Serving as a butler might not sound like the best job to have, but the anime world makes it look interesting. Being a butler doesn’t just mean being a simple servant, but it could mean being a parental figure, an advisor that has the protagonist's trust, or a guardian with a deadly set of skills.

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These characters prove that they’re not just ordinary butlers and shouldn't be taken lightly. They take their duties to serve their masters very seriously and aren’t even afraid to put their masters in their place at times. For anyone looking for the perfect anime butler, these are the most iconic and best in the business.

Update on December 26, 2022 by Sarah Prado: Working as a butler in the anime world is far from normal and definitely not boring. These butlers work hard for their respected masters to make sure they are safe and taken care of. They also do duties outside of what they normally do and can usually handle changes with little difficulty. However, just because most of these butlers take their job seriously doesn’t mean they aren’t funny to watch. Some of them are iconic for it and because of how their seriousness is used for humor.

15 Norman Burg (The Big O)

Serving as Roger Smith’s faithful butler, Norman will always make sure there’s a hot meal ready for him no matter the time of day or night. He also serves as a fatherly figure for Roger and Dorothy as well as being an advisor to both of them. Aside from taking care of them and the house, Norman is also pretty handy using firearms and other weapons.

He’s also a great mechanic and usually cares for and maintains Roger’s car and the Big O. To add to how cool he is, Norman's normal mode of transportation is a motorcycle with a sidecar.

14 Keigo Saikawa (Gakuen Babysitters/School Babysitters)

Not much is known about Saikawa’s life before he became a butler to the Chairwoman. He’s worked for her for a long time and takes his duties very seriously. He does have a dry sense of humor and is a little eccentric, but his demeanor usually makes other characters think he’s being serious. Other characters have a hard time understanding him and his personality, but Kotaro is the only one that seems to understand him.

Saikawa is very helpful and is able to adjust to situations very quickly. He’s very knowledgeable in a lot of things that are outside of normal butler duties. Almost all of the characters depend on him for help in some way and Saikawa is more than willing to assist them.

13 Merry (One Piece)

This character hasn’t been seen in a while, but this butler played an important role at the beginning of the series. Merry is the butler of Kaya alongside Kuro/Khaladore. Though he doesn’t have any special combat abilities, he was able to survive Kuro’s deadly attack with his Cat Claws. Merry also protects Kara from countless suitors that wish to meet her.

He was the one who designed the Going Merry, the Straw Hats Pirates’ first ship. After they helped save Kaya and Syrup Village from Kuro and his band of pirates, he gave them the ship and continued serving Kaya in the village.

12 Nagase, Asano and Toyogawa (Daily Lives of Highschool Boys)

These three butlers only appear once, but they make their moment count. They are the butlers of Yukana, a girl that lives in a wealthy mansion. The three of them try to convince her to go to school, but have some trouble doing so. Eventually, they start helping her come up with good excuses as to why she’s not going and come up with some hilarious answers.

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Toyogawa keeps telling her to use her fake tooth crown as an excuse which leads to Yukana shouting so loud that it falls out. Maybe these three aren’t the smartest butlers, but they are hilarious and take their duties seriously no matter the situation.

11 Neil (The World Is Still Beautiful)

Intelligent and reliable, Neil is extremely loyal to Livius and treats him respectfully even though his master is only 12 years old. When he saw that Livius often neglected his health and took rather drastic measures just to sleep, the butler was not afraid to call him out on it. Neil is not afraid to speak his mind because Livius knows that when he does, he is only doing it out of genuine concern.

Neil is also very observant and Livius keeps him close at all times. He was also in charge of educating Nike on how to be a queen since she didn't know all the protocols of royalty.

10 Gilbert Nightray (Pandora Hearts)

Starting off as Oz’s butler before the decade-long timeskip, Gilbert is still faithful to him. Some comment that his devotion is a little strange and obsessive, but he truly wishes for the best for Oz. His loyalty is unwavering and he’s very protective of Oz and other people he cares about. Though he doesn’t like violence, Gilbert lacks empathy and can be selfish.

Though he’s not dumb, others will often have to explain certain situations and other things to him. Most butlers are known for being loyal, but Gilbert’s is on a whole different level.

9 Hayate Ayasaki (Hayate The Combat Butler)

Poor Hayate has had to work since childhood to make ends meet since his parents are just horrible. After leaving him with outrageously large debt, Hayate became a butler to Nagi Sanzenin by mistake, but he accepts his new position gracefully. He becomes someone who Nagi actually needs since she’s a high-profile target for kidnapers who are after her family’s fortune.

Luckily, Hayate is experienced in hand-to-hand combat, skilled in using firearms, swordsmanship, and a long list of other skills that make him the perfect butler. The two things that work against him are his rather dense nature when it comes to all the women around him and just overall bad luck.

