Date A Live watch order

Spirits, girls from another world whose arrival levels whole city blocks, keep appearing in Tengu City, and high schooler Shido Itsuka learns he can seal their powers by making them fall in love with him. Kōshi Tachibana's 22-volume light novel series became five TV seasons across four studios, plus OVAs, a movie and a Kurumi spin-off.

First time? Watch the five seasons in order: Date A Live, II, III, IV and V. The two OVAs, the Mayuri Judgement movie and Date A Bullet are optional extras you can slot in where they came out.

First-timer order

Just the five seasons, which are the whole main story. The OVAs, the movie and Date A Bullet are side stories you can watch afterwards, or slot in where they came out (see release order).

Date A Live TV, 2013, 12 episodes
AIC Plus+ adapts light novel volumes 1–4: Shido meets Tohka, then Yoshino, Kurumi and his own sister Kotori, while the anti-spirit soldier Origami hunts them.
Date A Live II TV, 2014, 10 episodes
Production IMS takes over for a ten-episode season covering volumes 5–7: the Yamai twins Kaguya and Yuzuru, the idol Miku, and a showdown with the DEM corporation.
Date A Live III TV, 2019, 12 episodes
J.C.Staff squeezes five volumes (8–12) into twelve episodes: the shapeshifter Natsumi and a time-bending Origami arc. Widely seen as rushed, especially its last episode, which covers all of volume 12.
Date A Live IV TV, 2022, 12 episodes
Geek Toys takes over, adapting volumes 13–16: the spirit Nia, the arrival of Mukuro, and the DEM conflict escalating toward the final arc.
Date A Live V TV, 2024, 12 episodes
Geek Toys again, adapting volumes 17–19 as the series moves into its endgame and the truth about the first spirit comes out.
Date A Live: Date to Date (optional) OVA, 2013, 1 episode
An anime-original comedy episode, sold with light novel volume 9 in Japan: Tohka gets a phone and Origami demands a date. Often listed as episode 13. Optional.
Date A Live II: Kurumi Star Festival (optional) OVA, 2014, 1 episode
An anime-original side story set at Tanabata, in which Shido and Kurumi end up at a wedding hall. Sold with a volume of the Date A Live Encore short-story books; often listed as Season 2 episode 11. Optional.
Date A Live Movie: Mayuri Judgement (optional) Movie, 2015, 1 episode
A 72-minute original story by the novels' author about a mysterious new spirit, Mayuri, set after Season 2 with its full cast. It isn't from the novels and has no effect on the main story. Optional.
Date A Bullet: Dead or Bullet (optional) Movie, 2020, 1 episode
A 24-minute spin-off film from the Date A Bullet novels: a version of Kurumi wakes up in the Neighboring World, where spirits fight a battle royale. Separate from Shido's story. Optional.
Date A Bullet: Nightmare or Queen (optional) Movie, 2020, 1 episode
The second half of the Date A Bullet story, about 29 minutes. Watch it straight after Dead or Bullet. Optional.

Release order

Everything in the order it came out, which is also how most watch-order guides suggest fitting the extras in: Date to Date after Season 1, Kurumi Star Festival and Mayuri Judgement after Season 2, and Date A Bullet after Season 3.

Date A Live TV, 2013, 12 episodes
AIC Plus+ adapts light novel volumes 1–4: Shido meets Tohka, then Yoshino, Kurumi and his own sister Kotori, while the anti-spirit soldier Origami hunts them.
Date A Live: Date to Date (optional) OVA, 2013, 1 episode
An anime-original comedy episode, sold with light novel volume 9 in Japan: Tohka gets a phone and Origami demands a date. Often listed as episode 13. Optional.
Date A Live II TV, 2014, 10 episodes
Production IMS takes over for a ten-episode season covering volumes 5–7: the Yamai twins Kaguya and Yuzuru, the idol Miku, and a showdown with the DEM corporation.
Date A Live II: Kurumi Star Festival (optional) OVA, 2014, 1 episode
An anime-original side story set at Tanabata, in which Shido and Kurumi end up at a wedding hall. Sold with a volume of the Date A Live Encore short-story books; often listed as Season 2 episode 11. Optional.
Date A Live Movie: Mayuri Judgement (optional) Movie, 2015, 1 episode
A 72-minute original story by the novels' author about a mysterious new spirit, Mayuri, set after Season 2 with its full cast. It isn't from the novels and has no effect on the main story. Optional.
Date A Live III TV, 2019, 12 episodes
J.C.Staff squeezes five volumes (8–12) into twelve episodes: the shapeshifter Natsumi and a time-bending Origami arc. Widely seen as rushed, especially its last episode, which covers all of volume 12.
Date A Bullet: Dead or Bullet (optional) Movie, 2020, 1 episode
A 24-minute spin-off film from the Date A Bullet novels: a version of Kurumi wakes up in the Neighboring World, where spirits fight a battle royale. Separate from Shido's story. Optional.
Date A Bullet: Nightmare or Queen (optional) Movie, 2020, 1 episode
The second half of the Date A Bullet story, about 29 minutes. Watch it straight after Dead or Bullet. Optional.
Date A Live IV TV, 2022, 12 episodes
Geek Toys takes over, adapting volumes 13–16: the spirit Nia, the arrival of Mukuro, and the DEM conflict escalating toward the final arc.
Date A Live V TV, 2024, 12 episodes
Geek Toys again, adapting volumes 17–19 as the series moves into its endgame and the truth about the first spirit comes out.

Explained

Is Mayuri Judgement canon?

No. It's an original story written by the novels' author for the film, and nothing in it carries into the TV seasons. Watch it after Season 2, since it uses that season's cast. The two OVAs are anime-original side stories too.

Is Date A Bullet Season 4?

No. Date A Bullet is a spin-off from a separate novel series by Yuichiro Higashide about a Kurumi in the Neighboring World, the place spirits end up. Shido isn't in it, and you don't need it to follow the main seasons.

Why does Season 3 feel rushed?

It fits five novel volumes into twelve episodes, and the whole of volume 12 goes into its final episode, so the Natsumi and Origami arcs move very fast. The studio also changed almost every season, from AIC Plus+ to Production IMS, J.C.Staff and then Geek Toys, which is why the look keeps shifting.

What's next?

Season 5 stops at volume 19 of the 22-volume main series. A new anime to finish the story, Date A Live F Last Date (Date A Live: Last Date in English), was announced in April 2026 with a new studio, Fugaku, and the main cast returning. No release date has been confirmed yet. If you want to keep going now, the novels continue from volume 20; Yen Press publishes them in English.