What were the most popular cosplays Of 2023?
For those who don’t know, I make a list every year of the most popular cosplays every January. And then at the end of the year, we see which ones were correct.
This is a post (I try) to do every year; to reflect back on my predictions for the most popular cosplays of the year and see how many of the predictions were either right or wrong.
What were the most popular cosplay characters for 2023? Let’s take a look:
1. Genshin Impact – Right
Of course I’d be right about Genshin Impact being one of the biggest cosplay plans of 2023 for many cosplayers. If you didn’t know, Genshin is not only one of the hottest video games, but by far the most popular series to cosplay right now. And why not? The character designs are beautiful and unique. The personalities are wonderful to that many cosplayers can relate to.
So it’s not surprising to see Genshin stay on top of the cosplay world this year. And we’ll continue to see Genshin at conventions for many months, if not years to come.
2. Chainsaw Man- Right
Chainsaw Man (CSM for short) was definitely an easy pick to be a series for popular cosplay this year. CSM was already trending late in 2022, so the only way direction was up as the series continued to grow and grow in the cosplay world. Shonen Anime tend to do well, and CSM is no exception. With beautiful characters such as Aki and Makima that are relatively easy to cosplay, I feel like CSM will continue to be popular, especially the Anime still ongoing.
3. Spy x Family – Right
The interesting thing about Spy X Family is there are only 2-3 characters in the series that most cosplayers dress up as. The most popular character to cosplay of course is Yor Forger. Her personality is unique and her outfit is wonderfully spicy! Anya is also another choice that cosplayers opt for, both her regular chibi version and custom “buff” versions I’ve seen. Loid Forger I don’t see too often, but because he’s the husband and Dad of the Forger family, he does get some recognition.
Spy X Family was a hit in the cosplay world in 2023. Will that be the case in 2024? Only time will tell.
4. Demon Slayer – Right
Will this series every not be popular? Not for a long it seems. As of 2023, Demon Slayer is pretty in much in all of different cultures and materials. I see Demon Slayer merchandise everywhere! With the Anime ongoing and revealing new characters as the series progresses, I can only see Demon Slayer continue to a be popular cosplay choice in 2024 and beyond.
5. League of Legends – Right
Daaaaaamn! It’s been years since Pop/Stars was released and K/DA is still popular to this day. Originally meant to just sell skins for League of Legends, K/DA has become a phenomenon that mostly everyone loves. And in the cosplay world, there are tons of cosplayers who dress up from the trio. Riot Games continually updates the skins/designs for K/DA, so that also has to do with their nonstop popularity.
Much like Genshin, K/DA will be an easy pick for what will be popular in the cosplay for 2022 and beyond.
6. My Hero Academia – Right
So here’s the thing. My Hero Academia (MHA for short) has been popular now with cosplayers for several years now. With memorable characters such as Deku, Bakugo and Ochaco, it’s not hard to see why. However, I think the hype for My Hero Academia is starting to die down. I certainly saw a lot less cosplayers dressing up as MHA characters. Maybe it’s because the series has been so popular for so long, the designs are no longer unique? (PS I discuss that type of phenomenon in cosplay in this post here about cosplay hype).
7. Cyberpunk – Right
Cyberpunk continues to be a popular series, for a couple of reasons for sure. For one, the game is still well-received. After a tumultuous launch, the developers of Cyberpunk 2077 eventually fixed all the bugs and glitches that plagued the game initially. And now the game is wonderful and all good now. Secondly, the Cyberpunk Edgerunners Anime gave the series even more popularity. I still see cosplayers dressing up as characters such as Lucy from the Anime. Even though the short Anime finished a while ago, Cyberpunk in my opinion will continue to be popular as a cosplay option.
8. Wednesday Addams – Wrong
Am I right or am I wrong for this pick? I will say both because during the first part of 2023, Wednesday Addams was definitely very popular at the time. I saw so many cosplayers dressed up as arguably the most well-known members of the Addams family. However, as the year rolled along, I started to see less and less people dressed up as her. Perhaps the Netflix show that centers around Wednesday Addams was a big reason why everyone cosplayed her initially. But when the show concluded, then her popularity dropped off pretty quickly. So for this one, I will say that I was wrong. My first wrong pick!
9. Final Fantasy VII – Right
You know, it surprises me that Final Fantasy VII cosplays happened to be so popular in 2023, given the 2nd part of the trilogy remake didn’t even come out this year. Yet still I saw so many Aerith and Tifa cosplays! Because FF7 is always going to be so loved by many, now I feel like until the triology concludes, we will continue to see a lot of cosplayers dressing up from the game. With the 2nd part actually coming out in 2024, expect to see way more FF7 cosplays, especially since we’ll probably see new character designs debut.
10. Attack On Titan – Wrong
When Attack on Titan first came out in 2013-2014, it took the Anime world by storm and became so popular with cosplay groups, especially those who were just starting out. Those cool-looking outfits worked really well together as a group.
Although this year, I didn’t see too many AoT cosplays. Maybe it’s because the Anime series is finally over after so long. And once that happens, a series stops becoming popular with cosplay. But who knows, maybe AoT will always a cosplay staple at conventions?
