Even people who aren’t very familiar with animes likely know Dragon Ball, Naruto, and One Piece by name. Now there is another manga that has managed to become just as popular.
Which manga is it? Demon Slayer tells the story of Tanjiro and his sister Nezuko. Their family is slaughtered by demons, and the two are the only survivors. However, Nezuko herself has been turned into a demon, which is why Tanjiro sets out as a demon slayer to find a cure.
The anime is now continuing in theaters. The manga started in 2016 and ended in 2020. During this time, 23 volumes were released. And although Demon Slayer only appeared a few years ago, it has already reached a milestone that so far only the biggest mangas have achieved.
Demon Slayer in a league with Dragon Ball and Naruto
What has the manga achieved? As Oricon reports, the manga of Demon Slayer has sold over 220 million copies as of July 17, 2025, including digital versions. Thus, Demon Slayer ranks 7th among the best-selling mangas for which sales figures are available.
The success is largely attributed to the anime, as only 3.5 million copies were sold before the anime’s release in 2019.
Why is this so special? All mangas that have sold better than Demon Slayer started before the year 2000. Demon Slayer even debuted in the Alpha generation, which applies from the year 2010.
As an example: Naruto has sold around 250 million copies in 2023, but has also released significantly more volumes. Here, there are a total of 72 volumes in which the adventures of the ninja from Konoha are told (via Oricon).
Even the original Dragon Ball, which is regarded as a cult manga and inspiration for other works, has sold around 260 million copies with its 42 volumes by 2022 – almost twice as many as Demon Slayer (see Toei Animation).
However: mangas like One Piece or Detective Conan will likely not be caught up by Demon Slayer. Both series are still ongoing, and especially the stories of Luffy have already sold twice as many (via Comic Natalie).
Sales of Demon Slayer are expected to rise drastically again when the films hit theaters. Instead of another season, there will be a film trilogy. When the film comes to theaters and what other goodies you shouldn’t miss can be seen here: All Animes coming to theaters in Germany in 2025
