The animation studios are always in talk when it comes to an anime going viral on streaming services. People love to know the studio behind the fabulous anime they’re enjoying every day. And, obviously, it then makes you look over the history of your favorite studio which in fact includes the number of employees working in animation studios.

Fans generally don’t know about the inner details of a production house and the number of staff members working behind a show to make it popular. Animation studios especially associated with the anime industry are always the hot topic among the fans and as a matter of fact, it becomes necessary to know about your favorite studio.

So, considering this thing we’ve made up a list of some of the best production houses in Japan and the number of employees working in an animation studio to deliver the perfect & top-notch anime episode every single week. Let’s get started then.

15. Madhouse

• Number of Employees: 70

Madhouse was established in 1972 by ex–Mushi Production animators, including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. The studio became a very popular face in the 2000s because of its quality direction and tremendous works.

• Notable Works: Trigun, Beyblade, Hajime no Ippo, Death Note, Hunter x Hunter, No Game No Life, Parasyte, Death Parade, Overlord and One Punch Man (S1).

14. Studio Bones

• Number of Employees: 80

Bones was founded by Sunrise staff members Masahiko Minami, Hiroshi Ōsaka and Toshihiro Kawamoto in October 1998. One of their first projects was collaborating with Sunrise on Cowboy Bebop: Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door, a feature film based on the Cowboy Bebop anime series.

• Notable Works: Fullmetal Alchemist, Soul Eater, Noragami, My Hero Academia, Bungo Stray Dogs, Mob Psycho 100 and SK8 The Infinity.

13. David Productions

• Number of Employees: 93

The company was founded by former Gonzo president and producer Kōji Kajita and fellow producer Taito Okiura in September 2007 upon having left Gonzo. The company’s name derives from the Biblical story of David and Goliath, a story chosen to represent “good animation with great storytelling and characters” despite being smaller than other well-known studios. It is also short for “Design Audio & Visual Illusion Dynamics”, which signifies the studio’s impactful animations.

• Notable Works: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Cells At Work! and Fire Force.

12. Studio WIT

• Number of Employees: 100

The studio was founded by George Wada, a former employee of Production I.G, in 2012. Several other former Production I.G staff members joined WIT after its founding, including animation directors Kyōji Asano and Satoshi Kadowaki, and director Tetsurō Araki, all of whom worked together on Attack on Titan.

• Notable Works: Attack On Titan (S1-3), Seraph of The End, Vinland Saga (S1), Great Pretender, Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song, Ousama Ranking and Spy x Family.

11. CloverWorks

• Number of Employees: 117

CloverWorks is a Japanese animation studio that was rebranded from A-1 Pictures’ Kōenji Studio. It is a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan’s anime production firm Aniplex. The studio was established in 2018.

• Notable Works: Darling In The Franxx, Fairy Tail, The Promised Neverland, The Millionaire Detective, Horimiya, Wonder Egg Priority and My Dress-Up Darling.

10. Kyoto Animation

• Number of Employees: 137

Kyoto Animation was co-founded in 1981 by married couple Yoko and Hideaki Hatta; it became a limited company in 1985 and a corporation in 1999. For a very long time, Kyoto Animation has been delivering some heartwarming productions to its fans which includes the well-known movie “A Silent Voice”.

• Notable Works: Clannad, Free!, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, Violet Evergarden and A Silent Voice.

9. A-1 Pictures

• Number of Employees: 151

The studio was established by SMEJ’s animation production division, Aniplex, on May 9, 2005, to animate its anime series and productions. In 2006, it co-produced the original production Zenmai Zamurai, in the following year, in 2007, the studio produced its first series, Ōkiku Furikabutte.

• Notable Works: Fairy Tail, Anohana, Blue Exorcist, Sword Art Online, The Seven Deadly Sins, Your Lie In April, Erased and Kaguya Sama: Love Is War.

8. Studio Pierrot

• Number of Employees: 158

Studio Pierrot was established in May 1979 by former employees of both Tatsunoko Production and Mushi Production. Pierrot is renowned for several worldwide popular anime series, such as Naruto and Bleach.