11. Jujutsu Kaisen – Right
Who doesn’t love Jujutsu Kaisen? With iconic characters such as Yuju, Maki and Gojo, there are so many characters worth cosplaying. As with a lot of Shonen, the series is popular with a lot of cosplayers. I don’t have much to say; the Anime is still ongoing so of course you can expect Jujutsu Kaisen to be a popular cosplay choice.
12. Love Live! – Right
I know that Love Live! isn’t as popular as when it first came out 5 or so years ago. But still, the series is still popular with cosplayers, especially when it comes to Idol or group cosplays. And they continue to produce new content. So you can bet that Love Live! will be popular among cosplayers for a long time.
13. Star Wars – Wrong
Wow I am surprised! I always thought Star Wars would be a staple at conventions, especially at comic conventions. But I didn’t see too many cosplays from Star Wars. Of course there will be always be a few, but they certainly didn’t take over the conventions like some of the other series on this list. Guess I was wrong about Star Wars!
14. Naruto – Wrong
Another one that I’m surprised about. I always thought Naruto would be a staple at every Anime conventions. But that wasn’t the case in 2023! I certainly did not see as many cosplays from Naruto like I normally. Okay, sometimes I’d see a random Naruto, Sakura or Sasuke cosplayers, but nothing compared to when they all took over conventions back in the late 2000s. With the main series being over a long time ago, I can see why Naruto is no longer a popular option. Another one off the list!
15. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure – Right
Jojo will always be a popular cosplay choice and for good reason. The characters are just ridiculous and their designs are just so fantastic. What’s interesting to see is that Jojo cosplays are usually done in groups. So if you’re looking to cosplay as a group, Jojo is definitely one idea.
16. Shield Hero – Wrong
The title of the series may be The Rising of the Shield Hero but in terms of cosplay popularity, the Anime sure didn’t rise. I hardly saw any Shield Hero cosplays, other than the one-off Naofumi or Raphtalia cosplays. Maybe when the series first came out, there was a lot of initial hype. But now that the Anime has been around for a while and none of the characters look any different, maybe there hasn’t been much motivation for cosplayers to dress up from Shield Hero. Either way, I was wrong on this pick.
17. NieR Automata – Right
Ah yes, I was right with this pick! NierR Automata is a video game that’s actually been out for a while. With lovely characters such as 2B and 9S, the series was a popular choice for cosplay for a long time. However, I predicted that with a NieR Automata Anime coming out in 2023, that would increase the popularity this year. And I was correct! I saw a lot more 2B cosplays than in 2022, from what I saw.
18. Fire Emblem – Right
Ah yes, good ol’ Fire Emblem. Can you believe this series almost was gonna get shutdown, had it not been for the success of Fire Emblem: Awakening back in 2013? It’s crazy to imagine, as Fire Emblem is not only a huge Nintendo franchise today, but also a big staple in the cosplay world as well. Because of that, I predicted Fire Emblem will continue to be popular in 2023. And because of Fire Emblem: Engage, we’d see even more cosplays such as Alear. I was right, although I haven’t seen too much cosplays from Engage.
19. Fate – Right
I keep thinking the Fate series will eventually lose popularity. But somehow, the Fate cosplays keep showing up at conventions! Maybe it’s a combination of memorable and lovely characters (like Genshin). Or the character designs are always top notch and look great in cosplay. Either way, I won’t count out Fate for a very long time; the series was definitely a popular cosplay in 2023.
20. KonoSuba (Megumin in particular) – Wrong
I was wrong about KonoSuba and for one good reason; the new season that was supposed to come in 2023…it did not come out. So we did not see the usual KonoSuba cosplays such as Aqua or Megumin. But apparently the new season will finally be released in 2024, so I will predict this is when we’ll see resurgence in popularity for KonoSuba cosplays.
21. The Legend of Zelda – Wrong
Wow! With Tears of the Kingdom being released in 2023, I would have thought that we’d see more Zelda cosplays. But that wasn’t the case this year. Maybe there weren’t too many characters in the game that were inspiring to cosplay as. Sometimes that can be the case.
22. Bleach – Wrong
I predicted with the new h Anime, we’d see all those Bleach cosplays come back like back in the 2000s. But alas, that did not happen. I guess there are only so many Shonen Anime cosplays that can be on the top and Bleach isn’t one of them.
23. Spy Classroom – Wrong
That was my wild take on an Anime that would get popular, and predictably I missed. It wasn’t because Spy Classroom has a similar title of another popular Anime. 😉
14/23
Looks like Senpai got 14/23 for 2023 in terms of cosplay popularity. At least I got over half my predictions correct.
So what did you think of this year and the cosplay choices that were popular? Were they what you expected? Or did you think like me, some of them would have been more popular? I would love to hear your thoughts on this! Let me know in the comments below.
Soon, I will have my list for popular cosplays for 2024. Stay tuned. 🙂
My name is Roger Senpai. I’m a cosplayer that’s been in the community for well over a decade now. I’ve traveled all over the world to Anime and Comic conventions and hosted my own cosplay events. Now I’m writing articles for new and experienced cosplayers like you to help inspire, save you money and improve your cosplays!
