Do you ever just want to space out, lay back, and not put too much pressure on your little brain? Like, you just want to be lazy and watch something comforting without diving into complex plots, heartbreaking arcs, or your favourite character suddenly dying (no offence to Rengoku 💔). Sometimes you don’t want to keep track of who’s in unrequited love, who betrayed whom, or who just turned into a demon — you just want something that feels like a warm blanket on a bad day. If that’s your vibe, then these anime shows are perfect for you: laid-back, relaxing, and guaranteed not to consume too many of your brain cells.
A Quick Note Before We Start
If you’re new to anime, you might see terms like Iyashikei and Slice of Life pop up a lot. These are genres that are pretty unique to anime and manga:
- Slice of Life → These shows focus on everyday life, small moments, and character interactions rather than big dramatic plots. Think of it as watching people live their daily lives in a comforting, relatable way.
- Iyashikei → This literally means “healing” in Japanese. These anime are designed to be calming, soothing, and heartwarming, like comfort food for your soul. They often have beautiful scenery, gentle humour, and stories that make you feel at peace.
And in case you’re wondering where to watch them, here are some free platforms that stream anime online:
Pro tip: If you love a show and it’s available on Crunchyroll or Netflix, try watching there to support the creators!
1. Polar Bear Café
Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life, Iyashikei
Description: A Polar Bear runs a café where humans and animals chat about random, everyday things. A lazy Panda, a sarcastic Penguin, and quirky customers create the show’s charm. It’s light, episodic, and absurdly cute, with no heavy drama or stakes. Every episode feels like sipping tea in a sunny café.
2. Restaurant to Another World
Genre: Fantasy, Slice of Life, Food, Iyashikei
Description: Every Saturday, a humble Western-style restaurant opens doors to fantasy creatures from another world. Dragons, knights, elves; all come just to enjoy delicious food. Episodes focus on dishes, reactions, and cozy atmosphere. It’s food therapy with a sprinkle of magical charm.
3. Flying Witch
Genre: Slice of Life, Iyashikei, Supernatural
Description: Makoto, a young witch, moves to the countryside to complete her training. The anime focuses on her peaceful days with her relatives, mixing everyday life with soft, whimsical magic. There’s little conflict, only gentle discovery and seasonal changes. Purely a healing anime.
4. Tanaka-kun is Always Listless
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy
Description: Tanaka is a master of laziness — he sleeps everywhere, avoids effort, and is perfectly fine doing nothing. His energetic friend Ohta makes sure he survives daily life. The humour is dry, the pace is slow, and it’s incredibly relatable for anyone wanting to “switch off.”
5. The Masterful Cat is Depressed Again Today
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Supernatural
Saku, a messy office lady, is taken care of by her giant, responsible pet cat, Yukichi. He cooks, cleans, shops, and scolds her like a parent. It’s adorable, funny, and oddly healing to watch a cat be the adult in the house.
6. Do It Yourself!
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Friendship
Description: A group of high-school girls start a DIY club, where they build furniture, crafts, and grow close in the process. The art style is warm and sketchy, making it feel handmade too, perfect for when you want to feel creative but relaxed.
7. K-On!
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Music
Description: A group of girls joins the light music club but spends more time eating cake and chatting than actually practising.The episodes focus on small joys of friendship, club life, and learning, all with cute music and bubbly energy. Zero pressure, mostly fluctuations between feeling joyful and awkwardly adorable.
8. Barakamon
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Drama
Description: Seishū Handa, a calligrapher, retreats to a small island after losing his cool. Instead of solitude, he finds a village of eccentric locals, especially a lively little girl named Naru. Their warmth, humour, and life lessons help him rediscover himself. Uplifting and peaceful.
9. Gakuen Babysitters
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Family
Description: After losing their parents, Ryuichi and his baby brother are taken in by a school chairwoman. Ryuichi joins the daycare club and takes care of adorable toddlers. The series is full of cuteness, laughter, and gentle, heartwarming moments.
10. Kotaro Lives Alone
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Drama
Description:A young boy named Kotaro moves into an apartment complex alone. Strange, right? But his interactions with the neighbouring adults, their unexpected kindness, and how he tries to carve out a child’s normal life make it both touching and sweet. It’s not actiony, but there is emotional weight now and then; it comforts more than it stresses.
11. Princess Jellyfish (Kuragehime)
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Romance
Description: Tsukimi, a shy girl obsessed with jellyfish, lives with fellow quirky women who avoid society. Her life changes when she meets Kuranosuke, a stylish cross-dresser who helps her gain confidence. Lighthearted, quirky, and full of sweet, awkward moments.
12. Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Slice of Life
Description: Princess Syalis has been kidnapped by the Demon King, but she doesn’t care. All she wants is good sleep! The series follows her ridiculous (and adorable) attempts to craft the perfect bed, pillow, or blanket inside the castle. Hilarious and harmless.
13. Himouto! Umaru-chan
Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life
Umaru seems like the perfect high school girl in public: elegant, beautiful, and smart. But at home, she transforms into a lazy, junk-food-loving, gaming gremlin. It’s funny, relatable, and chaotic in the best way.
