2010’s Best-Selling Manga

2010’s Best-Selling Manga was another year full of surprises for manga lovers. One Piece doubled its sales, for maybe three reasons: the introduction of the movie Strong World, which was a massive hit in Japan; the Marineford arc, renowned by many fans as the best storyline in One Piece, famously where Ace dies; and the hype around the time skip in Shōnen Jump, where Oda went on a four-week hiatus and then a fresh new story began with the two-year jump.

2010 saw a fall for the Big Three, where Bleach dropped from 3rd to 5th place, below Kimi ni Todoke and Fairy Tail, and fell in sales by 1,266,828 copies compared to Naruto and One Piece, which were still making gains. Fan opinion puts all the blame on the filler episodes, as well as the redundant storylines in the manga that didn’t focus on Ichigo’s battle.

Kimi ni Todoke jumping eight spaces was a surprise to no one, with a double boost from the popular anime and the live action supporting the sales. Kimi ni Todoke is a shōjo popular with women, and it was the first shōjo in the top three since these sales reports began.

2010’s Top 50 best selling manga

Oricon only tracks physical copies sold in Japan. “Oricon Years” are from November to November.

2009 to 2010: shifts and changes on the best-selling list

One Piece is still on its historic rise, with an increase of 17 million copies, and five of its single volumes making the top five.

These three popular manga made a splash by jumping high into the rankings.

• Kimi ni Todoke increased its sales by 4,005,897 copies from last year, jumping eight positions from 11th to 3rd.
• Fairy Tail increased its sales by 2,852,584 copies from last year, jumping four positions from 8th to 4th.
• Nodame Cantabile increased its sales by 1,793,787 copies from last year, jumping sixteen positions from 26th to 10th.

These fairly new manga made a massive jump on the ladder, with help from possible anime popularity.

• Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan: up 23 places, from 32nd to 9th
• Giant Killing: up 26 places, from 38th to 12th
• Sket Dance: up 25 places, from 44th to 19th

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan and Giant Killing both had anime adaptations in 2010. Sket Dance was the outlier, with no anime yet, its popularity coming from the manga alone.

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Not such a massive surprise was Saint Young Men, the Jesus and Buddha manga, which was mainly running off the viral hype in 2009.

Not so surprising was the drop of the Major manga, as it was winding up to the end of its run, ending with a 21-place drop.

A surprise for many readers was Fullmetal Alchemist dropping down two spots. A fan-favourite manga normally rises at the end of its series, as the finale boosts sales. But its final volume came out on 22 November 2010, one day after Oricon’s 2010 cut-off, so the finale’s sales count towards 2011 instead.

What was a massive surprise for Mei’s Butler fans was it going from 7th on the list to not even being on it. It was a big surprise, considering the live-action boost of last year couldn’t keep the hype going.

It wasn’t a surprise for 20th Century Boys to come off the list. The last of the three movies had ended, and the manga had finished years earlier, even though sales were continuing.

No surprise for Nana either, for any manga fans who know that when a hiatus is announced, a lack of sales will follow, due to the lack of hype about the story continuing.

Soul Eater was no surprise to many when it dropped off the ladder, with a lack of interest in the storyline causing it to drop, even though an anime had just finished a year before.

My personal favourite sports manga, Eyeshield 21, had finished the year before, which meant the sales came from old fans wanting to see the finished story, rather than new fans picking it up.

Cross Game, Bloody Monday, Pluto and To Love-Ru also dropped off the list, after ranking between 17th and 27th in 2009.

The highest newcomers compared with 2009 were Arakawa Under the Bridge at 15th and Big Windup! at 16th, both helped by their 2010 anime.

Kuroko’s Basketball was just starting out in 2010, almost, as you know, becoming one of the most popular basketball manga of all time, reaching 28th in 2010 with 1,478,246 copies sold.

