Anime has given us some noteworthy and iconic characters. While some may have realistic appearances, others are known for their vibrant hair colors and crazy styles. Blue, green, purple, white- nothing is off-limits in anime.
Orange is also a common hair color used for anime characters. It is an effective way to make a character stand out as it is not a color you see everyday in real life. So, who are some of these famous anime characters with orange hair?
Let us find that out in this list that talks about anime characters with orange hair female and orange-haired anime characters male.
15 Anime Characters with White Hair
15 Popular Anime Characters with Purple Hair
15 Popular Black-Haired Anime Characters
12 Male and female Anime Characters with Blue Hair
Contents
8 Best Anime Characters with Orange Hair Male
Ichigo Kurosaki
Series: Bleach
Number of Episodes: 366
Created By: Tite Kubo
Voice Artist: Masakazu Morita, Yuki Matsuoka(Japanese); Johnny Yong Bosch, Mona Marshall(English)
The protagonist of Bleach Ichigo Kurosaki is a high schooler who receives Soul Reaper powers after meeting another Soul Reaper Rukia Kuchiki. He starts fighting evil spirits called Hollows after that to protect people as Rukia’s stand-in.
Ichigo is a tall and lean boy with spiky orange hair who has the tendency to wear shirts patterned with the number 15.
The teenager initially seems to be a stereotypical anti-hero but Kubo develops him into a more complex character with his sad past. Sure, he has a temper problem and frequently picks fights but he also has a strong sense of responsibility and a heart of gold.
Ichigo always attempts to maintain a cool and detached image but in reality, he is a compassionate and empathetic person who tries to soothe others when they become upset.
He has a complex sense of honor in fights as he seeks revenge for the cruel actions of his opponents, taunts and belittles them and attacks without warning but he also wants to win the fight in a legitimate manner.
Ichigo also wears a mask and features in our best masked anime characters
Pain/Nagato
Series: Naruto
Number of Episodes: 220
Created By: Masashi Kishimoto
Voice Artist: Junpei Morita, Ken’yu Horiuchi, Tomoaki Maeno, Shiho Hisajima(Japanese); Vic Mignogna, Troy Baker, Matthew Mercer, Dave Wittenberg, Kari Wahlgren, Stephanie Sheh(English)
Nagato, better known as Pain, is an orange-haired anime character from Naruto. He is the figurehead leader of the Akatsuki who seeks to capture the tailed beasts that have been sealed into various people across the shinobi world.
An Uzumaki clan descendant, he is depicted as having pale skin and straight orange hair. Pain was conceived as a villain and a war victim, someone who would show Naruto the consequences of war. He has had many traumatic experiences because of human conflict and as a result, aims to create a new war-free world.
Quite popular in the Naruto fandom, Pain is hailed as one of the most psychologically and philosophically complex anime characters. He is someone who has spent his whole life putting the needs of others above his own.
Completely confident in his skills, he never shied away from fighting the strongest opponents or standing up to powerful Akatsuki members.
Also read: 9 best websites to watch Naruto movies and series
Nishiki Nishio
Series: Tokyo Ghoul
Number of Episodes: 48
Created By: Sui Ishida
Voice Artist: Shintaro Asanuma(Japanese); Eric Vale(English)
Nishiki Nishio from Tokyo Ghoul is one of the most recognizable male anime characters with orange hair. Studying at the same university as the protagonist Ken Kaneki, he is a diligent prodigy student but also has an insensitive attitude. He is a very territorial ghoul who is known for killing other ghouls after getting information from them.
Nishiki usually dresses in normal casual clothes that help him blend in better with humans and even has a human girlfriend named Nishino Kimi. He is a cautious person who doesn’t trust others but can be loyal, especially towards Nishino. Nishiki eventually ends up becoming an ally of Ken and joins his organization Goat.
Gildarts Clive
Series: Fairy Tail
Number of Episodes: 328+ 9 OVA
Created By: Hiro Mashima
Voice Artist: Kazuhiko Inoue(Japanese); Jason Douglas(English)
Fairy Tail’s Gildarts Clive is an S-Class Mage and the ace of the Fairy Tail Guild. He is a tall, muscular man with slicked-back orange hair and a stubbly beard. With his powers, he can break any object or spell he touches down into blocks. He is also the father of Cana Alberona but remains unaware of this fact as his deceased wife divorced him and gave birth while he was away.
In general, Gildarts is an easygoing and laid-back person who has immense faith in the new generation of the Fairy Tail mages. He is also rather oblivious and has a tendency to break through walls to pass instead of using a door.
Though he is bad at holding back in fights, Gildarts makes sure to fight in a way that prevents human casualties.
Junichiro Tanizaki
Series: Bungo Stray Dogs
Number of Episodes: 60+ OVA
Created By: Kafka Asagiri, Sango Harukawa
Voice Artist: Toshiyuki Toyonaga(Japanese); Spike Spencer(English)
Named after the Japanese novelist, Junichiro Tanizaki is a member of the Armed Detective Agency. He is 18 years old and mainly works as an assistant gathering information for the agency. This is because his ability which allows him to project illusions within a certain area is not much suited for combat.