8 Shiro Ashiya (The Devil Is A Part-Timer!)

The right-hand man of Satan/Sadao Maou, Shiro Ashiya is one of his generals and also works as a butler of sorts for him. He is extremely loyal to Maou and takes care of their home while researching ways to get their powers back. Aside from this, he is pretty frugal when handling their money and gets uncomfortable if Maou spends it recklessly. Because of this, Ashiya gives Maou a budget and isn’t afraid to get angry at him for spending more.

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Despite this, Ashiya is unwavering in his loyalty to Maou and is generally formal with him even in public. Even Maou respects him and his intelligence, trusting Ashiya to find a way for them to get their powers back.

7 Subaru Konoe (Mayo Chiki!)

She’s a girl, but no one knows that except Kinjiro Sakamachi. It turns out that Subaru’s family is supposed to serve Kanade Suzutsuki and her family as a butler, which is a tradition for the males in her family. Thankfully, almost everyone around her doesn't realize her true gender and she proves to be a rather great butler. After Kinjiro discovers the truth, the two of them are tense at first, but end up becoming great friends.

Kinjiro helps her keep her secret from everyone even though most around them believe they’re boyfriends. Subaru is also a very capable fighter and able to defend herself despite her petite build.

6 Grell Sutcliffe (Black Butler)

While there are plenty of other great butlers from Black Butler, Grell is a very popular one and very iconic. She was Angelina Dalles’s butler and they worked together for a while. Grell is well-known for her flamboyant personality, but also quick to turn to violence. She and Sebastian often clash because of her way of taking out anything in her way.

As a butler, Grell is very ineffective at her job and unable to do the simplest tasks. However, she only posed as Angelina’s butler to avoid suspicion since she was breaking the Grim Reaper’s code of neutrality. Even though Grell isn’t good at being a butler, fans can’t help but love her.

5 Gotoh (Hunter X Hunter)

The head butler of the Zoldyck family is highly respected by them. Gotoh takes his duties very seriously, and he’s very strict when it comes to security even though the Zoldyck family are assassins. He’s even strict when it comes to secrecy, knowing full well of the dark business they’re a part of. Despite the grisly business that the Zoldyck family is in, Gotoh truly cares for Killua as if he were his own son.

Gotoh is also very strong and is an Enhancement Nen user, making him no ordinary butler. His use of coins is said to be more destructive than bullets and an expert in hand-to-hand combat.

4 Canary (Hunter X Hunter)

Canary has become pretty iconic being part of the small pool of amazing black anime characters and overall just a strong girl. She was able to take down a Blacklist Hunter and 100 of his men by herself when they attempted to go through her post. Canary was even able to keep Gon from trespassing onto Zoldyck property for hours. She’s not a heartless girl and Gon saw that, but Canary puts her duty as an apprentice butler first.

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However, her true loyalty is to Killua since he was very kind to her and wanted to be friends. So far it doesn’t seem like Canary has any Nen abilities or techniques, but she is strong on her own and has shown she is not one to mess with.

3 Walter C. Dornez (Hellsing Ultimate)

At first glance, Walter seems to fit the typical trope of being a nice old butler who serves their master and provides wisdom and advice to those around them. However, fans of Hellsing Ultimate know that Walter is one of the deadliest characters in the series. Aside from making weapons for Alucard and Seras, Walter is extremely lethal with his Monofilament Wires, very thin razor wires that are very hard to see even for vampires along with being able to cut through steel and concrete with little problem. His nickname is “The Angel of Death” and for good reason, having killed many people and undead in his youth.

Though he betrayed his Hellsing family near the end, Walter genuinely cared about Integra and Seras, and was furious when Alucard pointed out that he lost them. Walter even seemed to cherish his strange twisted friendship with Alucard to some extent. Even after his betrayal, Integra remembers him fondly after 30 years have passed and her aging appearance reminds her of him.

2 Watari (Death Note)

Considering that he was the true owner of Wammy’s House, it’s no surprise that Watari is able to handle L and all of his eccentricities. He is L’s handler and father figure to not only him, but to Mello, Matt, and Near. Watari founded the Wammy House for gifted children like them and made them into some of the best detectives in the world. He looks after L and his well-being, as well as helping him in his cases in various ways.

Watari also proves that his age doesn’t stop him from getting his hands dirty and shows that he’s a very proficient sniper. Before succumbing to his heart attack, Watari was able to follow L’s order to delete all information at the Task Force headquarters.

1 Sebastian Michaelis (Black Butler)

When it comes to butlers in the anime world, Sebastian is most likely the first one to come to mind. He’s obviously a lot more powerful than his master, Ciel Phantomhive, but he respectfully follows his orders. Sebastian isn’t just a demon being the head butler, but he’s also raising Ciel while also helping him seek revenge on the people responsible for his parents’ deaths.

Aside from making sure that the Phantomhive household runs smoothly, Sebastian is a very powerful demon that shouldn’t be taken lightly in battle. Under his butler facade, Sebastian is actually very sadistic and ruthless when fighting his enemies. He’ll even put Ciel in danger (that won’t kill him) just to amuse himself.

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