• Notable Works: Yu Yu Hakusho, Great Teacher Onizuka, Naruto, Bleach, Tokyo Ghoul, Black Clover, Kingdom (S2-4) and Akudama Drive.

7. Production I.G.

• Number of Employees: 172

Production I.G is a Japanese animation studio and production enterprise, founded on December 15, 1987, by Mitsuhisa Ishikawa. The letters I and G derive from the names of the company founders: producer Mitsuhisa Ishikawa and character designer Takayuki Goto.

• Notable Works: Kuroko’s Basketball, Psycho-Pass, Ace of Diamond, Haikyu!!, Ao Haru Ride, B: The Beginning and Aoashi.

6. Studio Ghibli

• Number of Employees: 182

Studio Ghibli is best known for its animated feature films and has also produced several short subjects, television commercials, and one television film. Its mascot and most recognizable symbol is a character named Totoro, a giant catlike spirit from the 1988 anime film My Neighbour Totoro.

• Notable Works: Grave of The Fireflies, My Neighbour Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Ponyo, Arrietty and The Wind Rises.

5. J.C. Staff

• Number of Employees: 197

J.C. Staff (J and C stand for “Japan Creative”) was founded in January 1986 by Tomoyuki Miyata, who previously worked at Tatsunoko Production. The studio’s first release was Yōtōden in 1987. They have produced several well-known anime series in the past couple of years.

• Notable Works: Maid Sama!, Bakuman, Food Wars, Prison School, Saiki K, One Punch Man (S2), Edens Zero and Date A Live.

4. Ufotable

• Number of Employees: 200

Ufotable was founded in October 2000 by former staff of the TMS Entertainment subsidiary Telecom Animation Film. A unique hallmark seen in many of their works is a claymation sequence. The studio is best known for its masterpieces, Demon Slayer and Fate series.

• Notable Works: Dokkoida?!, Ninja Nonsense, Fate series and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.

3. Studio MAPPA

• Number of Employees: 250

One of the most popular animation studios, MAPPA was established in 2011 by Masao Maruyama which is why “MAPPA” is an acronym for Maruyama Animation Produce Project Association. In the past couple of years, the company has made their name quite well in the industry and among anime fans.

• Notable Works: Terror in Resonance, Yuri!!! On Ice, Kakegurui, Inuyashiki, Banana Fish, Zombie Land Saga, Dororo, Dorohedoro, The God of Highschool, Jujutsu Kaisen, Attack On Titan Season 4, Chainsaw Man and Hell’s Paradise.

2. Sunrise

• Number of Employees: 293

Sunrise was founded in September 1972 and is based in Suginami, Tokyo. Its former name was Nippon Sunrise and, before that, Sunrise Studio. Most of their work is original titles created in-house by their creative staff. Sunrise is the only studio that won the largest number of prestigious Animage Awards.

• Notable Works: Mobile Suit Gundam, Cowboy Bebop, Inuyasha, Gintama, Tiger & Bunny, Code Geass, Love Live! Series, and Daily Lives of Highschool Boys.

1. TOEI Animation

• Number of Employees: 1266

The studio was founded by animators Kenzō Masaoka and Zenjirō Yamamoto in 1948. It has created many TV series and movies and adapted Japanese comics as animated series which are very popular worldwide. Renowned directors like Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata have worked with the company.

• Notable Works: Dragon Ball series, Sailor Moon, Slam Dunk, Yu-Gi-Oh, One Piece, Digimon Adventure and World Trigger.

The most notable point here is that all these official numbers are highlighting the contract based permanent employees in the animation studios which means it doesn’t include the freelancers that work in the studio. Since MAPPA hires a lot of freelancers to work on a show so its employee list is not reflecting the actual numbers.

Moreover, the data is also not quite up-to-date so they can vary from the exact number of employees in animation studios. For example, Ufotable had 200 employees way back in 2016 when it wasn’t that much popular. But, now it is working on Demon Slayer and its animation quality has also gone up so there would definitely have been more recruiting in the company.

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