Best Horror Manga Recommendations

Yukinobu Tatsu

Action, Anime Adaptation, Comedy, Fantasy, Horror, Shonen

Ken Takakura, a high school boy nicknamed Okarun, firmly believes in aliens but scoffs at ghosts. Momo Ayase, a girl with strong spiritual powers, believes in the supernatural—but thinks UFOs and aliens are nonsense. One day, a strange bet leads them to confront the real versions of what they each believe in… and chaos explodes. Abductions by aliens, hauntings by evil spirits, life-threatening curses—suddenly, their ordinary school lives spiral into a whirlwind of the paranormal and the absurd! After gaining mysterious powers, Ken and Momo find themselves in one outrageous battle after another, teaming up with quirky allies to face bizarre and terrifying threats. Hilarious, heart-racing, and even a little romantic—Dandadan is a supernatural sci-fi battle comedy that smashes the boundaries between ghosts and aliens in the wildest ways imaginable.

Sho Aimoto

Action, Horror, Ongoing Series, Shonen

Thirteen-year-old Kabane lives with his uncle’s family, who run a rural inn, but has been shunned by those around him since childhood and called “Dorotabou.” One day, a series of mysterious livestock deaths occur in the village, prompting detective Inugami, a specialist in supernatural phenomena, to visit from Tokyo to investigate. Inugami quickly realizes that Kabane is a half-human, half-ghoul (Kūler) hybrid, and rescues him, taking him to his detective agency in Tokyo. At Inugami’s agency, Kabane meets other half-monster youths, including Shiki, who has spider blood, and Akira, a snow boy (yuki-onoko). Together, they become embroiled in a conflict over the “Kesshiki,” a stone created to maintain the balance of the monster world. As they face powerful monsters and clash with Inari’s faction of fox spirits, who seek the Kesshiki, Kabane and his friends confront mysteries surrounding their pasts and families, overcoming various supernatural incidents while searching for their own identities and purpose. Eventually, a large-scale battle involving monsters and a world-shaking conspiracy unfolds. With their own hopes in their hearts, Kabane and his friends fight for a future where monsters and humans can coexist.

Kōji Matsumoto

Completed Series, Horror, Seinen, Vampires & Zombies

Higanjima is a survival horror manga by Koji Matsumoto, set on an isolated island ruled by vampires. The story revolves around an intense battle between humans and vampires as they fight desperately to survive and escape the island. The protagonist is Akira Miyamoto, an ordinary high school student who embarks on a journey to the island known as "Higanjima" with his friends, searching for his older brother Atsushi, who disappeared two years earlier. Upon arriving on the island, Akira and his companions find themselves trapped in a relentless struggle against villagers turned vampires and grotesque creatures. These vampires must regularly consume human blood to prevent themselves from turning into hideous monstrosities. As a result, they capture humans as livestock, draining their blood to sustain their own existence. One by one, Akira’s friends are slain, yet the survivors continue to fight for their lives. Eventually reuniting with his long-lost brother Atsushi, Akira’s objective evolves from merely escaping the island to defeating the vampires’ leader, Miyabi, once and for all.

Takeshi Okano (Art), Shou Makura (Story)

Action, Anime Adaptation, Comedy, Completed Series, Horror, Shonen

Hell Teacher Nūbē is a school-based occult action manga centered around Meisuke Nueno—nicknamed Nūbē—the homeroom teacher of Class 5-3 at Dōmori Elementary School. On the surface, he’s clumsy, easygoing, and approachable, but he also has another side: he’s Japan’s only teacher with spiritual powers. Hidden within Nūbē’s left hand is the “Oni no Te” (Demon’s Hand)—a sealed demonic force that he wields to protect his students from all manner of supernatural threats, including yokai, evil spirits, and urban legends. Risking his life, he battles these mysterious entities to keep his class safe. The series masterfully blends occult mystery, comedy, intense battles, and heartfelt lessons, presenting mostly self-contained episodes. Through these stories, readers witness Nūbē’s deep bonds with his students, their personal growth, and moments of both laughter and tears. Some former enemies even become allies, and certain arcs delve into the emotional lives and moral struggles of both humans and yokai. A hallmark title of Weekly Shonen Jump in the 1990s, Hell Teacher Nūbē was also adapted into an anime series and feature films, securing its place as a beloved school ghost-story hero manga.