We don’t even need to ask which of you like to see a good anime with a cool protagonist who makes people laugh and at the same time is a chad, because we know everyone likes that.
What if we told you that there are plenty of romance anime that have a main character just like that?
All you have to do is read this list of ours, decide which one to watch, and enjoy one of the best romance anime with a cool protagonist.
This listicle, as always, is made based on our personal tastes and experience.
Table of Contents
15. Wolf Girl Black Prince
Wolf Girl and Black Prince is a 12-episode sentimental comedy based on a successful shojo manga, which also received a live-action adaptation.
The main character Erika lies to her 2 friends, saying she has a boyfriend when she doesn’t. But when asked to send a picture of the guy, Erika panicked and took a picture of the first good-looking guy she passed on the street.
It’s Sata Kyouya, the most popular first-year student. The girl will beg him to pretend to be her boyfriend, but she doesn’t know that underneath that princely appearance lies a lot of badness.
Sata will prove to be really mean, taking advantage of the situation to torment Erika and have fun behind her back, being the classical cool teasing boyfriend who hides an overprotective side.
Wolf Girl and Black Prince is one of those slow romance, where the couple starts out hating each other but then gradually grow closer and more tender until your heart melts.
14. Sing Yesterday For Me
Sing Yesterday For Me is a slice-of-life anime with romance elements released in 2020 in 12 episodes. It’s based on a seinen manga, so its themes are more mature and serious than the norm.
Rikuo Uozumi is a boy with no ambition, who after finishing school he finds a simple part-time job with no plans for the future.
But it is here that he will meet several acquaintances of his who will open his eyes to the world around him, from his old crush to a bizarre girl named Haru.
Sing Yesterday For Me is an anime that before being a romance is a psychological slice of life that focuses heavily on Rikuo’s character.
And we can’t help but call him an endearing protagonist, the quiet and mysterious kind, giving off cool character vibes.
This anime may be interesting and quite innovative, turning the concept of romance anime on its head. The technical aspect is also enjoyable, with modern animations.
13. Say I Love You
Say I Love You is a scholastic romantic comedy that would melt the hearts of the toughest fans with its twists and tender moments.
Mei Tachibana has spent her 16 years without ever having a boyfriend or even friends. One day she ends up getting into a fight with Yamato Kurosawa, a popular boy, who begins at that moment to take a liking to the girl.
Their romance soon begins in a kinda unexpected way, when one night Yamato, to save Mei from a stalker, kisses her to pretend to be his boyfriend.
Say I Love You presents a mature and serious love story, with little room for comedy. On the contrary, there is much focus on the psychology of the characters, who are well-characterized.
Yamato especially is the classic super cool romance protagonist with a jaunty attitude who enjoys teasing his girlfriend, but underneath he is tender and caring.
Another strong point is the smooth and beautiful animations, far ahead of the time when the anime was released, in 2012.
12. Horimiya
Horimiya is one of the most popular romance anime in recent years, based on a Yonkoma manga, which is a collection of humorous strips.
It tells us the love affairs of Izumi, an introverted and quiet boy, and Kyoko, who, in contrast, is outgoing and friendly. No need to say that Izumi will be the cool protagonist between the two.
His mysterious attitude is super cool, not to mention his design and the way he dresses. If you would like to steal his outfit after watching the anime, we totally understand.
The 2 will manage despite their differences to understand and love each other, in an excellent romance that will keep us company throughout the story.
Horimiya despite being comic focuses on the growth, both physical and psychological of the characters, both the main characters and their friends.
It’s really a really good romance that makes us attached to the cast, so you will feel like an integral part of the events as a member of the company of friends.
11. Snow White With Red Hair
An award-winning anime and one of the best historical romance anime. As you may have already guessed from the title, it take inspiration from the Snow White fairy tale, along with its medieval-like historical setting.
Shirayuki is a young herbalist who leads a quiet existence in the kingdom of Tambarun.
One day Raji, the prince of her country, decides to take her with him as his concubine. Shirayuki does not want this and decides to run away to escape this arranged marriage.
During her escape, she will meet Prince Zen, who welcomes her to court as a herbalist to help her resolve the matter and save her, but the two will end up falling in love in a heart-warming love story.
