Anime has come a long way since the mid-80s. What used to be an expensive hobby that only a niche number of consumers bothered to buy has turned into a very accessible and mainstream hobby where hours of content are available on various streaming services for a ridiculously great price! That said, there are multiple series that are still very expensive to own.
Whether due to the series going out of print, a particular edition of the show being a coveted collectible, or a combination of the two, if collectors won the lottery and want to make their anime collection display what their bank account is worth, these are some of the series that fetch high prices on the third-hand markets. Owning these will not only show that someone has money to burn but make fellow anime fan’s mouths drool with envy!
10 Sekirei ($150-$450)
Those who believe that fanservice anime is lowbrow content that isn’t worth much has never tried to buy it on DVD. Originally released by Funimation, the series has been out-of-print since 2017. The show arguably isn’t much to write home about: it revolves around a college student who must enter various sports competitions against beautiful girls with big boobs in hopes of saving the world. It’s pure teenage fantasy if ever there was one.
Upon initial release, the series wasn’t well-received and sold fairly poorly, which resulted in Funimation dropping the license. Ironically, this is the reason the series is now so expensive. Due to the lack of DVDs out there, it is hard to buy the entire series (earlier volumes are easier to find than later ones), and complete collections were made in very low supplies. Overall, buying the whole series will set viewers back somewhere between $150 to $450, depending on which edition they buy and whether they buy it used or new.
9 Rurouni Kenshin ($90-$600)
For the most part, acquiring the entire Rurouni Kenshin franchise is a relatively inexpensive affair, so its inclusion here might surprise many. Those that get the standard DVD sets the series could cost as little as $90 for all three seasons. Where things get expensive for those that want the Rurouni Kenshin: Premium Box Sets. Housed in unique wooden boxes that are unlike any other anime release out there, for these collectors will be shelling out a lot more money.
The Kyoto Arc alone will set viewers back the most with an average cost of $300-$500 depending on the condition of the season. The other two sets are much cheaper to acquire, but since fans will want the entire series one way or another, be prepared to spend $450-$600 for all three sets.
8 Gundam Wing ($500-$750)
When Right Stuf International started creating limited edition box sets of the Gundam franchises, they were praised for their high quality and display-friendly nature. That said, the franchise is still finding its footing in America, so many of them still have inventory on the site. Well, all of them…except one. The one Gundam series that sold out very quickly was Gundam Wing, having the advantage of airing on Cartoon Networks Toonami and thus being one of the most popular installments in the franchise.
While a standard BluRay is still readily available (and very affordable we want to add), if viewers want this limited edition BluRay with all the swag and the cool casing, it can easily set them back between $500 and $750 depending on condition (and fair warning: this set is new enough that the value could easily rise in the coming years).
7 Cardcaptor Sakura ($700-$900)
Cardcaptor Sakura had been out of print for years, but thankfully there are new BluRay’s on the market that can net collectors the entire series for around $100. If all they want is the show itself, this is the route we recommend they take. That said, if viewers want the ‘Clow Book’ sets, it will cost much, MUCH more money! The Cardcaptor Sakura; Clow Book sets were two DVD sets containing the entire series of the anime released by Geneon Entertainment.
The DVDs came in cases that resembled Clow Reeds magic books. They were big, sturdy releases that look very nice on a shelf. These editions are out-of-print though and trying to buy both can easily set a fan back by $700 easily. Like we mentioned before there ARE cheaper alternatives if you just want the show itself (these editions also have a dub on set which these Clow Books do not). For fans who want that display-friendly DVD case on their shelf, this is what the price for status looks like in the world of anime.
6 Ranma ½ ($800-$1,100)
We should preface this part by pointing out that Ranma ½ is not exactly a difficult show to get ahold of. Many used DVDs are dirt cheap, the BluRays are affordable, and the series can be streamed on a variety of streaming services (some of them free of cost). This is one of those situations where the show itself isn’t rare so much as a specific edition of the show. The edition that will set fans back a lot of money is the Limited Edition BluRay’s produced by Viz Media. The company was not lying when it initially announced that these sets would be made in limited quantities, as it is reported that only a few thousand copies of each set were made.
The sets include a custom cardboard cover for each season as well as manga samples in the form of small booklets. Otherwise, the disks and the casing inside the cardboard are exactly the same as the standard BluRay release. While a few of these sets aren’t too bad, several of them can cost up to $400 dollars each, and there have been reports that a whole set brand new can set fans back at much as $1,100 if you buy them brand new. Is this kind of money worth it for a few cardboard covers and manga samples? We’ll leave that for collectors to decide, but thankfully they can sample the show before making such a costly investment.
5 Ronin Warriors ($1,200-$1,500)
Individual copies of Ronin Warriors on DVD can be pretty rare these days. Released by Bandai back in the early 2000s, the series was a small hit on Cartoon Network’s Toonami block. It had some small success on DVD, but not enough for Bandai to renew the license. Before the license lapsed though, the company released the entire series in a complete box set. This edition was made in very limited quantities and was done as a last attempt to make money from the license before it lapsed.
The set didn’t sell many copies, and it went out of print without much fanfare. Years later this would make the set a coveted collector’s item, and brand-new copies can sell for as much as $1,500 brand new (you get a $300 discount if you’ll settle for a used copy). If collectors just want to watch the series, buying the individual disks will set them back closer to $400, which will be an easier pill to swallow for fans of the series.
