Solo Leveling Is the World's Biggest Anime Right Now, And a New Report Proves It

Since its premiere, Solo Leveling has been more popular internationally than in Japan due to the fact that it’s based on a manhwa, which means it originated in South Korea. This is proved by Solo Leveling’s abysmally low sales following its first season. While the anime was intentionally marketed internationally,Solo Leveling Season 2 is increasingly gaining recognition, proving its potential to reach the audience in Japan.

Solo Leveling has everything to have fans hooked with an intriguing premise, epic battles, and intense story developments elevated by its incredible animation quality. However, given Solo Leveling’s controversial representation of Japan, it is only natural that the series will cater to global fans. Yet, now that two months have passed since the Winter 2025 season began, and most of the Japanese viewers have seemingly set on what to keep watching, Solo Leveling is continuing to establish itself as one of the most popular animes, standing out among other fan-favorite series.

Solo Leveling Season 2 is Becoming the Top Anime of Winter 2025

Solo Leveling Surpassed Popular Animes Like The Apothecary Diaries and Re: Zero

Solo Leveling Season 2 has recently topped Japan’s largest anime streaming platform following the release of episode 6, which covers the fight between Sung Jinwoo and Kargalgan and is considered one of the best episodes of the series so far. This way and after the long-awaited fight against Baran,Solo Leveling Season 2 took first place in viewership two weeks in a row on Docomo’s dAnime Store, which is a streaming service with Japan's largest selection of anime.

Top Anime In D'Animestore By Number of Views
1st place:	Solo Leveling Season 2 —Arise from the Shadow—	6th place:	The Daily Life of a Middle-Aged Online Shopper in Another World
2nd place:	The Apothecary Diaries Season 2	7th place:	I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I'll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time
3rd place:	Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World - Season 3	8th place:	I'm a Noble on the Brink of Ruin, So I Might as Well Try Mastering Magic
4th place:	Possibly the Greatest Alchemist of All Time	9th place:	I Left My A-Rank Party to Help My Former Students Reach the Dungeon Depths!
5th place:	From Bureaucrat to Villainess: Dad's Been Reincarnated!	10th place:	Headhunted to Another World: From Salaryman to Big Four!

Solo Leveling Season 2 has beaten fan-favorite series like The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 and Re: Zero Season 3, which is a great feat given they are both notable series whose source material has placed several times among Japan’s best-selling light novels. Additionally, the anime has consecutively placed among the top 10 anime on Amazon Prime Japan. This engagement of the viewers is thanks to Solo Leveling’s high-quality animation, incredible fight choreography as well as Jinwoo’s character and power evolution that would appeal to any action anime fan.

Solo Leveling Has Taken the World by Storm Ahead of the Release of Its Best Arc

The Jeju Island Could Become One of the Best Anime Arcs

solo leveling season 2 episode 7 jinwoo and ants from jeju island

Despite not being so popular in Japan originally, Solo Leveling has an exceptional global trajectory as the anime is currently mimicking the manhwa’s success, breaking several records and even surpassing a massive hit series like Jujutsu Kaisen on Crunchyroll. Additionally, Solo Leveling was the most-watched anime of 2024.

Sung Jinwoo and Satoru Gojo next to each other

Solo Leveling Topples Jujutsu Kaisen, Taking New Record at Crunchyroll

Solo Leveling is breaking records once again, this time surpassing Jujutsu Kaisen to be the third-most-rated anime on Crunchyroll.

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Nonetheless, this popularity could skyrocket as Solo Leveling’s Season 2 final episode approaches, as the Jeju Island Arc is considered one of the best arcs of the series. The Jeju raid is not only one of the pivotal moments in Jinwoo’s journey, but also one of the coolest fights in the series that fans have been anticipating since Solo Leveling’s anime was announced. Because of this, with the Jeju Island Arc starting shortly, Solo Leveling could continue this streak for the rest of the season and be a strong contender for Anime of the Year.

Source: Docomo’s Ranking.