This article contains spoilers from the Solo Leveling series.
Solo Leveling has enjoyed an incredible year so far, with its second season dominating when it comes to new anime releases. Solo Leveling Season 1 had already set the bar high, but the second season went above and beyond to new heights, making sure the series becomes more popular than ever before. Since the first season of the series was incredibly popular and won the Anime of the Year award, it is no surprise that fans expect Season 2 to garner even bigger awards.
It’s Time To Admit That Sung Jinwoo Isn’t The Best Solo Leveling Protagonist
Jinwoo is popular, but Solo Leveling has a superior protagonist to him.
However, 2025, as a whole, has been a great year for anime. Solo Leveling isn't the only amazing anime release that the fans have received this year. In fact, 3 other major anime have beaten Solo Leveling in ratings on IMDb already, and they're My Hero Academia Season 8, Takopi's Original Sin, and Lord of the Mysteries.
Solo Leveling Has Been Surpassed By 3 Big 2025 Anime
Solo Leveling Season 2 marked a phenomenal start to the anime year, with fans getting to see one of the most well-produced anime of all time, featuring tremendous action. At the time, many fans thought Solo Leveling Season 2 would be unbeatable, but as the year continued, newer, and arguably even better, anime releases continued to be released. Of course, tastes in anime are subjective at the end of the day and for some fans, Solo Leveling Season 2 will probably still be the best anime of the year.
I use the System, and the System uses me. — Sung Jinwoo
For some others, it might be a different anime that isn't even considered great. This is exactly where anime forums or platforms with anime ratings come into play. While Solo Leveling Season 2 has been phenomenal, it's not the best anime on IMDb for 2025. It's been surpassed by 3 anime, with the latest of those being Kohei Horikoshi’s My Hero Academia Season 8, which is now close to wrapping up.
My Hero Academia Is Rated 9.5 on IMDb
So far, Kohei Horikoshi's My Hero Academia is the highest-rated anime of 2025, and it'll likely end the year in this position. My Hero Academia Season 8 marks the end of a phenomenal story that ran for about a decade, and fans know how to give it the perfect send-off that it deserves.
This is the story of how we all became the greatest Heroes! — Izuku Midoriya
It's also not gone unnoticed that the staff has delivered absolutely top-notch quality when it comes to My Hero Academia's final season, and with a handful of episodes left, it'll most likely get even better. Overall, MHA Season 8 received a 9.5 rating on IMDb, which makes it the highest-rated anime of the year.
Takopi's Original Sin Is Rated 9.4 On IMDb
Takopi's Original Sin had a very short run in the summer of 2025, and it definitely didn't disappoint. This anime series was one that fans would never care about unless it was great, and the fact that it's rated 9.4 on IMDb tells you that it was absolutely spectacular. The anime surpassed all expectations and in a year dominated by big releases, Takopi's Original Sin carved out a place for itself with a very high fan rating, beating even Solo Leveling Season 2.
Lord of the Mysteries Is Rated 9.1 on IMDb
Finally, the third anime that went on to beat Solo Leveling Season 2 is Lord of the Mysteries, a Chinese series. 2025 saw Chinese anime becoming more prevalent, and Lord of the Mysteries has much to do with that. It finished the year strongly with a score of 9.1 on IMDb, and it's safe to say that this anime is an absolute must-watch for everyone.
Solo Leveling Is Still A Top 2025 Anime
Of course, this doesn't mean that Solo Leveling itself wasn't good. As stated earlier, Solo Leveling Season 2 reached incredible heights at the beginning of the year. On IMDb, the series went on to secure a rating of 9.0, which makes it the fourth-best anime of the year. This is still a very high rating and fans still love it. Being beaten by three other good series doesn't make Solo Leveling bad, and that is something that every fan should keep in mind.
Solo Leveling has 25 episodes available to watch right now, split over two major seasons, the most recent of which wrapped up in 2025. The series can be streamed on Crunchyroll. There have been no major announcements about a third season so far. Fans can get more Solo Leveling content via the Manhwa.