Chihayafuru entered the list at 26th with 1,534,246 copies sold. This josei manga follows Chihaya, a girl obsessed with competitive karuta, a lightning-fast Japanese card game, and its anime the following year would turn it into a much bigger hit.

K-On! made a massive jump onto the list at 40th, due to the popularity of that year’s anime.

Beelzebub made a huge splash onto the ladder with its absurd comedy about the devil’s child being raised by a delinquent. The art style and the cuteness of Beelzebub make it perfect for sales and the kind of story readers love.

High School of the Dead made a massive viral splash with its anime and its ridiculous, ecchi, funny premise, rising onto the ladder. It would later go on hiatus in 2011, with only one more chapter appearing in 2013. Then in 2017, the author, Daisuke Satō, sadly passed away. RIP Daisuke Satō.

Manga That Ended in 2010

Wildly popular anime Fullmetal Alchemist finished on top in 2010, hitting number six. Its anime had been running on and off since 2003, with Brotherhood ending in 2010, increasing its popularity and its cult-like status, even today.

Nodame Cantabile also ended in 2010, finishing 10th with 3,246,355 copies sold. The romantic comedy about music students ran from 2001 to 2009, with a short sequel, Encore Opera Chapter, finishing in 2010. Its Finale anime and its two-part final live-action film helped boost sales.

Major, such a long-running and popular baseball manga, reached the pinnacle of its story by ending this year, running from 1994 to 2010 with 78 volumes and finishing 36th with 1,156,744 copies sold.

2010 Live-Action Tie-Ins

2010 saw three live-action tie-ins hit Japan. Kimi ni Todoke got a live-action film in September 2010, helping it climb to 3rd on the list. Nodame Cantabile released its two-part final film in December 2009 and April 2010, as the story wrapped up. And Moteki got a live-action TV drama in the summer of 2010, helping it onto the list at 46th.

The Anime Manga Crossover Of 2010’s Best-Selling Manga

Anime and manga are synonymous. One drives the other in book sales and time watched. A good anime can make a manga great, and a great manga can make a good anime. And 2010 was no different, as we saw an increase in both manga and anime sales. While anime might be the lifeblood of a series, manga is the sturdy bones on which the story can grow and be created.

These manga and anime prove that fact with the number of anime adaptations of manga.

Shōnen Anime Airing in 2010:

• One Piece (Ongoing since 1999)
• Naruto: Shippuden (Airing since 2007)
• Bleach (Airing since 2004)
• Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (Premiered in 2009, ended in July 2010)
• Fairy Tail (Airing since 2009)
• Gintama (Airing since 2006, ended in March 2010)
• Hitman Reborn! (Airing since 2006, ended in September 2010)
• Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan (Premiered in July 2010)
• Black Butler II (Aired July to September 2010)
• High School of the Dead (Aired July to September 2010)
• Bakuman (Premiered in October 2010)
• Major (Final season aired in 2010)
• Detective Conan (Ongoing since 1996)

Seinen Anime Airing in 2010:

• Arakawa Under the Bridge (Premiered in April 2010)
• Working!! (Premiered in April 2010)
• Big Windup! (Season 2 premiered in April 2010)
• Giant Killing (Aired April to September 2010)
• K-On!! (Season 2 aired April to September 2010)

Shōjo & Josei Anime Airing in 2010:

• Kimi ni Todoke (Premiered in October 2009, ended in March 2010)
• Nodame Cantabile: Finale (Aired January to March 2010)
• Kaichou wa Maid-sama! (Aired April to September 2010)

2010’s Best-Selling Seinen Manga

Seinen manga is written with adult men in mind, so expect heavier themes, layered storytelling, and some of the most detailed art in the medium. Where shōnen focuses on younger readers, seinen digs into darker territory like psychology, philosophy, and the realities of society. Violence, relationships, and moral grey areas are portrayed more realistically, making for a richer and more thought-provoking read.