Zen will decide to make Shirayuki’s life as beautiful as he has always wanted it to be, choosing to protect her so that she lacks nothing. And that’s exactly what makes Zen an incredibly cool character. He’s the perfect chad prince who protects his beloved.
If your goal is to find a solid, twist-filled romance set in a medieval setting, then this is probably the best choice on this list, and perhaps even one of the best in general.
10. Wotakoi
Wotakoi is an 11-episode anime series based on a manga of the same name written and drawn by Fujita.
The series stars Narumi Momose, a serious and impeccable employee who hides from friends and colleagues the fact that she is an otaku and a nerd, who loves to play videogames.
But she will not be alone, because in the office where she works Hirotaka Nifuji, a charming old friend of hers lives his otakuhood head-on too. In addition, Hanako Koyanagi, Narumi’s senpai, and her boyfriend Taro Kabakura, are also otaku.
Wotakoi as you may have guessed highlights these 4 charismatic characters with their absurd interactions as the love between Narumi and Hirotaka blossoms.
In addition, Hirotaka is really the definition of a chad-otaku romance protagonist, which doesn’t give a damn about what others think about him and goes on with his passions simply because they make him feel good.
If you want to combine what is probably the best romance anime with otaku MCs with a lot of videogame references into a light and satisfying romance series with mature characters, we absolutely recommend it.
9. ReLIFE
Multiple award-winning anime with a more mature and serious atmosphere.
The story follows Arata Kaizaki, an unemployed 27-year-old whose life is drifting apart, making him super depressed. His life changes after meeting Ryou Yoake, a member of the ReLife Research Institute, who offers him a special drug.
With it, he can return to his 17-year-old self, when he was a popular guy, to become the subject of a year-long experiment.
Chizuru Hishiro, one of the girls attending the high school, is the old love of the protagonist, who is determined to win her over with this second chance.
ReLIFE is an intense story with psychological themes and a romance subplot that is present but ties in perfectly with the rest.
It is one of those stories to be experienced all in one breath, under the constant message of it’s never too late to start over.
8. Maid-Sama!
Maid-Sama! is a blessing in disguise and undoubtely one of the best romances Hulu.
This anime is set in Seika High School, a predominantly male high school where Misaki Ayuzawa achieved the position of first-ever female student council president, becoming extremely popular. Its primary purpose, given the clear majority of males, is to protect girls from boys.
Misaki encounters Takumi Usui as he rejects a love confession by a classmate who starts crying. Misaki tries to intervene, but Usui shows total indifference, and so the relationship between the two begins in the worst possible way.
But Misaki is hiding a secret, namely that outside of school hours she works at a maid cafe, and guess who will find out about her on that same day? Usui, of course. He will have to keep the secret so as not to ruin the girl’s school career.
Maid Sama! is one of the best reverse harem and a top tier example of romance anime where 2 enemies end up falling in love.
Usui in addition is one of the best examples of cool, good-looking, smart, and funny protagonists, always on point with jokes and extremely caring toward Misaki when necessary.
7. Golden Time
In 2013, the Golden Time anime was released, with its exuberant and over-the-top story.
The 3 protagonists are part of a love triangle and you will see how it evolves as they live out their college lives.
Banri Tada lost his memory by falling off a bridge just before graduating, an interesting incipit for this story. Mitsuo Yanagisawa is one of his friends at college and is related to the third character of the story.
We are talking about the girl Koko Kaga, Mitsuo’s beautiful and popular childhood friend who shows up by slapping him with a bouquet of roses.
The dynamics between the 3 are much more complex than that, you can only watch it to discover how.
Golden Time is an over-the-top slice-of-life and romance anime unlike any other, funny and enjoyable while keeping the romance good and catchy, featuring some grown-up characters who are still young inside. They’re all cool in their own way and super funny, and you will have a hard time deciding which of them is your favorite.
6. Ore Monogatari!!
The story follows the adventures of Takeo Goda, a 2-meter-tall, muscular student who doesn’t have much luck with girls. Every girl he likes ends up falling in love with his far more attractive best friend Makoto Sunakawa.
One day Takeo saves a girl named Rinko Yamato from an attacker on a train, and so the 2 unexpectedly fall in love at the first sight.
The original manga had good success in the East, even placing as the best manga for girls for multiple years. And that’s certainly because of its super wholesome romance, its cute moments, and the presence of an unusual couple to say the least.