4 Legend of Galactic Heroes ($2,000-$2,500)
When The Legend of Galactic Heroes was released in a complete DVD collection, fans could hardly believe their eyes: $899 for the entire series on DVD?! The studio producing the sets claimed that this would be the best way to watch the series and that it would be limited to only 1,000 copies. Fans were livid about this release, claiming that it was price gouging for a series that was nowhere near long and popular enough to justify the hefty price. Fans largely avoided the release, and it took YEARS for those 1,000 copies to sell out!
Even though fans of the series were unhappy with the initial price point, one thing they were told is that this would be the last release of the series on DVD and that no more physical releases would be made available. Turns out that claim was largely correct (as of this writing), and with those 1,000 copies officially sold out the value of the set now sits at $2,000 or higher (depending on the condition). $899 doesn’t sound too bad at this point in the game, does it?!
3 Neon Genesis Evangelion ($700-$2,000)
Neon Genesis Evangelion is a series that has always been worth a lot of money. While there is a budget release of the series and movies on BluRay for about $50 in stores right now, that release has some music changes in the show due to licensing problems, and if collectors want the series uncut and unaltered they will need to buy one of the various DVD released from ADV Films that are out of print, and the prices on these vary wildly. The definitive release of the series is the Platinum Edition sets and these are not cheap.
If viewers buy the DVDs individually they may be able to own the show for as little as $700. If they buy the thinpack box set, they will likely be shelling out over $1,000. Or, if they're are a hardcore fan, getting the Platinum Edition collection in the silver tin set will cost up to $2,000! But hey, it’s worth it for that shiny case and to hear Fly Me to the Moon in the credits, right?!
2 Dragon Ball Z ($2,500-$7,000)
This addition may have some readers confused: is Dragon Ball Z REALLY that expensive?! Since the show is on this list, the answer is obviously yes, but we do have to mention that there are many affordable ways to get this show. Aside from the fact that it is readily available to stream on Crunchyroll (and most likely will be for years to come) the cost of Dragon Ball Z on home media is drastically less expensive than it was during the VHS and early DVD days.
If viewers go and buy the various BluRay sets out there, they can likely get the whole series on BluRay for less than $300 at most places. However…whether they like what they get on those BluRay’s is one of the reasons Dragon Ball Z makes this list. Funimation’s home video releases have been controversial for many years due to the numerous quality issues of their discs. As of this writing the two major BluRay releases have issues with cropped images (to force the full-screen series to be in widescreen), sloppy DNR (Digital Noise Reduction) applied that smears the image, and questionable Japanese audio tracks. These are not great choices for a fan of the series.
Most Dragon Ball Z fans agree that owning the series on the various releases over the years is more of a “pick your poison” choice rather than a wholehearted endorsement of how to watch the series. Well, all the releases, except one: the Dragon Box release. The Dragon Box release is a series of seven yellow boxes that contain the undisputed best version of Dragon Ball Z in America by most fans. It is in its proper aspect ratio, the DNR is not used in favor of true remasters from the original film negative, and the audio sounds great for the most part. Heck, the DVDs even default to the Japanese version, making it clear that this is geared toward true fans.
Here's the problem: these were always going to be a limited release. They are no longer in production and virtually ALL the sets cost more than $500 each! If collectors are buying this series used, it is not uncommon to have to shell out $2,500 or more for the entire series. If they try to buy them brand new the whole series can set them back up to $7,000 dollars! Thankfully, there is great news here: the Dragon Box video transfers and audio can be streamed on Crunchyroll, for those who want to save themselves a few thousand dollars.
1 Maison Ikkoku ($3,100-$9,200)
Maison Ikkoku is considered by many anime fans to be one of the greatest anime most Americans haven’t seen. One of the reasons for that is that the series has had a rough run on the home media market in North America. Viz Media were (and to our knowledge still are) the rights holders of the anime due to their great relationship with creator Rumiko Takahashi. That said…selling this show has not been easy despite it coming from the creator of Ranma ½ and InuYasha.
The series never finished its release on VHS (getting canceled by episode 36). When the DVD box sets were released they sold very poorly, causing the series to become a Right Stuf exclusive starting with the third release. This release ultimately did get finished, but the final set was produced in extremely low quantities and the whole series was discontinued shortly afterward. Now where this became a problem is that the series did start to develop a cult following by then, and the first three sets can fairly easily be found for less than $50 (unless you are buying them brand new).
However, completing this series is a nightmare, as anything after the third set is varying degrees of expensive. Sets 5, 7, and especially 8 will force collectors to reach deep into theirr bank account. To break this down, the first three seasons will cost most viewers $150 if they buy them used. If they buy them new…they’re looking at closer to $500 for these three sets. Set 4 tends to cost around $150 used and $400 new. Things are getting scary, but buckle up, because this is where the situation becomes truly terrifying. Sets 5 and 7 routinely go for over $700 each if they are used. Brand new they’ll set collectors back a cool $1,200 each.
Viewers get a bit of a break with set 6, costing around $500 used and $900 new, but that is of small comfort at this point in the ballgame. When they get to set 8 though – the release that has the emotional and much anticipated ending of the whole show – they are paying up to $900 for the set used, and new copies can go for somewhere between $2,000 to $5,000 dollars! Yes, that's right: a new copy of the final DVD set of Maison Ikkoku could cost as much as a car.
What makes this all the worse for anime fans is unlike several series on this list, you can not legally streamMaison Ikkoku in the US. The manga is available from Viz Media (and that is certainly recommended), but as of this writing there are no plans for a re-release of any kind in America. When you look at how high the sets are selling for, clearly this is a show whose fans love the show. They love it so much that they are willing to pay a staggering amount of money for the privilege of owning it. For these reasons, Maison Ikkoku is not only the most expensive anime collectors can purchase, but it’s also one of the few on the list they HAVE to spend top dollar on it if they want to watch it at all!