Junichiro is depicted as a slim boy with hazel eyes and orange hair. He is considered to be the most average member of the agency as he is not loud or eccentric like the others. The teenager also has a great aptitude to adapt to his surroundings which is why he is often sent for reconnaissance missions.
Still, Junichiro gets nervous at times and is shown as having a very fragile sense of morality. He is quick to take the path that is most likely to help himself and the agency even though it may involve highly immoral behavior.
Escanor
Series: The Seven Deadly Sins
Number of Episodes: 96+ 4 SP
Created By: Nakaba Suzuki
Voice Artist: Tomokazu Sugita, Sara Matsumoto(Japanese); Kyle Hebert, Kira Buckland(English)
Escanor bears the sin of Pride in The Seven Deadly Sins. He is the former second prince of the Kingdom of Castellio and is renowned as “The Strongest Holy Knight” in the kingdom of Liones. His inherent power is called Sunshine and it increases his physical strength depending on the position of the sun.
Interestingly, Escanor’s personality relates directly to his strength. During the day when his powers are at their peak, he is arrogant and domineering while at night he is skittish, submissive and polite. Even then he retains certain traits during both day and night such as his fondness for Merlin and writing poetry.
Escanor’s pride does not prevent him from acknowledging the strength of others. He is also not above asking for help when it is needed. Thus, this makes Escanor one of the best male anime characters with orange hair.
Akatsuki Kain
Series: Vampire Knight
Number of Episodes: 26
Created By: Matsuri Hino
Voice Artist: Junichi Suwabe(Japanese); Troy Baker(English)
In Vampire Knight, Akatsuki Kain nicknamed “Wild” is Hanabusa Aido’s cousin and one of Kaname’s “right hands.” He is the tallest vampire of the Night Class bunch and with his tan skin, burnt orange eyes and orange-brown hair stands out among other vampires.
While his nickname is Wild, Akatsuki is the complete opposite of it. He is a calm and incredibly perceptive person. Often he is the person who has to step in to reign in impulsive feuds between Hanabusa and Ruka. Akatsuki is a loyal and protective person who would never betray his friends.
Part of a noble family, he has accelerated healing powers like all aristocrat vampires. But Akatsuki also has the unique ability to conjure and control fire in addition to that.
Kyo Sohma
Series: Fruits Basket
Number of Episodes: 26(2001); 63(2019)
Created By: Natsuki Takaya
Voice Artist: Tomokazu Seki, Yuma Uchida, Kyosuke Ikeda, Asuna Tomari(Japanese); Jerry Jewell, Avery Rice Williams, Alison Viktorin, Suzie Yeung(English)
Fruits Basket is an iconic manga and anime and Kyo Sohma is, thus, an iconic orange-haired anime character. Cursed by the spirit of the cat, he is one of the main characters of the series and the powerful force that pulls along the story.
He is short-tempered and can be awkward around people but is also insanely charismatic. Kyo is a fiercely competitive person and, thus, can be pulled into doing anything he does not want to do by making it a competition. He considers the current rat zodiac to be his rival and is constantly training in martial arts to be able to defeat him one day.
Tohru’s friendship helps mellow down Kyo as he eventually falls in love and gets married to her.
8 Best Anime Characters with Orange Hair Female
Misty
Series: Pokemon
Number of Episodes: 1,200(as of 2023)
Created By: Satoshi Tajiri
Voice Artist: Mayumi Iizuka, Ayane Sakura(Japanese); Rachael Lillis, Michele Knotz, Reba Buhr(English)
No list of girl anime characters with orange hair can be complete without Misty from Pokemon. After all, this aspiring Water Pokemon Master and Cerulean Gym Leader is recognizable even to people who have nothing to do with anime.
Misty travelled alongside Ash and Brock for a long time while sharpening her Water-trainer skills on the way. She later returned home to run the family gym before eventually resuming her journey after Ash became the World Champion.
In her childhood, Misty often felt inferior to her sisters but over the course of the series, she shows herself to be mature, kind and sensible. She is the nurturing component of the trio and the one who restrained Brock from girls.
Petra Ral
Series: Attack on Titan
Number of Episodes: 94
Created By: Hajime Isayama
Voice Artist: Natsuki Aikawa(Japanese); Caitlin Glass(English)
Petra Ral is a Survey Corps soldier who was hand picked by Levi Ackerman to serve in the Special Operations Squad. She is a skilled and experienced fighter who is said to have killed 58 Titans. Her quick reaction time against perceived danger is infamous in the Attack on Titan world.
Despite this, Petra is a kind and caring person who looks up to Levi and cares deeply for her team. She is the one who looked after and guided Eren when he joined the squad and became an attachment figure for him. Ultimately, it was her who convinced Eren to give his unconditional trust to the squad.
Petra was also the person who showed the most remorse over their reaction to Eren’s accidental transformation.
