noticed, betting on what your opponent thinks you believe. The E-Card duel with executive Yukio Tonegawa is as tense as any Light and L standoff. Madhouse made two 26-episode seasons, Ultimate Survivor (2007-2008) and Against All Rules (2011). The narration is even more overheated than Light's monologues and Nobuyuki Fukumoto's angular art takes adjusting to, so give it three episodes.

9. Steins;Gate: a slow build that snaps shut

Self-proclaimed mad scientist Rintaro Okabe and his friends accidentally build a microwave that texts the past. Tweaking small things with these "D-mails" feels harmless until the changes pile up and the organisation SERN takes notice. Death Note sets two geniuses against each other; Steins;Gate sets one theatrical genius against cause and effect. Okabe is Light's opposite, a performer hiding a soft heart, and Kurisu Makise punctures his act. White Fox's 24 episodes (2011) start slowly, then turn hard at episode 12. Our Steins;Gate watch order covers Steins;Gate 0 and the film, and the RE:BOOT visual novel remake reached Steam on 20 August 2026, with Western console versions due on 29 October 2026.

10. Summer Time Rendering: plan and counter-plan in a time loop

Shinpei Ajiro returns to his island home for the funeral of Ushio Kofune, his childhood friend and adoptive sister, and finds "Shadows" that copy people and replace them. Dying sends him back in time, but each loop restarts a little later than the last, so his retries are running out. That limit makes it a Death Note-style duel: Shinpei plans, the enemy adapts, and both sides start predicting each other's counters. His habit of "looking from above", stepping outside a scene to analyse it coldly, is pure Light and L. OLM's 25 episodes (2022) are warmer than Death Note, but the second half is superbly plotted. The manga is complete, and a live-action film is set for 2027.

Honourable mentions, and one to approach with care

Erased (12 episodes, 2016) sends Satoru Fujinuma back to 1988 to stop a serial killer; it is more mystery than duel, and the anime's ending departs from the manga. Future Diary (26 episodes, 2011-2012) is a battle royale among twelve holders of prophetic diaries, messier than Death Note but full of rule-bending tactics. Kakegurui (two 12-episode seasons) moves Kaiji's gambling to an elite academy ruled by council president Kirari Momobami. And Death Note's own creators made Platinum End (24 episodes, 2021-2022), with thirteen candidates competing to succeed God; in our view it never finds a rivalry as sharp as Light and L, so treat it as a curiosity.

Which one should you watch first?

• Loved Light: Code Geass, then Moriarty the Patriot.
• Sided with L: Monster for Lunge, or Terror in Resonance for Shibazaki.
• Loved the notebook's rules: Kaiji, Summer Time Rendering or Kakegurui.
• Want the justice debate: Psycho-Pass.
• Want something short: Terror in Resonance or The Promised Neverland Season 1.

For slower and stranger shows, see our ranking of the best psychological anime.

Frequently Asked Questions

What anime is most similar to Death Note?

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion is the closest. Like Light Yagami, Lelouch is a brilliant student who gains a rule-bound supernatural power, hides behind a secret identity and wages a moral crusade while a close friend could unmask him.

Is Code Geass or Monster better for Death Note fans?

Code Geass matches Death Note's structure and pace, with a genius anti-hero and frequent cliffhangers. Monster matches its psychological depth, but at 74 episodes it is much slower and suits viewers who preferred the investigation to the twists.

Is there an anime with a genius criminal protagonist like Light?

Yes. Lelouch in Code Geass and William James Moriarty in Moriarty the Patriot are brilliant leads who commit crimes for what they believe is a better world. Kiyotaka Ayanokoji in Classroom of the Elite is a colder manipulator who wins by steering other people.

What short anime is like Death Note?

Terror in Resonance (11 episodes, 2014) and the first season of The Promised Neverland (12 episodes, 2019) are the best short picks: tightly plotted battles of wits you can finish in a weekend.

Is Psycho-Pass like Death Note?

Thematically, yes. Psycho-Pass takes Kira's idea of judgement without trial and makes it state policy: the Sibyl System flags people as latent criminals before they commit any crime. Its first season (22 episodes, 2012-2013) pits idealistic inspector Akane Tsunemori against the philosophical criminal Shogo Makishima.

Did the creators of Death Note make another anime?

Yes. Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata also created Bakuman (75 episodes, 2010-2013, about two teenagers trying to become manga artists) and Platinum End (24 episodes, 2021-2022), in which candidates battle to become God. Platinum End is closer in premise but less gripping.