I've been stewing on this post for a while, but RL and excitement at MU got in the way. Finally I have time! This post is mostly going to be about Japanese websites, but I'll throw in the few English websites I know about first.
English websites
Mangabox --
This is the newest free manga websites. As of now it hosts manga from Kodansha JP (not the same as Kodansha USA). New titles and chapters are available multiple times a week. The translation quality is generally good. The title that are available now are shounen and seinen. Here are the series that interested me:
Crunchyroll --
This site has a paid option and a free option, and as of now, only has Kodansha JP shounen and seinen titles. If you can't afford to pay, then you can only read the latest chapter of the titles they have available. The backlog will not be available. There are many popular shounen titles available like "Attack on Titan" (the back catalog is not available for subscribers), "Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches", and "The Seven Deadly Sins". I have a subscription to the service, but none of the current titles interest me. The translation quality on this site varies.
Various --
All of the US manga publishers have some sort of mobile app, flash-based browser viewer, or presence in online bookstores. In the apps and on the websites the first chapters of all of the series are free to read.
Japanese Websites
This is only a listing of the few Japanese websites I visit often. I'm sure there are many more. Most of these websites have both PC and mobile versions of their readers.
English websites
Mangabox --
This is the newest free manga websites. As of now it hosts manga from Kodansha JP (not the same as Kodansha USA). New titles and chapters are available multiple times a week. The translation quality is generally good. The title that are available now are shounen and seinen. Here are the series that interested me:
- District Hakkenshi [T-8]
- Araidoki
- The Chronicle of Ayoka
Crunchyroll --
This site has a paid option and a free option, and as of now, only has Kodansha JP shounen and seinen titles. If you can't afford to pay, then you can only read the latest chapter of the titles they have available. The backlog will not be available. There are many popular shounen titles available like "Attack on Titan" (the back catalog is not available for subscribers), "Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches", and "The Seven Deadly Sins". I have a subscription to the service, but none of the current titles interest me. The translation quality on this site varies.
Various --
All of the US manga publishers have some sort of mobile app, flash-based browser viewer, or presence in online bookstores. In the apps and on the websites the first chapters of all of the series are free to read.
Japanese Websites
This is only a listing of the few Japanese websites I visit often. I'm sure there are many more. Most of these websites have both PC and mobile versions of their readers.
- Polaris Comics -- SHOUJO!!!! But not typical shoujo. Polaris has a variety of shoujo series and oneshots, most of which I've been loving. I have been buying the tankoubons as they come out. This is where "Kisu ni Renzoku" runs.
- Comic Meteor -- This is primarily shounen (it's like Polaris' twin brother), but most of the series would also appeal to females.
- Hana to Yume Online -- Lots of shoujo favorites are there like "Ojikoi". There are also early chapters of many popular Hana to Yume and The Hana to Yume series.
- Lala Melody Online -- This has original and content that has also appeared in Lala, Lala DX, Ane Lala and Melody magazines. Right now, there are some nice oneshots to read.
