Solo Leveling vs Tower of God: Which Manhwa Should You Read First in 2026?

Solo Leveling and Tower of God are the two manhwa that everyone has heard of and almost no one explains the actual differences between. We get this question constantly. Here is the version we wish someone had given us.

What they are, briefly

Solo Leveling is Chugong's 2018 webnovel adaptation, illustrated by Dubu (REDICE Studio), which finished its main run in 2021 at 179 chapters. The story follows Sung Jin-Woo, a weak hunter who gains the unique ability to level up. It is a power fantasy with extremely satisfying art and tight pacing.

Tower of God is Lee Jong-hwi's (SIU's) ongoing webtoon, started in 2010, currently past 600 chapters and showing no sign of ending. The protagonist Bam climbs a mysterious tower to find his friend Rachel. The story is dense, slow, and famously hostile to new readers.

Which one should you read first?

Solo Leveling. Not even close.

Solo Leveling is finished, paced like a thriller, and built for momentum reading. You can finish the whole series in two long weekends. The art is among the best the medium has produced and the power fantasy hits.

Tower of God is a commitment. The first 78 chapters (Season 1) are the most accessible stretch and end at a satisfying break point. Past that, the story expands into hundreds of characters and a worldbuilding density that genuinely requires note-taking. It is a fantastic series and one of the most ambitious in manhwa, but it is not a starter.

Where each one is strongest

Solo Leveling: art and progression

Dubu's panel work is the high-water mark for action manhwa. The dungeon raids, the shadow army reveals, and the late-arc fight sequences are drawn at a level that has visibly raised expectations across the entire industry.

Tower of God: scale and worldbuilding

SIU's world is one of the most ambitious in the medium. The tower's political structure, the Floor system, the FUG faction, and the long-arc plotting reward patient reading in a way Solo Leveling never tries to.

Where each one is weakest

Solo Leveling: character depth

Sung Jin-Woo is a fantastic power-fantasy lead but not a complex character. The supporting cast is functional rather than developed. The series is doing a specific thing extremely well; it is not trying to do everything.

Tower of God: accessibility and pacing

After Season 1, the series fragments into multiple ongoing storylines that often run in parallel for hundreds of chapters before reconverging. New readers regularly drop off during Season 2's 20-Month Workshop arc.

Adaptations

Solo Leveling's A-1 Pictures anime aired in 2024 and a confirmed second season. The adaptation is faithful and well-received. Tower of God's Telecom Animation Film adaptation in 2020 covered Season 1; further seasons have been announced but in a less stable production status.