Kitsu vs MyAnimeList: Which Anime Tracker Is Right for You?
MAL was acquired by a Web3 company in May 2025. Kitsu's apps have been removed and development has stalled. Here is what changed and what to use instead.
Some links below are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Achriom earns from qualifying purchases. For books we prefer Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores.
Important update (2026): Both trackers have changed significantly since this comparison was first written. MAL was acquired by Gaudiy Inc., a Web3 and AI company, in May 2025. Kitsu’s Android app was removed from Google Play in April 2024, iOS availability is now unclear, and web development has stalled. For new users today, AniList is the better choice over both. This page covers what each tracker offers and what changed, so you can make an informed decision.
MyAnimeList and Kitsu track the same thing, but they feel nothing alike. MAL is older, bigger, and more established. Kitsu was cleaner and more social when it was actively developed. The difference now includes a question neither app used to have: whether they are still actively maintained.
What to look for in an anime tracker
A few things worth knowing before comparing them directly.
Database size matters if you track older or obscure titles. Mainstream anime from the past decade lands in both without issue. The gaps appear with older OVAs, short films, and lesser-known series from before the streaming era.
Community scores are part of the conversation whether you seek them out or not. MAL scores are referenced constantly across the anime internet, on Reddit, YouTube, and discussion forums. Where your rating lands relative to the community is something some people care about and others ignore entirely.
List management covers how you organize what you watch. Both trackers use the same five-status model: Watching, Completed, Plan to Watch, On Hold, and Dropped. Where they differ is in search, filtering, and how the list looks and feels to navigate.
Social features range from forums and clubs on MAL to activity feeds and follows on Kitsu. Some people want a community. Others want a private log and nothing else.
Cross-media tracking is the category where both fall short. Neither MAL nor Kitsu has any concept of your books, films, or music. If you watch anime alongside other media, you end up splitting your tracking across two or more tools. The option that covers all of it is at the end of this comparison.
MyAnimeList
MAL launched in 2004 and remains the most-used anime tracking site in the world. The database is the most comprehensive available, the user base is enormous, and MAL scores have become a de facto standard for community ratings that the rest of the anime internet references. If an anime exists, MAL almost certainly has it.
The tracking setup is straightforward. You log what you’re watching, mark progress by episode, score when you finish, and it lands in your completed list. Recommendations pull from “Users also liked” data and community-submitted suggestion threads. They work well for popular titles and become less useful for niche tastes.
The interface is functional and dated. The site has been adjusted in small ways over the years, but the core design reflects 2000s-era forum culture more than a modern app. Users who grew up with it find it comfortable. New users sometimes find it cluttered.
MAL’s forums and clubs are genuinely active for large fanbases. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba have years of active discussion threads. For smaller or older series, the community conversation is much thinner.
What MAL does well: The database depth is unmatched. The scores are the ones the rest of the internet treats as a reference. The community for popular titles is large and active. Export tools let you pull your full list and bring it to another tracker without losing data.
Where it falls short: The interface shows its age. Recommendation quality drops sharply for niche taste. There’s no meaningful social feed, only forums and clubs organized by title. MAL only covers anime and manga. And the May 2025 Gaudiy acquisition adds an ownership concern even if nothing has visibly changed yet.
Kitsu
Status: Effectively inactive as of 2026
Kitsu launched as a modern alternative to MAL with a focus on better design and social features. That was true until recently. The situation has changed in ways that matter for new users.
The Android app was removed from Google Play in April 2024. iOS availability is now unclear. Web development stalled in early 2025, and the removal of Stripe integration from the codebase suggests the paid Patron tier is no longer active. The web tracker still functions, but it is not being actively maintained.
If you are currently on Kitsu and it is working for you, plan a migration to AniList. Most of what Kitsu offered (cleaner interface, social feel, data portability) AniList also provides, with active development and reliable mobile apps. Export your data via Kitsu’s settings and import the XML into AniList while everything still works.
What Kitsu did well: Cleaner interface than MAL, social activity feed, easier list browsing, reliable MAL import.
The current reality: Apps removed from stores, development stalled, paid tier appears ended. New users should go to AniList instead. If you are already there and the web app works for you, it is worth migrating before access degrades further.
Achriom
Achriom tracks anime alongside your books, films, music, and TV in a single library. The reason that matters is that taste rarely stops at one format. Finish Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End and want to know what novel shares its particular kind of melancholy, or what album fits while you watch Vinland Saga, and your AI librarian looks across everything you’ve logged and answers.
