2023 so far has been a wonderful year for anime and manga fans, giving us the continuation of hit animes like Vinland Saga, Attack on Titan, and Bungo Stray Dogs and popular manga being adapted into anime like Oshi No Ko, Mashle, and Hell’s Paradise.
Setting the anime aside, this year’s manga sales have been surprising, and the most-sold manga series is from a sports genre, selling more than many big names like One Piece and Chainsaw Man, which was quite a surprise to many manga enthusiasts.
With the end of May and the start of the second half, new data for the sales of the most popular manga has been released by Oricon.
10. Kingdom- 1.56 Million
This is no surprise as the Chinese history manga has been in the top 10 for many years, but this year so far, it has dropped down from the 6th position in 2022.
Overall the manga has been selling very well and will likely hold its spot in the top 10 by the end of the year.
9. Oshi no Ko- 1.69 Million
This should not come as a surprise to anyone considering just how wildly successful the anime has been.
A newcomer on the list, Oshi no Ko’s sales can be attributed to the popularity of the anime. This isn’t a new occurrence, as many mangas have sold so many copies after and during the airing of their anime adaptation.
8. My Hero Academia- 1.87 Million
Another regular on this Top 10 list, My Hero Academia has just come off a successful season 6. The manga is on its last and perhaps best arc, but chapters aren’t being serialized due to the mangaka’s health. Hopefully, he will recover soon and will continue to release more amazing chapters.
7. Tokyo Revengers- 2.62 Million
For the second year in a row, Tokyo Revengers has continued to dominate the charts, even though there have been many bad reviews of the anime.
However, it seems the criticism is coming from a loud minority as sales indicate that readers enjoy the manga. The manga is on its last arc as well.
Also Read: Mappa’s New Original Anime Bears Striking Resemblance to Tokyo Revengers
6. Spy X Family- 2.68 Million
The manga has been extremely popular even before the anime premiered.
The manga series has led to many other ventures, from toys to a movie and a new season. As one of the most popular series and winner of Anime of The Year 2022, it’s no wonder the success is reflected on the sales as well.
5. One Piece- 3.5 Million
No surprise here. The adventure manga is the most successful manga, with 516 million copies in circulation.
One Piece has held its position in the top ten for the longest and will continue to do so as the manga nears its end.
4. Jujutsu Kaisen – 3.75 Million
As the top selling manga of last year with 12 million copies, Jujutsu Kaisen manages to hold onto the top 5.
With season 2 coming next month, manga sales are likely to skyrocket again as it did in 2021 when season 1 aired.Â
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3. Slam Dunk- 4.19 Million
A newcomer in this Top 10 list, Slam Dunk has been around longer than most of the mangas on this list, with its anime adaptation being one of the most popular anime of the 1990s.
Although it always sold very well, the sudden increase in sales can be credited to the new movie about Slam Dunk being announced, The First Slam Dunk. Although the movie has aired already in Japan, other countries are getting the movie this year.Â
2. Chainsaw Man- 4.49 Million
After a successful season 1 (both financially and popularity-wise), Chainsaw Man has continued its dominance among the top mangas.
However, this year has been so much more successful than last year for Chainsaw Man. Last year, Chainsaw Man sold 3.4 million copies, and they exceeded that in only half a year in 2023. This is the work of the brilliant anime by Mappa Studios.
1. Blue Lock- 8 Million
A sports manga, Blue Lock is the most surprising manga in this list. Yes, it is super popular and even more now since season 1 aired this year, and season 2 and a movie were announced right after.
The surprising thing is the huge margin between number 1 and number 2.
Blue Lock also sold more than twice the copies it sold last year and jumped from the 7th best-selling manga in 2022 to now the highest-selling manga of 2023 (so far) in only a matter of 6 months.
Blue Lock also had a feature in the World Cup 2022, an event with hundreds of millions watching, where the uniform of Team Japan was designed by the manga author Muneyuki Kaneshiro. With such a big lead it seems that it might end up at the top by the end of the year.
Blue Lock manga series is set to make history by becoming the first sports manga with the most sold copies in a year.
Blue Lock manga series is written by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and drawn by Yusuke Nomura. The series began serialization in Kodansha’s Weekly Shonen Magazine in August 2018. The manga has been collected into 24 volumes as of May 2023.
