23+ Iyashikei Anime Series That Will Heal Your Soul

You’ve heard about slice of life anime series. They’re the type that tends to:

Be wholesome.
Follow a set pattern.
Expose the everyday lives of the characters in question.
Give you a slice of their lives in multiple settings.

And so on. There are 2000+ of them in existence.

Iyashikei is a different type of slice of life. A subgenre of sorts. It’s designed to have a healing effect on the audience who consumes this type of anime, and characters are put in calming, relaxing settings.

It also tends NOT to have any fanservice or innuendos at all. It’s pure as you can get.

Here’s a list of Iyashikei anime that fit the bill!

1. Diary Of Our Days At The Breakwater

This slice of life anime series was released during the pandemic (April 2020). It was part of a few wholesome anime that year during spring season.

It’s about a girl called Hina Tsurugi, she’s new to the area and is still learning about fishing, the techniques, and other things she’s not used to in the seaside area she’s in.

After being trolled and tricked into joining a club of sorts that does fishing and other activities, the anime kicks off and Hina ends up meeting her old friend Natsumi as well.

It’s a wholesome series that will relax you and chill you out.

2. Tanaka Kun Is Always Listless

The ultimate relaxation anime if you ask me. Every episode is so laid back that the episodes themselves feel longer than they are. You’ll be surprised at the effect it has on you.

Tanaka, a lazy, listless character does everything in his power to conserve energy. His friend is the opposite and is a guy who people look up to and respect for his characteristics.

A girl named Shiraishi who wears glasses is another character who’s wholesome and nice. And there’s even Echizen, a Tsundere but not the kind you’ll see in other anime shows.

The whole anime feels like smoking weed and getting high (without the craziness).

3. Acchi Kocchi

In this wholesome, Moe style anime series, the main female character called Tsumiki Miniwa has feelings for the male character Otonashi.

She’s shy, lacks confidence and courage, and isn’t the most outgoing person either so she struggles to confess. She loves Otonashi.

Otonashi in return does act more friendly towards her but he’s too dense to catch the signs when thrown directly at him.

This is more of a sweet romance and one with wholesome vibes so don’t expect anything harsh or anything like that. It has a nice feeling to it.

4. Slow Loop

Another Iyashikei series about fishing in a slice of life setting. This anime started airing back in 2021 during the winter season.

Hiyori is the female main character and she has a special type of bait she uses when fishing. She got this from her father who taught her to use it.

This becomes the basis of how fishing is done in this anime.

You get your usual cute characters, cute episodes, almost moe elements, and a lot of chillax moments.

5. Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family

A spin-off from the usual FATE series that’s known for its:

Violence.
Romance.
Action.
Fights.
Historical characters.

And so on.

Today’s Menu for the Emiya Family takes a wholesome slice of life approach and turns the Fate series into a series of healing.

You have Shirou Emiya who’s known to be a good cook making a lot of the food in the house.

You have Saber, who tends to be by Shirou’s side and adds to the anime’s relaxation and chilled episodes. And overall each episode is 13 minutes in a Food Wars style setting (without the fanservice obviously).

It’s enjoyable even if you’re not a fan of the FATE series, or even if you’ve never watched FATE before.

6. When Will Ayumu Make His Move?

Airing right now during Autumn 2022 (it will end soon) this anime is adapted from a manga and was announced back in 2021. With the season going strong with around 8 or more episodes so far, it’s turning out to be a favorite this season.

You have Yaotome (the senpai) and you have Ayumu who fancies her. He promises himself he’ll only confess after he beats her in a game of Shogi, a game he always loses when facing his Senpai Urushi Yaotome.

The anime in true Iyashikei fashion is healing, wholesome, and pure as can be.

7. Usagi Drop

This anime is wholesome for different reasons from others on this list. That reason is FAMILY. The main male character is in his early 30’s, is single, and is doing OK for himself.

After his granddad dies he essentially runs into one of his grandfather’s illegitimate daughters who’s ostracized and demonized by the family. So he takes her in and his journey of fatherhood begins (since he’s playing the role of father).