14. The Way of the Househusband
Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life
Description: Once a feared yakuza boss, “The Immortal Dragon” retires to become a stay-at-home husband. Watching him tackle cooking, cleaning, and shopping with over-the-top seriousness is absurd and funny. It’s episodic, quirky, and doesn’t demand much thinking.
15. Asobi Asobase
Genre: Comedy, Parody, Slice of Life
Description: Three middle-school girls create a “pastime club” where they play strange games. Plot is minimal; it’s more about the jokes, the weird scenarios, and how far they’ll push them just for a laugh. Fun if you want something that makes you laugh hard without needing to think much.
16. The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.
Genre: Comedy, Supernatural, School
Description: Saiki Kusuo is a psychic with absurd powers who just wants a normal life. Sadly, his weird classmates constantly drag him into bizarre situations. Fast-paced gags, witty humour, and lots of randomness make it fun, but it’s not the most calming.
17. Nichijou (My Ordinary Life)
Genre: Slice of Life, Surreal Comedy
Description: Follows three schoolgirls living their “ordinary” lives; which are anything but ordinary. From wrestling deer to robots at home, every moment is exaggerated and absurd. It’s peak silly comedy, chaotic but lighthearted, and perfect when you want nonsense.
18. Komi Can’t Communicate
Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy, Romance
Description: Komi is admired by everyone for her beauty and grace, but in reality, she struggles with communication. With the help of her classmate Tadano, she slowly makes friends. It’s funny, sweet, and uplifting, with relatable social awkwardness.
19. Skip and Loafer
Genre: Slice of Life, Romance, Comedy
Description: Mitsumi, a countryside girl, moves to Tokyo for high school. Brilliant academically but clumsy socially, she finds herself paired with Shima, a laid-back classmate. The anime explores city life, school, and relationships with charm and warmth.
20. Campfire Cooking in Another World with My Absurd Skill
Genre: Isekai, Comedy, Fantasy, Cooking
Description: Mukouda gets transported to a fantasy world, but instead of fighting, he uses his cooking skills. With a magical wolf companion who adores his food, the series is about tasty dishes and casual adventures. Relaxed and cozy for food-anime fans.
21. Bofuri: I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, so I’ll Max Out My Defence
Genre: Isekai, Comedy, Adventure
Description: Kaede tries out a VRMMO but hates pain, so she maxes out her defence stat. Instead of being weak, she becomes an unstoppable tank in hilarious, accidental ways. It’s gaming fun, lighthearted, and cheerful, a good mix of comedy and action.
22. My New Boss Is Goofy
Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life, Workplace, Healing (with soft BL undertones)
Description: After being harassed by his old boss, Momose dreads starting over in a new office, but his new boss, Shirosaki, turns out to be the exact opposite. Goofy, kindhearted, and just a little awkward, Shirosaki’s clumsy antics (and his adorable cat Hakutō) create a warm, healing environment that slowly helps Momose recover from his trauma. The show balances lighthearted comedy with wholesome, emotional moments, and while it’s not officially BL, the gentle closeness between the two leads has fans swooning.
23. Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku
Genre: Romance, Comedy, Slice of Life
Description: Narumi, a closet otaku, reunites with her childhood friend Hirotaka at work. They start dating while balancing office life, nerdy hobbies, and awkward moments. The series is full of relatable jokes for anime/gaming fans and sweet adult romance.
24. Spy Ă— Family
Genre: Action, Comedy, Family
Description: Spy Twilight builds a fake family for his mission. His wife Yor, is an assassin, his daughter, Anya, is a telepath; none of them knows the others’ secrets. It’s funny and wholesome, with family bonding moments. But compared to others here, it has more action and stakes.
25. Tadaima Okaeri
Genre: Slice of Life, Romance, Drama, BL
Description: A soft boys’ love anime about a married couple, Masaki and Hiromu, raising their son. The story gently follows their everyday life: balancing parenting, interactions with neighbours, grappling with self-worth, and the slow return of people from their past. It’s emotional but calm, more about feelings and relationships than big plot twists..
BONUS: (This one’s not exactly light-hearted, but it’s not a heavy emotional rollercoaster either. I’m adding it because I watched it recently and really enjoyed the characters.)
26. Ron Kamonohashi’s Forbidden Deductions
Genre: Mystery, Crime, Comedy
Description: Ron, a genius detective, was expelled from the academy for dark reasons. Now he’s kind of a recluse/dishevelled, until a police officer (Isshiki) drags him into solving a serial murder case. There’s mystery, crime, suspense, but also comedic moments. Not as “light” as pure slice of life, there’s tension, stakes, and it’s heavier than others on this list since it deals with crime and tension.
And there you go, your ultimate comfort anime list! Not every anime has to be an emotional rollercoaster or a battle for humanity’s future. Sometimes, the best shows are the ones that make you laugh at dumb jokes, smile at heartwarming friendships, or just vibe with a café-owning polar bear. Whether you’re lying in bed after a long day, procrastinating on assignments, or just need something that feels like a warm hug, these shows have you covered. Save this article for the next time you’re building your anime watchlist, because trust me, you’ll thank yourself (and maybe me too) later.
For more fun recommendations and relatable content, visit my profile at Her Campus MUJ!