Top 12 Best Websites to Watch Japanese Dramas in English Dubs/Subs (Free and Legally)

Japanese filmmakers frequently derive inspiration from Manga and subsequently adapt them into J-Dramas. Shows such as 'Gokusen,' 'Hana Yori Dango,' 'Alice in Borderland,' and others provide viewers with intriguing narratives that contain surprising plot developments.Japanese dramas are frequently eclipsed by the immense popularity of anime, yet they present a plethora of offerings for individuals seeking to explore Japanese entertainment more profoundly.

Nevertheless, locating streaming options for these individuals can be challenging due to their relatively obscure nature. In order to assist you in this endeavor, we have compiled a list of the most reputable websites that offer legally streaming Japanese dramas with either English dubbing or English subtitles.

Learn more: 10 Best Free Sites To Watch/Download Japanese Movies and Series

Please find the list below:

1. TV Japan (Paid Website)

TV Japan is probably your best bet if you want to watch Japanese shows from Japanese broadcasters. It lets people in North America watch all of NHK's World Premium content, like movies, variety shows, sports, kids' shows, and dramas. It's crazy how much content there is, and it's about the same as what's on the major Japanese networks.

There are a lot of dramas playing right now here, like HEAVEN and HELL: Soul Exchange, From Now on We Begin Ethics, and Dream Team. There are also classics that have been around for a long time, like AIBOU: Tokyo Detective Duo, an investigation show that is now in its nineteenth season. There are shows from TBS, Fuji Television, TV Asahi, TV Tokyo, and TBS, but most of the shows are from NHK.

2. Netflix (Paid Website)

Netflix has jumped right into the Asian entertainment business and now has hundreds of movies and TV shows from East Asia. They have a huge selection of Japanese movies and TV shows, from anime to reality shows and action movies. Japanese Netflix shows and movies often take well-known genres and make them their own.

Midnight Diner, for example, is set in a late-night Japanese restaurant where everyday Japanese people are shown in made-up scenes. At the end of each episode, there are instructions on how to make the food that was shown. On the other hand, Terrace House is a beautiful reality show like The Real World, but with a calmer tone and slower pace that might surprise people in the United States. Followers, Jimmy: The True Story of a True Idiot, and Stay Tuned! are some other well-known dramas. Along with traditional dramas, Netflix is a great place to watch Japanese shows that aren't your typical fare.

3. AsianCrush (Paid Website)

Website: https://www.asiancrush.com/

AsianCrush

Even though AsianCrush is one of the best paid sites, it's not completely paid. They also have a free site where you can stream, but there are ads on the videos sometimes. For $4.99 a month, the paid version doesn't bother you and lets you upload more.

You can also watch a lot of different types of drama on this site, such as action, horror, and comedy. All of the videos are HD, at least 720p. This is one of the most well-known websites, and it has different lists for different parts of the world.

4. Midnight Pulp (Paid Website)

Website: https://www.midnightpulp.com/

Many people use Midnight Pulp, which is one of the biggest video streaming services, to watch scary, exciting, and action movies from Japan. They also have a pretty good selection of Japanese dramas. This site is for people who like dark and interesting Japanese dramas.

The bad thing about this website is that you have to pay to stream videos on it. It costs $4.99 a month, but you can try it for free for one month to see if you like it. As a fair warning, though, if you like Japanese dramas with lots of love, you might want to skip this one. They really focus on the darker stories.

5. Viki (Paid Website)

Viki is a service from Rakuten that lets you watch movies, TV shows, and dramas from South Korea, China, Taiwan, and Japan. This streaming service is worth a look if you want to find one that focuses on East Asian content. It's hard to choose just one Japanese drama on Viki because so many of them are about love.

For example, Coffee and Vanilla is about a college student who falls in love with an older businessman. Scum's Wish is about a high school couple who seem to have a perfect relationship, but they are both in love with someone else. Mischievous Kiss: Love in TOKYO, Takane and Hana, and the Viki Original Life story Love on the Line are some other love stories. If you're not interested in romance, there are shows like Overprotected Kahoko, which is about a college student who has been taken care of her whole life, and Criminologist Himura and Mystery Writer Arisugawa, which is about two friends who become friends.

Learn more: Top 12 Best Free Sites To Download Japanese Dramas

6. Amazon Prime (Paid Website)

There is a huge amount of Japanese content here, but most of it is movies, so people who are mostly looking for traditional drama series should go somewhere else. But if you like long-form content and already have Amazon Prime, this might be the best choice for you. This doesn't mean there aren't regular dramas; it's just that it can be hard to find them on Amazon because there isn't a section just for Japanese dramas.