• Giant Killing – 2,445,319
• Arakawa Under the Bridge – 1,975,190
• Big Windup! – 1,972,866
• Saint Young Men – 1,773,575
• Jin – 1,533,555
• xxxHolic – 1,392,264
• Vagabond – 1,205,655
• K-On! – 1,110,944
• Working!! – 1,099,739
• Gantz – 1,065,794
• Moteki – 1,026,534
• Thermae Romae – 1,012,377

2010’s Best-Selling Shōjo & Josei Manga

Shōjo manga is made for young girls, centring on romance, drama, and heartfelt, character-driven stories, often brought to life with expressive artwork. Josei, on the other hand, is aimed at adult women and tackles more grown-up subjects like realistic relationships, work life, and the messiness of love, giving it a more grounded view of romance and life.

• Kimi ni Todoke – 6,572,813
• Nodame Cantabile – 3,246,355
• Kyou, Koi wo Hajimemasu – 1,793,959
• Chihayafuru – 1,534,246
• Strobe Edge – 1,473,426
• Kaichou wa Maid-sama! – 1,242,560
• I Like You, Suzuki-kun!! – 1,102,623

2010’s Best-Selling Shōnen Manga

Shōnen manga is written for young boys and is packed with high-energy action, adventure, and big themes like friendship, determination, and growing stronger. With its dynamic art and fast-moving stories, shōnen continues to be the most widely read and best-selling demographic in manga.

• One Piece – 32,343,809
• Naruto – 7,409,068
• Fairy Tail – 5,739,526
• Bleach – 5,204,193
• Fullmetal Alchemist – 5,165,052
• Gintama – 3,978,439
• Hitman Reborn! – 3,479,219
• Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan – 3,269,379
• Bakuman – 3,212,862
• Detective Conan – 2,395,147
• Black Butler – 2,183,497
• Ace of Diamond – 1,937,067
• Ahiru no Sora – 1,873,931
• Sket Dance – 1,839,634
• Hayate the Combat Butler – 1,639,236
• Kekkaishi – 1,609,890
• Yankee-kun to Megane-chan – 1,557,128
• Toriko – 1,556,103
• Kuroko’s Basketball – 1,478,246
• D.Gray-man – 1,298,054
• Mahou Sensei Negima! – 1,235,388
• Hunter x Hunter – 1,234,496
• Major – 1,156,744
• New Prince of Tennis – 1,147,635
• GTO Shonan 14 Days – 1,125,743
• Beelzebub – 1,125,240
• Neon Genesis Evangelion – 1,102,588
• Hajime no Ippo – 1,078,331
• Medaka Box – 1,022,490
• Tegami Bachi – 1,022,015
• High School of the Dead – 1,016,364

Simplified 2010’s Best-Selling Manga table

The table below shows 2010’s best-selling manga in a simplified format, making it easier to find each title.

Final Thoughts on 2010’s Best-Selling Manga

2010’s Best-Selling Manga saw the fall of the Big Three, now only the Big Two. Bleach was on its way down, while One Piece and Naruto were still on their heroic rise. However, with the fall of a favourite shōnen title, Bleach, comes the rise of shōjo, with Kimi ni Todoke making it into the top three for the first time since the data has been recorded.

We saw fan favourites appearing for the first time, like Kuroko’s Basketball, now popular worldwide with a massive anime. And we saw fan favourites ending, like Fullmetal Alchemist, which still lives on in 2026 as people’s favourite. It saw the end of its release, but not the end of its adaptations.

2010 also brought us cult favourites like High School of the Dead, heavy on fan service, which still sits in the heart of many readers hoping for a season two that shall never come. 2010 was surely an ever-growing increase in manga and anime popularity, and we see the sales of the biggest manga ever increasing.

Even though overall manga sales in Japan fell in 2010, the drop came from magazines, while collected volumes held steady. Certain titles grew in popularity, and certain stories were carrying the industry’s future sales,

If you want to check out more dates read 2008’s best selling manga or 2009’s Best-Selling Manga