Top 5 bestselling manga of all time (Shōnen)

Manga and anime have become inseparable parts of modern Japanese culture. With the industry generating a fairly large amount of revenue each year, it is quite popular among people of all ages.

Irrespective of when they started, how long they've been running, or how many volumes have been published, some works have risen to the top of the charts, while many others have failed to do so. After all, there is a plethora of both older and modern manga that dominate the bestseller list.

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Top 5 bestselling manga of all time

New-gen manga such as Attack on Titan, Demon Slayer, and Jujutsu Kaisen are currently dominating the charts. However, their sales are lacking in comparison to the old giants such as Naruto and One Piece. So, without further ado, here are the top five bestselling manga of all time.

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5) Slam dunk (170 million)

Takehiko Inoue's Slam Dunk is one of the most popular sports manga. From October 1990 to June 1996, it was serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump, with a total of 31 volumes published. Over 170 million copies of Slam Dunk have been sold and it was later adapted into an anime series that aired from October 1993 to March 1996.

The story is about Hanamichi Sakuragi, who initially joins the basketball team to impress a girl. While he is not great at the sport, he eventually grows to love it.

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4) Detective Conan (250 million)

Detective Conan/Case Closed is a shōnen manga series written by Gosho Aoyama that debuted in January 1994 in Shogakukan's Weekly Shōnen Sunday. It has sold over 250 million copies and continues to be published with a total of 100 volumes as of October 2021.

The series revolves around the high school detective, Shinichi Kudo, who, while investigating a mysterious organization, was transformed into a child by them.

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3) Naruto (250 million)

Naruto is one of the most well-known series, with an enormously famous anime adaptation and multiple films, and is certainly acknowledged as one of the finest in the genre.

Masashi Kishimoto began writing it in 1999 and worked on it for 15 years before finishing it in 2014. There were a total of 72 volumes published that sold over 250 million copies during this time frame.

Uzumaki Naruto, the protagonist of the legendary series, is a young ninja who wants to be acknowledged by his peers and dreams of becoming the Hokage.

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2) Dragon Ball (260 million)

Dragon Ball is one of the most popular anime that is an adaptation of the manga of the same name, written by Akira Toriyama. It ran between 1984 and 1995, publishing 42 volumes.

With 260 million copies sold, Dragon Ball stands tall in comparison to others within the same genre. This legendary series has inspired many renowned mangakas.

Dragon Ball is a story about Son Goku, a young kid who strives to become the most powerful martial artist in the world. It also covers his search for the coveted Dragon Balls (seven magical orbs that summon a wish-granting dragon when gathered).

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1) One Piece (490 million)

One Piece is the most successful series of all time, with over 490 million copies sold.

Written by Eiichiro Oda and serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump since 1997, One Piece has over 100 volumes published as of December 2021.

The manga showcases the journey of Monkey D. Luffy, the series' protagonist. He leaves on his journey to obtain the One Piece treasure to become the "King of the Pirates."