I grew up on cartoons about teenagers, and I still go back to them as an adult, which probably says something about me. There is a specific magic to a good teen cartoon. It takes the most awkward, dramatic, identity-scrambling years of your life and turns them into something funny, or epic, or both.
Here is the short answer if you just want names. The best teenage cartoon characters include Daria Morgendorffer, Doug Funnie, Kim Possible, Danny Phantom, Steven Universe, Luz Noceda, and the mall crew from 6teen. The longer, better answer is below, with 20 shows worth your time.
I wanted this list to do a couple of things most roundups skip. I put the creator and the actual canon age right next to each character, because half the fun is realizing how many of these “teens” are secretly 12. And I dug up the trivia I personally find interesting: who voiced them, which shows quietly made history, and which ones got cut short before their time.
20 Best Teenage Cartoon Characters and the Shows They Star In
A quick note before we start. Ages in cartoons are slippery. Some characters start at 12 and end up 17, some never age at all, and some studios never bothered to say. I went with the canon age where one exists and the best average where it does not.
Daria (1997-2002)
Created by Glenn Eichler and Susie Lewis. Aired 1997 to 2002. Daria Morgendorffer, around 16 to 17.
Daria is my personal favorite on this entire list, so I am putting her first and I will not apologize. She is the patron saint of every smart kid who used sarcasm as a force field. Dropped into the shallow suburb of Lawndale, she narrates the absurdity around her with a flat voice and a raised eyebrow, and somehow that deadpan makes her more relatable than any peppy protagonist ever could.
Beavis and Butt-Head (1993-1997, 2011, 2022)
Created by Mike Judge. Aired 1993 to 1997, with revivals in 2011 and 2022. Beavis and Butt-Head, mid-teens (around 15).
Two heavy-metal burnouts sit on a couch, roast music videos, and fail at basic life. That is the whole show, and it is smarter than it pretends to be. Mike Judge, who later gave us King of the Hill, Office Space, and Idiocracy, built a sharp satire of slacker culture and disguised it as the dumbest thing on television. The trick is that the boys never learn a single thing, and that is the joke.
Clone High (2002-2003, revived 2023-2024)
Created by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Bill Lawrence. Aired 2002 to 2003, revived 2023 to 2024. Teen clones, around 17.
The premise is perfect: a high school secretly populated by teenage clones of historical figures, so Abe Lincoln pines after Joan of Arc while JFK swaggers around and Gandhi causes chaos. It comes from Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the duo behind Spider-Verse and The Lego Movie, which tells you how sharp the writing is.
The Owl House (2020-2023)
Created by Dana Terrace. Aired 2020 to 2023. Luz Noceda, 14.
Luz is a weird, fantasy-obsessed kid who stumbles through a portal into the Boiling Isles and decides to become a witch despite having zero magic of her own. The show is funny and strange and genuinely moving, and Sarah-Nicole Robles gives Luz this earnest, slightly chaotic energy that makes you root for her instantly.
Doug (1991-1994, 1996-1999)
Created by Jim Jinkins. Aired 1991 to 1994 on Nickelodeon, then 1996 to 1999 on Disney. Doug Funnie, 11 to 12.
I will be straight with you: Doug is the youngest on this list and technically a tween, not a teen. But the daily-journal narration, the elaborate Quailman daydreams, and the hopeless crush on Patti Mayonnaise capture that just-before-teenager feeling so well that I am keeping him here. Fun fact worth knowing: Doug was voiced by Billy West, the same guy who later played Fry on Futurama. The two date ranges exist because Disney bought the show and relaunched it as Brand Spanking New Doug.
As Told by Ginger (2000-2006)
Created by Emily Kapnek. Aired 2000 to 2006. Ginger Foutley, around 12.
This is one of the most underrated shows on the list. Ginger is a thoughtful middle schooler navigating the brutal social hierarchy of adolescence, and the series treats that hierarchy with real emotional weight instead of cheap gags. It was ahead of its time on the “kids’ cartoon that takes feelings seriously” front. Creator Emily Kapnek later went on to make the live-action sitcom Suburgatory.
The Life and Times of Tim (2008-2012)
Created by Steve Dildarian. Aired 2008 to 2012. Tim, a grown adult (the odd one out).
Confession: Tim is not a teenager at all. He is a mild-mannered office guy who keeps stumbling into mortifying situations. He snuck onto the original version of this list, and I am leaving him because the flavor of awkwardness is identical to the teenage kind. The deliberately crude, almost frozen animation and the deadpan delivery make the cringe land twice as hard.
The Legend of Tarzan (2001-2003)
Based on Edgar Rice Burroughs, developed by Walt Disney Television Animation. Aired 2001 to 2003. A young-adult Tarzan, around 18.
