Classroom of the Elite (Japanese: ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ, Hepburn: Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e; lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Real Ability Supremacism'), abbreviated as Yōjitsu (よう実) in Japan, is a Japanese light novel series written by Shōgo Kinugasa, with illustrations by Shunsaku Tomose. The series is published under Media Factory's MF Bunko J imprint, with Classroom of the Elite: Year 1 published from May 2015 to September 2019; followed by its sequel Classroom of the Elite: Year 2 (ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ 2年生編, Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e Ninensei-hen; lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Real Ability Supremacism Second-Year Students Edition') published from January 2020 to November 2024, as well as the follow-up Classroom of the Elite: Year 3 (ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ 3年生編, Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e Sannensei-hen; lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Real Ability Supremacism Third-Year Students Edition'), which began publishing in March 2025.
Set in the prestigious elite national high school 'Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing School' established by the Japanese government, the story is about students assigned to four classes in the hierarchical order of 'A' 'B' 'C' and 'D', who are in constant competition over their three years of schooling to decide which gets to ultimately graduate in 'Class A', whose graduating members are said to be promised automatic acceptance in any desired career path or further education.
A manga adaptation by Yuyu Ichino began its serialization in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Alive on January 27, 2016. A manga adaptation of the sequel light novel series illustrated by Shia Sasane began serialization in the same magazine in December 2021. An anime television series adaptation produced by Lerche aired from July to September 2017, with the second season aired in July to September 2022, and the third season aired from January to March 2024. A fourth season aired from April to June 2026, and a fifth season has been announced.
The series has received widespread universal acclaim for its writing and darker themes, and has sold over 10.8 million copies in circulation, as one of the best-selling light novels.
Contents
Plot
The Japanese government has established the Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing School, dedicated to instruct and foster the generation of people that will support the country in the future. The students are given a high degree of freedom in order to closely mimic real life. The story follows the perspective of Kiyotaka Ayanokōji, a quiet and modest boy, who is bad at making friends and would rather keep his distance, but possesses unrivaled intelligence and incredible physical ability. He is a student of Class 'D', which is where the school dumps its inferior students, widely considered "defective". After meeting Suzune Horikita and Kikyō Kushida, two other students in his class, the situation begins to change, and he gets involved in many affairs and his thought of an ideal normal high school life is disrupted.
Media
Light novels
Written by Shōgo Kinugasa and illustrated by Shunsaku Tomose, the series is published by Media Factory, which published eleven volumes, along with three short story volumes from May 25, 2015, to September 25, 2019, under the MF Bunko J imprint. Seven Seas Entertainment has licensed the series. On February 17, 2021, Seven Seas announced it released a new version of volume seven, due to the localization decisions in the original omitting several paragraphs.
A sequel light novel series titled Classroom of the Elite: Year 2 (ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ 2年生編, Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e Ninensei-hen; lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Merito-Supremacism: Second-Year Students Edition') was published under the MF Bunko J imprint from January 2020 to November 2024, which concluded with twelve main volumes and three short story volumes. Seven Seas Entertainment has also licensed Year 2.
A sequel light novel series titled Classroom of the Elite: Year 3 (ようこそ実力至上主義の教室へ 3年生編, Yōkoso Jitsuryoku Shijōshugi no Kyōshitsu e Sannensei-hen; lit. 'Welcome to the Classroom of Real Ability Supremacism Third-Year Students Edition') has been published under the MF Bunko J imprint since March 2025. Seven Seas Entertainment has also licensed Year 3.
Manga
A manga adaptation illustrated by Yuyu Ichino began serialization in Media Factory's Monthly Comic Alive magazine on January 27, 2016, and has been collected in twelve tankōbon volumes as of February 22, 2022. Seven Seas Entertainment has also licensed the manga, with the first volume released in February 2022.
A spin-off manga illustrated by Sakagaki and featuring Suzune Horikita was serialized in Monthly Comic Alive from June 2017 to May 2018, with its chapters collected in two tankōbon volumes. At Anime Expo 2022, Seven Seas Entertainment announced that they licensed the spin-off for English publication.
A manga adaptation of the sequel light novel series illustrated by Shia Sasane was serialized in the Monthly Comic Alive magazine from December 25, 2021, to December 26, 2024. It was collected in four tankōbon volumes, and released from June 22, 2022, to January 22, 2025.
A sequel manga to the manga adaptation of the Year 2 light novels illustrated by Hachi Komada began serialization in the Monthly Comic Alive magazine on January 27, 2025. The first tankōbon volume was released on August 21, 2025.
Anime
An anime television series adaptation aired from July 12 to September 27, 2017, on AT-X and other networks. Seiji Kishi and Hiroyuki Hashimoto directed the series at Lerche, Aoi Akashiro handled the series composition, Kazuaki Morita designed the characters, and Ryo Takahashi composed the music. The opening theme song is "Caste Room", performed by ZAQ, while the ending theme song is "Beautiful Soldier", performed by Minami. Crunchyroll streamed the series and Funimation streamed the English dub. iQIYI added the series onto its platform, Q3, and the Thai dub in 2022.
On February 21, 2022, it was announced that a sequel was in production, which was later revealed to have two seasons, with Lerche returning as the studio. The second season is directed by Yoshihito Nishōji, with Kishi and Hashimoto serving as chief directors, Hayato Kazano replacing Akashiro as screenwriter, and Morita returning as character designer. Masaru Yokoyama and Kana Hashiguchi replaced Takahashi, and served as music composers. The second season aired from July 4 to September 26, 2022. The opening theme song is "Dance in the Game", performed by ZAQ, while the ending theme song is "Hito Shibai" (人芝居), performed by Mai Fuchigami. The third season was originally scheduled for 2023, but was delayed, and eventually aired from January 3 to March 27, 2024. The third season's opening theme song is "Minor Piece", performed by ZAQ, while the ending theme song is "Konsei Dai Kakumei" (今世大革命; "The Great Revolution of this World"), performed by Yui Ninomiya.
A fourth season, covering the first semester of the Year 2 sequel light novel series, was announced during the "MF Bunko J Natsu no Gakuensai 2024" livestream event on September 1, 2024. It is produced by Lerche and directed by Noriyuki Nomata, with the rest of the staff and cast reprising their roles. The fourth season premiered on April 1, 2026. The fourth season's opening theme song is "MONSTER", performed by Eir Aoi, while the ending theme song is "Liar Veil" (ライアーヴェール), performed by ZAQ.
After the airing of the final episode of the fourth season, a fifth season was announced.