10 best anime about work life you should watch at least once

Anime about work-life depicts characters navigating through their workdays, offering a distinctive insight into various careers and occupations in Japanese society. Workplace anime provide a unique perspective for individuals interested in working in Japan or seeking relatable content about the challenges of making a living.

They portray a variety of workplace antics and social dynamics, focussing on office employees, entrepreneurs, athletes, and artists.

These anime about work-life offer a vicarious thrill, from sales stress to artisan apprenticeships. Anime about work-life like Aria the Animation, New Game!, Life Lessons with Uramichi Oniisan and more offer a vicarious thrill.

Servant x Service, New Game! and other anime about work-life to add to your watchlist

1) Aria the Animation

Aria the Animation (Image via Hal Film Maker)

Aria the Animation follows a young woman named Akari Mizunashi. She moves to Aqua, a terraformed version of Mars to become a gondolier tour guide known as an Undine.

The original series and its sequels depict Akari training to become a Prima, the highest rank of Undine. During this period, she interacts with mentors, friends, tourists, and local wildlife. This anime envelops viewers with its calm and healing atmosphere. Aria the Animation conveys an inspirational message to find happiness and human connection in one's career.

2) Shirobako

For an authentic look into Japan's revered animation industry, queue up Shirobako. This anime captures the chaos of producing weekly anime episodes, focusing on five women who once collaborated on high school projects.

As young adults now working for separate studios, they realize that their beloved careers involve never-ending hurdles. Shirobako is a love letter to the art of animation, detailing the many steps and occupational roles needed to assemble even one short film.

This anime about work-life offers a unique glimpse into the world of animation production.

3) Aggretsuko

In Aggretsuko, protagonist Retsuko channels her work frustrations constructively by singing death metal karaoke during off-hours.

This 25-year-old anthropomorphic red panda toils away in an accounting department. Retsuko is skilled at her duties but faces heavy workload and chauvinistic superiors daily.

Yet, the anime probes deeper societal problems, like workplace bullying, gender roles, and old-school traditions women are expected to follow. Though mainly comedic, the anime touches on perseverance and work-life balance as Retsuko finds comfort in her secret hobby.

4) Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku

Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku (Image via A-1 Pictures)

Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku (or Wotaku ni Koi wa Muzukashii) explores the idea of dating someone with similar interests. The protagonist, Narumi, initially hides her fujoshi love for Boys' Love manga to avoid social stigma.

Narumi unexpectedly reunites with her old middle school otaku friend Hirotaka, who has just started working at the same company as Narumi. The anime features other geeky couples who complete the cast of this otaku-centric series. They humorously highlight the challenges of being both proud geeks and model employees.

Wotakoi goes beyond nerdy hijinks, delving into the intricacies of adult relationships and self-identity.

5) New Game!

Gaming fans will relish New Game!. The anime is set within the fictional video game studio Eagle Jump. Aoba Suzukaze, a recent high school graduate, is introduced as an impressionable newcomer to the workforce as a character designer.

She learns to sharpen her character design skills under the guidance of company veterans. At times, working at her dream job proves to be exhausting for Aoba's naive psyche.

Persisting through self-doubt, she strengthens her abilities through both failures and successes. The diverse cast provides both humorous and heartwarming stories about building workplace relationships.

6) Life Lessons with Uramichi Oniisan

Life Lessons with Uramichi Oniisan (Image via Studio Blanc)

For a hilarious anime about work life that also offers insightful life lessons, Life Lessons with Uramichi Oniisan is the one to watch. The anime follows 31-year-old children’s show host Uramichi Omota.

Although Uramichi presents a cheerful persona on screen, his off-stage body language is jaded and deadpan. His long tenure of entertaining preschoolers has left him emotionally depleted. Uramichi barely conceals his obvious disdain while reluctantly reciting educational song lyrics or demonstrating safety routines.

Part of the character’s charm comes from his wry, offhand complaints delivered in a flat, cynical tone that reveals underlying adult frustration.

7) Servant x Service

Servant x Service (Image via A-1 Pictures)

On the surface, local ward office employees Lucy Yamagami, Yutaka Hasebe, and Saya Miyoshi perform mundane civic jobs. However, their workdays are filled with wacky bureaucratic adventures in Servant x Service.

Often, they assist vibrant locals who are struggling with complex policies or forms that are crucial for significant life events such as weddings or registering for childcare. While primarily comedic, this trio of civil servants genuinely cares about assisting ordinary people in dealing with bureaucratic obstacles.

The laughs are underpinned by a moving message about finding the brighter side of underappreciated careers.

8) Tiger & Bunny

Look no further than cult favorite Tiger & Bunny for a unique anime about work life. In the futuristic city of Stern Bild, certain individuals known as NEXT possess unique superpowers. These heroes, who are by corporations, compete on reality TV earning points for their heroic acts. The acts include rescues, arrests, and protecting property.

Landing profitable advertising deals depends on their TV ratings. This places these superheroes in a peculiar position—entertaining the masses using their powers above all else.

The anime offers thrilling missions that forge into a comedy about rediscovering a passion for one's life calling. Beyond the surface-level antics, Tiger & Bunny offers insightful commentary on the commercialization of heroism, fame, and the loss of privacy in a social media world.

9) Nana

Nana Osaki and Nana "Hachi" Komatsu are vastly different in personality and ambitions, yet they form a tight bond as roommates in Tokyo at the age of 20. Music-obsessed punk rocker Nana O. seeks fame as the vocalist of the underground band Black Stones (often called BLAST).

By contrast, hopeless romantic Hachi simply yearns for true love's embrace after struggling through life. Despite vast lifestyle differences, their sisterly friendship helps both navigate their intertwined professional and personal lives.

Career and romantic pursuits remain intertwined for both Nanas. These coming-of-age struggles resonate universally during the transitional phase that individuals experience during early adulthood. Nana depicts this turbulent period of building confidence and life skills with achingly raw honesty.

10) Working!!

Set in a family restaurant in Hokkaido, this anime about work-life follows high schooler Souta Takanashi, who is employed partly because of his love for small and cute things. He immediately clashes with short-tempered head server Mahiru Inami, who fears men (androphobia).

The staff at the restaurant is quite eccentric, with a head waitress who wears a pink kimono and a manager who is addicted to gaming. Every episode of this anime is filled with absurdist humor, poking fun at the struggles of working in food service. The relationship between Souta and Mahiru slowly develops into a charming romance.

For fans seeking feel-good comedy and romance capped by slightly bittersweet endings, Working!! delivers a hearty serving of anime about work life.

Conclusion

Anime provides numerous opportunities to explore various industries and experience vastly different careers through imaginative characters. The above anime about work-life offer immersive depictions of working life in Japan.