This was Disney’s TV continuation of its 1999 Tarzan film, following a young Tarzan as he protects his jungle and figures out who he is between two worlds. It leans more action-adventure than the rest of this list, but the coming-of-age core is right there, just with more vine-swinging and lush backgrounds than your average high school cartoon.
Kim Possible (2002-2007)
Created by Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle. Aired 2002 to 2007. Kim Possible, 16.
Cheerleader and homework by day, world-saving secret agent by night. Kim was a genuinely great role model, capable and confident without ever being a cardboard cutout, and her dynamic with bumbling sidekick Ron Stoppable carried the whole thing. Christy Carlson Romano voiced Kim, the catchy “Call Me, Beep Me” theme was sung by Christina Milian, and yes, the name is a pun on “impossible.” Nothing is.
The Spectacular Spider-Man (2008-2009)
Developed by Greg Weisman and Victor Cook. Aired 2008 to 2009. Peter Parker, 16.
Ask longtime Spider-Man fans for the best animated version and a lot of them will point straight here. It absolutely nails the balancing act at the heart of the character: the homework, the crushes, the part-time job, and the small problem of being a costumed crime fighter. Watching Peter juggle being a stressed high school student and a hero is the whole appeal, and it got cut down far too soon.
Steven Universe (2013-2020)
Created by Rebecca Sugar. Aired 2013 to 2019 (plus a 2019 movie and 2019-2020 epilogue). Steven, starts around 14.
Steven is a half-human, half-alien kid raised by a team of magical guardians called the Crystal Gems, and the show’s whole personality is that it values emotional intelligence over punching. It is patient, musical, and quietly radical about how it handles love and identity. Zach Callison voices Steven, who is named after creator Rebecca Sugar’s real younger brother.
Unsupervised (2012)
Created by David Hornsby, Scott Marder, and Rob Rosell. Aired 2012. Gary and Joel, 15.
A one-and-done series about two relentlessly optimistic teenagers basically raising themselves in a world strangely short on competent adults. It comes from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia folks, including David Hornsby, who plays Rickety Cricket on that show, so the humor is warmer than you would expect but still has bite. It deserved more than one season.
Danny Phantom (2004-2007)
Created by Butch Hartman. Aired 2004 to 2007. Danny Fenton, 14.
A lab accident in his ghost-hunting parents’ basement leaves Danny half-ghost, and now he has to fight spooks while surviving ninth grade. Butch Hartman, who also made The Fairly OddParents, gave it a snappy sense of humor and a great hook. David Kaufman voiced Danny, and the fandom has kept this show alive and loud for nearly two decades.
The Amazing World of Gumball (2011-2019)
Created by Ben Bocquelet. Aired 2011 to 2019. Gumball Watterson, 12.
Another tween rather than teen, but I am not leaving out a show this inventive on a technicality. Gumball is a blue cat, his brother Darwin is a goldfish who grew legs, and the town of Elmore mashes together every animation style at once on purpose. There is a perfect bit of behind-the-scenes irony here too: Gumball had to be recast more than once because the child actors voicing him kept hitting puberty and losing the voice, which is a very fitting problem for a show about growing up.
Star vs. the Forces of Evil (2015-2019)
Created by Daron Nefcy. Aired 2015 to 2019. Star Butterfly, 14.
A magical princess from another dimension gets shipped off to Earth and crash-lands into a normal family, befriending the wonderfully patient Marco. It is colorful and chaotic on the surface and surprisingly thoughtful about growing up underneath. Daron Nefcy was one of the first women to create a series for Disney Television Animation, and you can feel that fresh perspective in Star vs. the Forces of Evil throughout.
Gravity Falls (2012-2016)
Created by Alex Hirsch. Aired 2012 to 2016. Dipper and Mabel Pines, 12 (they turn 13 in the finale).
Twins spend the summer with their schemer great-uncle Stan in a town stuffed with supernatural secrets, and the result is one of the tightest, most rewatchable mystery cartoons ever made. The mix of real heart, genuine scares, and buried codes hooks kids and adults equally.
Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005-2008)
Created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. Aired 2005 to 2008. Aang is 12 (technically 112), the rest of the gang run 14 to 16.
The gold standard, and I will fight anyone who says otherwise. American-made but deeply anime-influenced, Avatar takes a young Airbender on a journey to save a war-torn world, and along the way it tells one of the best-written stories in any medium, animated or not. The characters age and change in ways most shows never bother with. If you somehow have not seen it, fix that.