Doing research elsewhere on the web for titles that are available on Prime is the best way to go about this. When I quickly searched the web for Japanese dramas, I came across the Amazon Originals Final Life, Tokyo Vampire Hotel, and Massage Detective Joe. Is it hard to find Japanese dramas on Amazon? Yes, but there are hidden gems for people who are willing to put in the work.

7. KissAsian’ (Free Website)

Website: https://kissasian.lu/

KissAsian is one of our favorite free Japanese drama sites! KissAsian is a free streaming site. Recent Japanese TV episodes are updated quickly by them. KissAsian will air it within hours of its Japanese airing!

This free streaming platform is known for its fast updates of Japanese TV episodes. KissAsian releases episodes within hours of Japanese broadcasts. KissAsian's user-friendly interface lets users request Japanese drama uploads or report technical issues. Users have a smooth viewing experience because these requests are handled quickly.

One complaint about KissAsian is its excessive ads! Most clicks result in a pop-up and captcha. Their domain changes frequently, which is confusing. If you bookmark it, they usually redirect you to the new domain.

8. Crunchyroll (Free Website)

Sony's Funimation recently bought the American distributor Crunchyroll. This could change how it's sold to customers in the future, but it's still one of the world's most popular anime streaming sites. It also has a good selection of about 200 East Asian dramas. Two of these are the Japanese dramas Akagi and Death Note. Akagi is about high-stakes mahjong, and Death Note is about a magical notebook that can kill people whose names are written in it.

Some other notable titles are The Perfect Insider, a murder mystery, and Nobunaga Concerto, in which Oguri Shun plays the main character who travels through time. All of those titles are based on manga or novels, which shows how popular these kinds of TV shows are in Japan. Crunchyroll has more than 1,000 anime, so it's great for people who want to watch some Japanese dramas on the side.

9. ‘DramaNice’ (Free Website)

Website: https://dramanice.one/

DramaNice is another great website where you can watch Japanese dramas online. Like KissAsian, DramaNice is proud of how quickly it posts new episodes of Japanese and other Asian dramas.

DramaNice's website is easier to use on mobile devices than KissAsian's. Users can easily download content to their phones or laptops, and they can also take part in discussions on the site.

KissAsian only posts videos with subtitles, but DramaNice also posts videos that don't have subtitles. Hey, you can't be picky if you need something right away, right? They quickly change the list of Japanese dramas, but not all of them are subbed!

DramaNice, on the other hand, has ads at the beginning of the videos that you can't skip. But hey, this site is easy to use if we're already used to YouTube. Also, don't forget to save the website to your bookmarks because DramaNice changes its domain name a lot.

10. ‘JDorama’ (Free Website)

Website: https://jdorama.com/

JDorama

If you want to watch Japanese dramas online safely, JDroama has been a favorite for a long time. JDroama is known as one of the oldest and most popular websites in its genre. It has a huge collection of Japanese shows that are easily sorted by season.

It stands out because of its homepage, which makes it easy to find trailers for both movies and TV shows. In addition, JDroama has a thriving community where you can talk about Japanese TV shows that are popular right now. Yes, you can watch your favorite JDramas on this platform. It's also a place where you can interact with other people and find new and interesting content.

11. ‘View Asian’ (Free Website)

Website: http://ww99.viewasian.co/

If you want to watch Japanese dramas online for free, ViewAsian might be a good choice. You can search for dramas on this platform by genres like crime, action, and romance, and it has a lot of subbed videos.

When you watch a drama, there will be a thumbnail that tells you how many episodes are in the drama. This won't matter when you're watching a movie. Not having to click on each one separately is much more convenient. Imagine choosing to watch one and then discovering that it has hundreds of episodes!

12. ‘DramaCool’ (Free Website)

Website: http://ww99.dramacool.vc/

When you think back to your younger years and are looking for a streaming site, Dramacool might come to mind. It was your top choice back then because it had a simple web interface that made it easy to get around.

The different video servers that Dramacool had made it stand out. If the default one was acting up or playing slowly, it was easy to switch to a different one that would play more smoothly. Also, the "switch off light" feature is nice because it dims the screen so you can feel like you're in a movie theater while you watch Japanese dramas.

In Conclusion

With a total of twelve websites, consisting of six paid and six free options, there is no valid reason for you to not watch Japanese drama. Which option will you select — will you experiment with the free websites or make a decisive choice and opt for the paid ones?

Although it is possible to view Japanese dramas with dubbed audio on free and legal websites, we strongly advise utilizing paid platforms for a superior quality viewing experience.

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