Fanfiction Websites: The Definitive List (to Explore in 2023)

For those who enjoy television series or movies that have strong, identifiable characters, the experience of watching such programs over and over again can be quite limiting. After all, only so many stories can be produced by their creators. And despite their best efforts, they can only produce a limited amount of work. With so many fans yearning for more, this is where the world of fanfiction and the top fanfiction websites come in to provide a greater variety of stories.

What is Fanfiction?

This is essentially fiction which is based on a previous work. For example, a popular television series may produce a number of fan-written stories based on the characters, setting, and situations. Fanfiction reflects the view of the fan who writes the material. This means that they create stories based on movies, television series, and other programs. Although based on other material, fanfiction can be quite original in terms of how the stories are put together. Plus, it’s not uncommon to see different works and even genres come together in a fanfiction story. It should be noted that fanfiction is mostly free with the writers receiving no recompense for their work which is based on the love or enjoyment of the original work. The best place to find such stories are on fanfiction sites.

What are Fanfiction Websites?

For the most part, a good fanfiction website is a collection point for fanfiction stories that can be shared and read by others. This allows the fanfiction authors to show their work and let others enjoy the stories that they have created. Some sites are specific to a genre or even a single television or movie series while others may be more generic in nature, combining different genres and series into a single location. The best fanfiction websites have a substantial history and offer high quality work from authors who have a deep love of the original material.

Many fanfiction sites are free and do not charge to read the material that has been submitted by fans. There may be some which have you join the site formally. And most have submission guidelines to allow you to create and publish your fanfiction on their website. For many, fanfiction sites are an outlet for their works that otherwise would not see the light of day. While most fanfiction is free, there are those who earn profits from the works that they produce.

Most Popular Fanfiction Websites

There are hundreds of good fanfiction sites across the internet. However, they do vary in quality depending on the submissions by authors. Driven by a love of the genre, you’ll find many works from a surprising number of sources. This is because fanfiction is only limited by the fans themselves. This means that you’ll find works on many different subjects, some you may not expect.

What follows are the top fanfiction websites for 2022. If you are searching for high quality work, these are the sites to visit.

1. Archive of Our Own

Because this site is non-profit, there are no ads which makes this a very popular place to visit. You’ll find a large variety of topics that range from the standard serialized movies and television shows to groups such as One Direction. The wide variety helps make Archive of Our Own or AO3 as it is often called a place that many people come to regularly to find good quality fanfiction.

2. AsianFanfics

Despite its title, this website is in English and offers many different fanfiction subjects based on the characters, topics, and genres popular in Asian culture. Founded as Winglin in 2009, AsianFanfics offers one of the largest libraries of Asian-based fanfiction on the net. With over 220,000 stories and nearly a half-million readers, much of the success of AsianFanfics is due to the variety of fanfiction it provides. From short stories to full-length novels, this is one of the best fanfiction websites you can find.

3. deviantART

One of the more unusual popular fanfiction websites as it is based in the visual arts. Founded in 2000, deviantART boasts nearly 250 million submissions of artwork with 140,000 being uploaded daily. The 25 million visitors compromise the audience for this remarkable fanfiction site which covers a wide range of subjects such as drama, horror, humor, general fiction, science fiction, and romance. What makes deviantART unique is the emphasis on fan art along with the stories. This includes many comic books as well which cover a wide range of topics.

4. Fanfiction

Without a doubt the largest and arguably most popular fanfiction websites, Fanfiction was established in 1998 and has been growing strong ever since. With over 2 million users, the site offers stories submitted by authors around the world in more than 30 different languages. What makes Fanfiction so impressive is the breadth of stories presented on their site. From movies to manga, TV, musicals, comics, games, and more, Fanfiction is a must for anyone who loves such work and is the perfect place to publish your own fanfiction.

5. Harry Potter Fanfiction

One of the top fanfiction websites that is limited to one subject, the Harry Potter Fanfiction site boasts over 80,000 stories. Based on the adventures of Harry Potter from the books by J.K. Rowling, you can find all sorts of fanfiction based on the characters and setting of Harry Potter’s world. What makes this site special is that the quality of the stories are ensured by the site owners, so that you only read the fanfiction that meets certain standards. Plus, the annual awards encourage even better writing which makes this a fantastic site for the Harry Potter fan.

6. Internet Archive

Created in 1996, the Internet Archive is not strictly a fanfiction website, but because of its sheer size in collecting materials, it has become a popular location for all types of fanfiction. The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library that offers books, texts, video, and audio for free. Visitors can not only download materials they can upload them as well. Much of what you find here is in the public domain, but there are over 500 works that within the genre of fanfiction.

7. K-Pop Fanfiction

The world of Korean Pop or K-Pop is quite popular around the world, so it’s little wonder that the music genre produces a considerable amount of fanfiction. The stories revolve around the many popular K-pop artists and groups and includes tales of action, adventure, romance, and comedy. For many K-pop fans, the fanfiction produced offers a simple, effective way to experience their favorite artists and groups in a different format that is quite compelling.

8. Kindle Worlds

With the popularity of fanfiction growing by the day, it was not surprising that Amazon jump in with both feet in 2013 to create Kindle Worlds. Unlike many other top fanfiction websites, Kindle Worlds offers a way for authors to actually receive money from their works. This is because Amazon owns the rights to licensing many original stories and genres, so that a fanfiction author can earn money and publish their work without fear of any legal issues. This means that the fanfiction you write and submitted to Kindle Worlds may be the start of a second income stream. But as a reader, you will have to pay from .99 up to $3.99 to read the work.

Update: In August 2018, Amazon shut down the Kindle Worlds website.

9. Quotev

Another highly popular fanfiction site, Quotev offers many different serialized novels and stories based on original works. However, it’s also a fun site with plenty of polls, surveys, and quizzes that keeps visitors entertained when not searching for their favorite works. As with the Fanfiction site, Quotev offers different categories that include fantasy, science fiction, anime, manga, and so much more. This allows for easy navigation to find the works that you want.

10. Wattpad

With over 10 million readers a month, Wattpad is one of the best fanfiction websites that caters to a large, diverse crowd. The popularity of Wattpad is due in part to so many works being free for readers to enjoy along with the accessibility of the site itself. You can view Wattpad from any number of mobile devices, meaning you can enjoy fanfiction when on the road or anywhere that you have a connection to the internet.

It should be noted that the 10 sites listed here provide a legally recognized outlet for fanfiction to be displayed. However, unless the site itself has permission from the original authors or originators of the work, such as Kindle Works, then it is not legal to sell fanfiction. For fanfiction authors, this means submitting material for profit should only be done on sites that have the proper licensing.

For those who want to view the best fanfiction websites, it begins with the aforementioned sites in this article. You should look for the subject or genre that captures your interest and locate it on the good fanfiction websites that have solid submission standards. It is such standards that separates the poor quality sites from the popular fanfiction websites that emphasize quality to their audience.