5 Best Animated Movies Of 2026 So Far, Ranked

The first half of 2026 has already produced an unusually competitive animation slate. While there are certainly Disney animated movies that actually deserve a live-action remake, this year’s stellar lineup proves why audiences sometimes need a break from watching animation become live action. The medium is having far too good a year to keep treating realism as an automatic upgrade.

Pixar returned with both an original movie and another Toy Story sequel, Illumination sent Mario into space, and Sony Pictures Animation introduced a completely new sports universe. Even the Minions came back with something more inventive than their usual search for a villainous boss.

That variety makes this ranking more interesting than a simple contest between the year’s biggest franchises. Box office success matters, but popularity alone cannot determine the best animated movies of 2026. The strongest releases established a visual identity of their own while giving audiences a reason to care about the characters beneath all that spectacle.

Only animated features released in the United States by July 14, 2026, were considered. Taking storytelling, animation, emotional impact, and overall execution into account, these are the five best animated movies of 2026 so far.

5

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

Mario and Luigi leave the Mushroom Kingdom behind for a cosmic adventure that introduces Rosalina and Yoshi while dramatically expanding Illumination’s Nintendo universe. The sequel moves at the speed of someone frantically switching between levels, but its colorful galaxies and affectionate game references deliver the kind of big-screen spectacle most Mario fans came to see.

Critics were far less enthusiastic than audiences, largely because the story rarely slows down long enough to let its ideas or characters land. Still, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie became the first 2026 release to cross $1 billion worldwide. It earns fifth place as the year’s biggest animated crowd-pleaser, even if the movies above it offer more beneath the surface.

4

GOAT

Sony Pictures Animation’s GOAT follows Will Harris, a small goat with enormous ambitions who earns a place in roarball, a co-ed, full-contact sport dominated by much larger animals. Voiced by Caleb McLaughlin, Will enters the professional league as an obvious underdog and quickly learns that getting onto the team was only the beginning of proving he belongs there.

The basic sports-movie structure is familiar, but the world around it feels fresh. Director Tyree Dillihay and co-director Adam Rosette fill every match with movement while giving the animal athletes distinct playing styles based on their size and species. GOAT ranks above Mario because its visual invention supports a real character arc, though its predictable formula keeps it outside the top three.

3

Minions & Monsters

The Minions return without Gru for a ridiculous trip through Hollywood history. Pierre Coffin’s movie follows the yellow troublemakers as they become movie stars, lose everything, and accidentally unleash monsters while trying to rebuild their careers. Its strongest stretch sends them into silent-era Hollywood, where classic filmmaking becomes the setup for one elaborate slapstick routine after another.

Minions & Monsters is far smarter about cinema than anyone could reasonably expect from this franchise (opening-weekend numbers aside). Its old-Hollywood references give adults something to enjoy without interrupting the physical comedy aimed at children. The second half becomes more crowded once the monsters take over, but this affectionate sendup of moviemaking is still one of the Minions’ funniest and most surprising adventures.

2

Toy Story 5

Pixar once again risks reopening a story that already appeared to have a perfect ending. This time, the toys face Lilypad, Bonnie’s new tablet and a threat they cannot defeat by staging another rescue mission. Woody returns to help Buzz when Jessie and Bullseye go missing, r, reuniting the old friends against a problem created by the way childhood itself has changed.

Toy Story 5 works because its technology theme grows naturally from the franchise’s oldest fear: what happens when children stop needing their toys? The movie finds plenty of humor in the toys’ confusion without treating that question lightly, and the emotional character work holds up against Pixar’s best sequels. It misses first place only because 2026’s top animated movie built something entirely new.

1

Hoppers

Hoppers begins with one of Pixar’s strangest premises. Animal lover Mabel transfers her consciousness into a robotic beaver so she can communicate with wildlife and stop a development project from destroying their habitat. Once inside the animal world, she discovers that nature is far messier than the idealized version she thought she was protecting—and the beavers have plans of their own.

Director Daniel Chong turns that absurd setup into Pixar’s sharpest original comedy in years. The environmental message never feels like homework because the animals are allowed to be selfish, territorial, and genuinely hilarious. Hoppers takes the largest creative swing on this list and lands it, making a completely original movie feel every bit as essential as Pixar’s most dependable franchise.