Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 Is Out. Here Is How to Read the Manga Ahead of Every Episode

The Culling Game arc is airing on Crunchyroll right now. If you can’t wait a week between episodes, here’s exactly where and how to read the JJK manga ahead of the anime.

Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 premiered on January 9, 2026 with a one-hour special on Crunchyroll, and it has been dominating the conversation every single week since. Guinness World Records has named it the world’s most popular animated series, and the Season 3 premiere drew 1.2 million concurrent viewers. Nine episodes deep into the Culling Game arc, the weekly wait between episodes is genuinely painful.

The good news is you don’t have to wait. The manga is already finished at 271 chapters, so everything the anime hasn’t reached yet is sitting there ready to read. You can be entire arcs ahead in a single afternoon.

Here’s the complete guide to reading the Jujutsu Kaisen manga legally in 2026, including what to do if the official platforms don’t support your language.

Where JJK Season 3 Is Right Now and Where to Pick Up in the Manga

Season 3, titled The Culling Game Part 1, is adapting the Itadori’s Extermination, Perfect Preparation, and Culling Game story arcs from the manga. The season runs 12 episodes total with the Part 1 finale confirmed for March 26, 2026. New episodes drop every Thursday at 9:00 AM PT on Crunchyroll. Episode 10 airs March 12, Episode 11 on March 19, and the finale on March 26.

Part 2 hasn’t been given an official date yet, but the full season is expected to run 24 to 26 episodes total based on how much of the manga remains to adapt.

If you want to jump ahead of where the anime currently is, start from around Chapter 145 in the manga. That puts you at the beginning of the Culling Game proper and well ahead of any episode that has aired. From there it’s roughly 126 chapters until the end of the series at Chapter 271.

If you finished Season 2 and want to start from the very beginning of where Season 3 picks up, start from Chapter 137 and read straight through. Fair warning: the manga covers events and reveals that the anime hasn’t touched yet. If you’re not ready for spoilers, pace yourself. If you need to know right now, read on.

Where to Read the Jujutsu Kaisen Manga Legally

There are two official platforms where you can read JJK legally and both are worth knowing about.

MANGA Plus by Shueisha (Free)

MANGA Plus is the official free platform run by Shueisha, the publisher behind Jujutsu Kaisen. It’s available in most countries worldwide and gives you free access to the first 3 and latest 3 chapters of every ongoing series. Since JJK has already concluded, a larger portion of the archive is available at no cost.

MANGA Plus supports English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Thai, Indonesian, Russian, and several other languages. If your language is on that list, this is the best free place to start.

VIZ Media Shonen Jump ($2.99 per month)

VIZ Media’s Shonen Jump subscription gives you full access to all 271 chapters of Jujutsu Kaisen in professionally translated English for $2.99 per month. For anyone who wants to binge from the beginning or read straight through the Culling Game and everything after, this is the most complete option at a very low price.

VIZ also lets you preview up to 60 pages per volume without a credit card, so you can try it before subscribing.

What If the Manga Isn’t Available in Your Language?

Here’s where things get complicated for a lot of readers. MANGA Plus isn’t available in Japan, China, and South Korea. And even where it is available, its language selection doesn’t cover every country. Readers across parts of Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Latin America may find their native language isn’t supported.

VIZ is mostly focused on the English-speaking market, which doesn’t help readers who prefer their first language.

If you’re in this situation, you’re not out of options. The raw Japanese chapters are always the first to release, and with an AI manga translator you can read them in your language almost as soon as they drop.

The image below shows how the AI manga translator translated the official English translation into German.

Reading the Raw Japanese Manga With AI Translation

The raw Japanese chapters of Jujutsu Kaisen are available on official Japanese digital platforms. If you want to read them in your own language without waiting for an official localization, an AI manga translator handles this directly on the page without any manual work on your end.

Madomi is a real-time manga translator by Pawaka Labs that works as a browser extension on Chrome and Firefox and as a native app on Android and iOS. Open any raw manga chapter, activate Madomi, and it reads the Japanese text inside every speech bubble using OCR built specifically for manga fonts, then overlays the translation in your chosen language directly on the page as you scroll. No screenshots and no switching apps.

Rated 4.8 out of 5 stars from 383 Chrome Web Store ratings with 20,000+ users, it’s the highest-rated manga translator extension on the Chrome Web Store. The free plan gives you free credits every month, with each translated image costing 1 credit. For readers who want to binge through chapters with no limits, Madomi Premium will cover that for you.

So if the official translation doesn’t cover your language or your region, this is the most practical way to read the JJK manga right now.

How Far Ahead Is the Manga Compared to the Anime?

The manga is fully complete at 271 chapters. Season 3 Part 1 is wrapping up around Chapter 160 to 170, meaning there are over 100 chapters of story the anime hasn’t touched yet. Rumors based on a leaked episode title suggest Part 1 ends at the Sendai Colony arc.

Part 2 has no confirmed release date. If you want to know how the Culling Game ends, who survives the Shinjuku Showdown, and how the entire series concludes, that story is all in the manga waiting for you right now.

Reading ahead also changes how you watch the anime. You catch the foreshadowing and the small details that casual viewers miss entirely. A lot of JJK fans say the manga made them appreciate the anime adaptation even more.

Quick Start Guide: How to Read JJK Manga Right Now

If English works for you:

Go to MANGA Plus (mangaplus.shueisha.co.jp) for free access to select chapters
Or subscribe to VIZ Shonen Jump at $2.99 per month for all 271 chapters

If you want to read in your native language:

Check MANGA Plus to see if your language is supported
If not, install Madomi on Chrome, Firefox, Android, or iOS
Open any raw Japanese chapter and activate Madomi
Read the translation directly on the page in your language

Frequently Asked Questions

Is JJK Season 3 on Netflix?

JJK Season 3 streams exclusively on Crunchyroll for most of the world. Only some regions have the license to stream JJK Season 3 on Netflix.

How many episodes is JJK Season 3?

Season 3 is expected to run 24 to 26 episodes total split into two parts. Part 1 runs 12 episodes and wraps on March 26, 2026. Part 2 hasn’t been given an official date yet. The remaining schedule for Part 1 is Episode 10 on March 12, Episode 11 on March 19, and the finale on March 26.

Is the JJK manga finished?

Yes. Gege Akutami completed Jujutsu Kaisen in 2024. The manga ran for 271 chapters across 30 collected volumes. The full story is available to read right now.

Can I read JJK manga in languages other than English?

MANGA Plus offers the manga in several languages including Spanish, French, Portuguese, Thai, Indonesian, and Russian. If your language isn’t supported on official platforms, you can use Madomi to read the raw Japanese chapters translated into your own language directly on the page.

Where do I start reading the manga if I have watched Season 2?

Start from Chapter 137 to pick up right where Season 2 left off after the Shibuya Incident. From there it’s around 134 chapters until the end of the series.

Don’t Wait for the Anime to Catch Up

Part 2 of Season 3 has no release date, and the manga is done. Start reading on MANGA Plus or VIZ today, and if you need it in your language, Madomi has you covered.

The Culling Game doesn’t wait. Neither should you.