Life lessons in parenting, raising children, getting through life, and so much more are what you’ll find in this anime. There’s a good reason it’s generally rated so high.

8. Hidamari Sketch

Hidamari Sketch is comparable to the anime series Comic Girls. The concepts are similar and Comic Girls may have taken inspiration from them.

In this anime, you have Yuno, the main female character who’s passionate about art and she’s been accepted into an art school. She moves out into a dorm and meets other girls with the same passions and interests.

This is the source of the anime’s wholesome, sometimes funny episodes through the perspectives of young girls pursuing the careers they love as teenagers.

9. Aharen Is Indecipherable

Released in Spring 2022, this anime shares similarity to shows like When Will Ayumu Make His Move. As the name implies Aharen is a strange girl who’s hard to decipher.

She’s extremely introverted, speaks in a quiet voice because she’s not confident and doesn’t know how to project, and her facial expressions are elusive and hard to read.

Still, she has friends, one of which seems to protect her a lot and stand up for her. And of course – Raidou Kun is the love interest of this beyond wholesome rom com.

They fit like a glove and make for a relaxing series with romance in between.

10. Kemono Friends

This is an Iyashikei Series done from the perspective of animals who talk, basically. Human-like animals you could say. Leopards, Tigers, you name it.

While a strange series at first, it warms on you and has an appeal to it that hasn’t been seen before.

As the anime dives deeper it goes into surprisingly deeper topics relating to human nature, humans’ relationship with animals and more. But the 2nd season wasn’t faithful to its material and it didn’t do as well as season 1.

11. By The Grace Of The Gods

This Isekai series and one of the few that are Iyashikei is adapted from a light novel series. The main character Ryouma has a unique hobby different to what most people tend to do.

That hobby is keeping slimes as pets. Tensei Slime fans will laugh when they see it since it’s so similar.

Some years later he meets a bunch of people and ventures out into the world and this leads to various adventures, the wholesome kind.

12. Helpful Fox Senko San

A depressed, stressed out man who works hard but has no time to play hard is at his wit’s end. Life is a struggle, mentally more than anything else (and energy wise).

A fox goddess (or deity) whose purpose is to help such people arrives out of nowhere and nurses him back to health so to speak.

Every night when he gets home the helpful fox Senko San massages, assists, and makes his life easier and cures his depression in the process.

This is the basis of the anime and the relationship between the man and the fox girl who changes his life.

13. Hanayamata

An alternative and more wholesome version of the anime Love Live School Idol Project. Ths Iyashikei series is built around the concept of Yosakoi. A type of freestyle dance exported into and used in Japan.

It’s an original type of dance.

Hana Fountainstand, an energetic extroverted blonde European girl starts recruiting people to join her so they can all do Yosakoi together.

In total there ends up being 5 members, one of which is introverted (Naru Sekiya) and one who is calm and elegant (Tami Nishimikado).

14. Flying Witch

One of my favourite anime shows of all time. Adapted from a manga, Flying Witch is an anime about Makoto Kowata, a witch in training who comes to the countryside to live with her family.

This is also part of training which involves working hard, picking vegetables and crops, growing vegetables in the garden, and other activities to prepare her for being an adult.

It’s a countryside anime with magic and supernatural elements. but this never takes center stage or overshadows the peace and tranquillity elements of this series.

15. Aria The Animation

In this anime, there’s a planet called Aqua. This is important because it’s a reference. You also have characters called Undines who work in various companies around planet Aqua.

An undine’s job is a female water guide who helps travellers, tourists, and others navigate and see all the history the city has to offer.

Aria The Animation is basically the animated version of Venice in Italy, with fictional elements to change things up. Hence the name “Planet Aqua”.

They don’t do anime like this these days. This 2000s anime is high on the list for relaxation and serenity. There are also ongoing cliches the anime uses (unique to the anime) that make it a bit of a gag at times.