Emma
Series: The Promised Neverland
Number of Episodes: 23
Created By: Kaiu Shirai, Posuka Demizu
Voice Artist: Sumire Morohoshi(Japanese); Erica Mendez(English)
The Promised Neverland’s protagonist Emma is an 11 year old girl who was born at Grace Field House and sent to Plantation 3 just a year later. She is depicted as a thin, fair-skinned girl with emerald eyes and short orange hair. Like other orphanage kids, she wears the standard uniform and her Grace Field identification number is visible on the left side of her neck.
Emma had a largely happy childhood under the care of Isabella and her foster siblings. She is a smart girl who consistently gets perfect scores in her exams and is the life of the party. Ever the optimist, she is an athletic girl who can also be a little crazy at times.
Emma cares deeply about her family and has a strong sense of selflessness that makes her insist that everyone escape together from the orphanage even though most of the kids are barely six years old.
She is praised for being a unique heroine who has broken the typical mold of a feminine protagonist. Emma is a strong girl who refuses to leave anyone behind, gets things done and undergoes some great character development over the course of the series.
No wonder then that she is considered one of the best orange-haired female anime characters.
Nami
Series: One Piece
Number of Episodes: 1,085(as of 2023)
Created By: Eiichiro Oda
Voice Artist: Akemi Okamura, Wakana Yamazaki, Megumi Toyoguchi(Japanese); Kerry Williams, Luci Christian(English)
One Piece is an iconic franchise that has given us some of the most popular anime characters. One such character is the orange-haired “Cat Burglar” Nami. A thief and pickpocket with excellent cartographical and navigational skills, she eventually joins Mukey D.Luffy’s crew as the navigator.
Nami with her orange hair, brown eyes and blue tattoo is considered to be an attractive woman by many characters. Initially distrusting of pirates, she changes her mind after meeting Luffy. She also does not believe in myths and legends even though she accompanies Luffy in his search for the legendary Devil Fruit.
Thus, Nami consistently polls as a top female anime character with orange hair.
Rangiku Matsumoto
Series: Bleach
Number of Episodes: 366
Created By: Tite Kubo
Voice Artist: Kaya Matsutani(Japanese); Megan Hollingshead(English)
Rangiku Matsumoto is a Soul Reaper serving as a lieutenant in Squad 10 under Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya. She is an orange-haired woman who often uses her beauty to avoid working and going shopping or drinking with her colleagues. Still, she is a serious and thoughtful lieutenant who is skilled enough to hold her own against arrancars.
Her easy-going personality may seem like a sharp contrast against Toshiro’s more serious demeanor but the two are quite close regardless. Rangiku may come across as self-centered but she is sensitive to the feelings of others as can be seen in multiple instances.
Asuna
Series: Sword Art Online
Number of Episodes: 25
Created By: Reki Kawahara
Voice Artist: Haruka Tomatsu(Japanese); Cherami Leigh(English)
The orange-haired Asuna Yuuki is the protagnist of the Sword Art Online anime. She is a friend and later love interest of Kirito and is known as “the Flash” in-game because of her incredibly fast skills with the rapier. A kind and helpful person, she did not care about dying in the game before meeting Kirito.
Despite her calm personality, Asuna is not afraid of getting physical with people who challenge her authority or make fun of her abilities. She does not hesitate from taking matters into her own hands when it is required but is easily manipulated by her emotions.
Orihime Inoue
Series: Bleach
Number of Episodes: 366
Created By: Tite Kubo
Voice Artist: Yuki Matsuoka(Japanese); Stephanie Sheh(English)
Orihime Inoue is a friend of the protagonist Ichigo Kurosaki and a student of Karakura High School. She is a smart student but can be naive and clueless in other areas of life. Despite this, she has demonstrated time and again that she is quite perceptive when it comes to the mental and emotional state of people.
Orihime starts off as an optimistic, humorous and goofy kid but faces inner turmoils and delas with feelings of inadequacy as the series progresses. She also feels jealous of Ichigo and Rukia’s relationship despite her admiration for both of them.
Sora Takenouchi
Series: Digimon
Number of Episodes: 519
Created By: Bandai, WiZ
Voice Artist: Yuko Mizutani, Suzuko Mimori(Japanese); Colleen Ann Villard, Wendee Lee(English)
Digimon is one of the most successful media franchises out there. Many anime fans have grown up with characters like Jo Kido and Sora Takenouchi. Sora is a tomboyish girl with orange hair and maroon eyes. She is Tai’s best friend and was also on the soccer team with him.
Sora is a kind and responsible person whose first instinct is to protect protect and help others in any way she can even at the cost of her own well-being. She is initially shown to have self-esteem issues but her adventures in the Digital World help her realize how loved and appreciated she is. Sora eventually learns to embrace her femininity and becomes much more confident and laid-back in her teens.
Who is the Orange-haired One Piece Character?
Nami is the One Piece character with orange hair. She is one of the five original members of the Straw Hat Pirates crew who found her home on the Going Merry. She is an incredible fashionista and changes her hairstyle many times in the series. Her hair went from coming just below her ears to nearly waist-length throughout the series.
Apart from her, Daisy and Milia are also examples of orange-haired One Piece characters. Daisy is a member of the Kuja Pirates while Milia is Amanda’s younger sister who started hating pirates after her father’s death at their hands.