Big Mouth (2017-2025)
Created by Nick Kroll, Andrew Goldberg, Mark Levin, and Jennifer Flackett. Aired 2017 to 2025. The kids are seventh graders, around 12 to 13.
Big Mouth turns puberty into a full-blown horror comedy, complete with Hormone Monsters who whisper terrible advice into kids’ ears. It is raunchy and gross and weirdly tender, and it tackles adult-aimed subject matter that most shows about this age group are too squeamish to touch.
My Life as a Teenage Robot (2003-2009)
Created by Rob Renzetti. Aired 2003 to 2009. Jenny (XJ-9), built to be about 16.
Jenny Wakeman is a crime-fighting robot built with the heart and hang-ups of a teenage girl, and all she really wants is a normal high school life between saving the world. The retro-futuristic art style is gorgeous, and the central tension, wanting to belong while being fundamentally different, is the most teenage thing imaginable. Janice Kawaye voices Jenny and gives her real warmth. A great pick from the cartoon robots shelf.
6teen (2004-2010)
Created by Jennifer Pertsch and Tom McGillis. Aired 2004 to 2010. All six friends are 16.
Six friends, one giant mall, and their first part-time jobs. 6teen gets the texture of being a broke teenager exactly right: the bad food-court shifts, the crushes, the drama of having a little money for the first time. The ensemble is genuinely funny, and it holds up better than a lot of its era.
Cartoon Characters That Are Teenagers (With Ages)
Since I am obsessed with the age question, here is a bigger reference list of cartoon teens and tweens with their ages and birthdays where the show actually gave us one. A heads up: ages can shift between adaptations or comic versions, and plenty of characters never got an official birthday at all.
A few of these start at 12 and end the series at 17, 18, or 19, so I went with the average across the run unless the studio said otherwise.
- Korra – 17 years old – The Legend of Korra – Born 153 AG (After Genocide)
- Steven Universe – 14 years old – Steven Universe – Born August 15th
- Dipper Pines – 12 years old – Gravity Falls – Born August 31st
- Mabel Pines – 12 years old – Gravity Falls – Born August 31st
- Star Butterfly – 14 years old – Star vs. the Forces of Evil – Born November 28th
- Marco Diaz – 14 years old – Star vs. the Forces of Evil – Born November 28th
- Kim Possible – 16 years old – Kim Possible – Born October 2nd
- Ron Stoppable – 16 years old – Kim Possible – Born October 1st
- Danny Fenton / Danny Phantom – 14 years old – Danny Phantom – Born June 8th
- Jenny Wakeman / XJ-9 – equivalent to a 16-year-old human – My Life as a Teenage Robot – Activated August 1st
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (4 characters) – 15 years old – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles a. Leonardo b. Donatello c. Raphael d. Michelangelo
- Peter Parker / Spider-Man – 16 years old – The Spectacular Spider-Man – Born October 14th
- Robin / Tim Drake – 14 years old – Young Justice – Born July 19th
- Terra Markov / Terra – 16 years old – Teen Titans – Birthday not available
- Morty Smith – 14 years old – Rick and Morty – Birthday not available
- Summer Smith – 17 years old – Rick and Morty – Birthday not available
- Finn the Human – 17 years old – Adventure Time – Born March 14th
- Jake Long – 14 years old – American Dragon: Jake Long – Birthday not available
- Raven Roth / Raven – 16 years old – Teen Titans – Birthday not available
- Enid – 16 years old – OK K.O.! Let’s Be Heroes – Birthday not available
- Ben Tennyson – 15 years old – Ben 10 – Birthday not available
- Beast Boy / Garfield Logan – 15 years old – Teen Titans – Birthday not available
- Starfire / Koriand’r – 16 years old – Teen Titans – Birthday not available
- Cyborg / Victor Stone – 17 years old – Teen Titans – Birthday not available
- Kid Flash / Wally West – 15 years old – Young Justice – Birthday not available
- Miss Martian / M’gann M’orzz – 16 years old (human age equivalent) – Young Justice – Birthday not available
- Superboy / Conner Kent – 16 years old – Young Justice – Birthday not available
- Anne Boonchuy – 13 years old – Amphibia – Birthday not available
- Luz Noceda – 14 years old – The Owl House – Birthday not available
- Ulrich Stern – 14 years old – Code Lyoko – Birthday not available
That is my run through the best teenage cartoon characters, from the deadpan icon to the historical clones to the robot girl who just wants to fit in. The thing they share is honest: they take the messiest years of life and make them feel a little less lonely, even when they are dressed up as witches, ghosts, or superheroes.
Now I want to hear yours. Who is the teen cartoon character that meant the most to you, and did I leave anyone obvious off the list? Tell me in the comments.