Relevant: 17+ GAG Anime Characters Who Can Be More Than Just Comedy Relief

16. Drug Store In Another World

One of the more wholesome types of Isekai anime out there. This anime was airing back in July 2021 (summer season). The name speaks for itself.

The main character Reji runs a drug shop, or a pharmacy if you wanna word it like that. He sells potions of all kinds which can heal or remedy multiple things.

Examples:

Moisturizer.
Pain relief.
Love potion.
Wound healing.

And basically, anything that a customer wants that Reji and his team are able to fulfil. It’s a supernatural series so you see some comical stuff.

The anime does get a little drier towards the end but overall you can’t go wrong if you want something to chill to.

17. Kino’s Journey: The Beautiful World

Kino’s Journey (the original) from the early 2000s is a severely underrated series that goes unnoticed by so many fans. In fact, the anime itself isn’t big by any stretch of the imagination, but the quality is high up there.

The anime follows Kino, a girl who travels on her motorbike across the country. Sleeping over in different city, town, and village hotels so she can experience life from multiple points of view and perspectives (differing laws in each place for example).

It’s the stories, the storytelling, and each person’s story that makes this anime what it is. There’s hardly any anime quite like it.

18. Non Non Biyori

Another countryside style anime series but from the lens of kids and teenagers, mostly. You have Renge, the youngest who’s maybe 7 or 8 years old. She’s weird but intelligent and funny.

You have Natsumi, the 2nd youngest or one of them. She’s a rebel and plays a lot with Renge. You have Hotaru, an introvert who has a secret side she only shows to her family (until exposed later).

You also have Natsumi’s sister Komari who’s smaller than Natsumi but more mature.

Few anime are as nice as this feels.

19. Mitsuboshi Colors

If you can imagine being a kid again if you grew up in a nice neighbourhood, having an imagination that’s so wild you start acting it out for fun…. This is basically what Mitsuboshi Colors is.

3 little girls swear to protect the peace in their city, which is why the anime has so much cute appeal.

You get a mixture of adventure, fun, comedy, and nice vibes from start to finish. All from the lens of 3 girls who are still growing up and trying to understand the world around them.

20. Restaurant To Another World

Think of Food Wars but without the:

Ecchi.
Fanservice.
Extremes.
Clothes flying off.

Ans things of that nature. Restaurant To Another World is a wholesome food-based series featuring dragons,s demons, monsters, humans, and other life forms,

Dragons and the like visit a particular restaurant all for the sake of good food, and everyone is welcome regardless of race, looks, or affiliation.

21. Is The Order A Rabbit?

Another “cute girls doing cute things” style of anime, but this time with anime girls who are teenagers of different ages.

Rize, the gun-loving girl with a Militant father is the Senpai of the group. Chino is the center of the anime and the girl who always has a weird rabbit sitting on her head.

The supernatural elements (even though it’s not classed as that genre of anime) are subtle, and the anime’s main focus is on cafes where the main and support characters work in.

School is also a focus of the anime as is the outdoors and having fun together.

22. Tamako Market

This is a masterpiece in my eyes even though the anime is so simple, short, and without any bells and whistles or major plot points. That’s kind of the point though.

You have Tamako Kitashirakawa, the daughter of a Mochi shop she takes part in to help the family. Her younger sister Anko does the same thing.

In this small town, Mochi is a big seller, and there are other businesses in the market district who all know each other and are tight-knit.

A weird talking bird comes into Town, a fat bird a that, and that subtly adds to what’s otherwise a simple series.

There is a spin-off series where there’s a legitimate romance between Tamako and Mochizou, but the main series is pure wholesomeness and it does it well.

23. Barakamon

And then there’s Barakamon. An anime about Handa, a guy’s punished and sent off to a remote island for discipline because he punches an art critic in the face for criticizing his calligraphy.

The anime is about his personal growth, development, changes, perspective, and turning a new leaf. But that doesn’t come without pain, annoyance from kids on this island like Naru, and other “curious” characters and locals.

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