The anime tracking works the way you’d expect: log what you’re watching, mark progress, rate and add notes. You can mark titles as plan-to-watch, currently watching, completed, on hold, or dropped. Half-star ratings and DNF notes are supported. The catalog covers all five media types, so a viewer who also reads and listens to music finds one place for all of it.
The AI librarian is the part that doesn’t have a direct equivalent elsewhere. Ask what to watch next based on what you’ve loved, or find the novel that shares a theme with an anime that moved you, and you get an answer built from what you’ve already told it you love. The connections it draws are cross-media by design, because the patterns in your taste run across formats whether or not your tracker acknowledges them.
Want all of it in one place? Achriom tracks your anime alongside your books, films, music, and TV, with an AI librarian that finds the threads between them. That is the part no single-format tracker can do.
Try Achriom free →Kitsu vs MyAnimeList vs Achriom: side-by-side
| Feature | MyAnimeList | Kitsu | Achriom |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anime database | Very large | Large | Standard catalog |
| Manga tracking | Yes | Yes | No |
| Interface | Dated but familiar | Modern and clean | Modern |
| Community scores | Widely referenced | Smaller community | None |
| Social features | Forums and clubs | Activity feed | None |
| Import from MAL | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tracks other media | No | No | Books, films, music, TV, anime |
| AI librarian | No | No | Yes |
| Price | Free (Supporter tier for extras) | Free (Patron tier likely ended) | Free to start |
Which should you use
Use MAL if you want the largest database, the deepest community history, and scores the rest of the anime internet uses as a reference. It’s the default for a reason. If you track obscure older titles or want active forums for big series, MAL has more of both. The Gaudiy acquisition is worth watching, but nothing has changed in practice yet.
Do not start on Kitsu. Apps are gone and development has stalled. If you are already there, export your data now and migrate to AniList while the web tracker still works. AniList provides a cleaner interface and active development.
Use AniList if you want what Kitsu used to offer: cleaner design, better mobile apps, and a modern alternative to MAL’s dated UI. See AniList vs MyAnimeList for the full comparison.
Use Achriom if you want your anime in the same place as everything else you watch, read, and listen to. The AI librarian works across all of it: ask what to watch after finishing an anime, what book shares its tone, or what album fits its mood, and you get an answer built from your whole library. A single-format tracker can’t do that.
The honest answer
This comparison has changed. In 2024-2025, Kitsu became effectively inactive and MAL changed ownership. Neither is the same product it was when most of the anime community formed their opinions.
For new users today: AniList is the better choice over both. It has what Kitsu offered (cleaner UI, better mobile apps) plus what MAL offers (large catalog, active community) without the ownership concern or the stalled development. See AniList vs MyAnimeList for that comparison.
For existing MAL users: the database depth and community are still real advantages. Stay unless the UI is actively getting in your way. Watch whether the Gaudiy acquisition changes anything.
For existing Kitsu users: migrate to AniList. Export now while everything works cleanly.
Neither covers anything besides anime and manga. If your taste runs across formats, one unified library is worth more than the best anime-only tracker.
Common questions
Can I move my MAL list to Kitsu without losing my data? The import technically works, but migrating to Kitsu is not recommended. Kitsu is effectively inactive as of 2026. AniList also accepts MAL XML imports and is the better destination: active development, reliable mobile apps, and a similar feature set to what Kitsu once offered.
Does MAL have a mobile app? Yes. MAL has official iOS and Android apps, though user opinion on them is mixed. Many fans prefer third-party apps like AL-chan or Anichi that connect to the MAL API and offer a cleaner mobile experience than the official app provides.
Is the MAL Supporter subscription worth it? For most users, no. Supporter removes ads and unlocks some profile customization, but the core tracking and community features are fully free. If you use MAL heavily and want to support the site, it’s a reasonable option. Otherwise, the free tier covers everything that matters for tracking.
Which tracker has better recommendations? Neither is strong here. MAL’s Recommendations tab is community-submitted and tends to repeat popular titles for popular series. Kitsu is no longer actively maintained. For cross-media discovery, or recommendations that factor in your full taste across books, music, and film, Achriom does something neither of them can.
What is AniList, and how does it compare? AniList is the most popular modern anime tracker with a clean interface, a strong API, active development, and a large community. It is the better choice over both MAL and Kitsu for users who want a cleaner experience with reliable mobile apps. See AniList vs MyAnimeList for the full breakdown.
Can I use both MAL and Kitsu at the same time? You can, but there is little reason to start Kitsu now given its inactive state. If you are already on both, prioritize migrating your Kitsu history to AniList before the web tracker’s availability becomes uncertain.