Takeo and Rinko are all but the average dream couple you get to see in Japanese animation with 2 handsome guys, but that’s exactly why it works so damn well.
Both Takeo and Rinko are super cool and extremely funny, and they are the main reason why this show is so damn entertaining.
5. Clannad
Clannad follows the events of Tomoya Okazaki, a high school senior who is considered by many to be a bad element. Despite this, he is quite popular with girls, being good-looking and kinda cool.
One day, on his way to school, he meets Nagisa Furukawa, a sweet girl who has difficulty relating to others a year older but is forced to repeat the year because of her health problems.
A deep relationship of friendship and more will soon develop between the two.
Clannad is an anime that is a real shot to the heart and has the reputation of being extremely sentimental and deep.
Its sequel, Clannad After Story, is even better and considered one of the best romance anime ever, so we recommend you start this amazing series that you can’t miss if you’re a romance fan.
4. Kaguya-Sama: Love is War
Kaguya-Sama: Love is War deals with small self-contained stories about the eternal psychological and love struggle between Miyuki Shirogane, distinguished student council president, and his deputy, Kaguya Shinomiya.
The only difference between the 2 is that Shirogane comes from a modest family, while Kaguya is extremely wealthy and popular.
Both are determined to get the other to confess their love first because you know, the one who gives in first loses, and they can’t afford it.
This anime is an incredibly solid and complete show that not only male romance fans should watch, but even those who don’t like the genre.
You will find everything: a comedy that will break you up with laughter, cute moments and one of the best psychological romance anime ever with some cool MCs.
This is both for Shirogane, exuding an air of mystery but actually being awkward and Kaguya, looking like the perfect girl but actually being shy.
3. My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU (OreGairu)
A 13-episode anime based on the light novel series of the same name written by Wataru Watari. Hachiman Hikigaya is an antisocial and high school student with a distorted and pessimistic view of social life.
But that will give him one of the best mysterious boy vibes that you can’t find right now.
That is until his teacher forces him to join the institution’s volunteer club, which is attended and run by one of the most popular girls in school, Yukino Yukinoshita.
The 2 will find that they have much in common, but joining the club with Yui, another attractive girl, will start a love triangle.
OreGairu is an atypical romance, which relies heavily on the comic side but invites young people to reflect on what is really important in their lives making you relate with Hachiman.
The real focus of the work is undoubtedly the growth path of its protagonists who, little by little, begin to come out of their own bubbles, to discover that not everything in the outside world is to be thrown away.
This is not the classical love story where there will be love everywhere, but rather a romance anime with a depressed MC, and that’s exactly its strength.
2. Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai
Based on Hajime Kamoshida’s light novel of the same name, Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai is a 2018 anime by CloverWorks.
The plot revolves around Sakuta Azusagawa, a high school boy who keeps to himself and has only two friends.
This is caused by the fact that rumors are circulating about him allegedly assaulting some boys. One day, while walking around the library, he runs into a girl dressed as a bunny.
The girl’s name is Mai Sakurajima, his senpai older than him as well as a professional and popular actress. The two will begin to discover each other, opening doors to their various past experiences.
Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai is a complex romance that goes to give more attention to its psychological aspects related to trauma rather than love.
There will be many twists and deep moments, but tying these themes together will give one of the best romance you can find.
This series also is full of cool characters, but Sakuta is unbeatable. He will make you fold in laughter, has mysterious vibes, and is relatable, all at once.
1. Monogatari Series
The story deals with the events of Koyomi Araragi, a generous boy attending high school who sees his life change after meeting Kiss-shot Acerola-orion Heart-under-blade, a vampire.
The main character will save her by giving away some of his blood, and this will make the boy a vampire too.
After becoming almost human again as a result of these events, he begins to find himself in the midst of various affairs involving spirits, gods, and ghosts while living his private life.
Don’t be fooled by the plot, this anime is far from one of the classic stories of monsters and ghosts that must be defeated to preserve peace on earth.
Monogatari is a more unique than rare anime, almost impossible to categorize, combining so many genres and elements, including psychology, romance and a mind-blowing plot
Not to mention that Araragi is a super cool main character, always ready to help the ones in need, while being funny and appealing, and Hitagi is one of the best dominant female leads in romance anime.
