The magazine was changed to a monthly release schedule in July 2005, which remained its current cycle until it ceased publication in 2009.

With the demise of Newtype USA in February 2008, it was cited as the English-language anime magazine with the highest distribution and sales across North America.

The magazine began in 2001 as a one-shot special publication under the name Anime Invasion, but soon changed its name to avoid trademark infringement with another company's brand.

Factual column Coming Soon consists of licensing announcements and expected releases, while By the Numbers incorporates digits relating to Japanese culture, video game, and anime/manga headlines, and Con Job lists upcoming conventions by location and programming.

Entertainment columns within this section included Death of the Month (a character death from a selected series), Top Five (editors' praise for something related to anime culture), and Gratuitous Fanservice (a chosen pair of male and female characters designed to appeal to fans due to their appearances).

Animail, a combination of the words "anime" and "mail", was a section dedicated to answering questions submitted by readers.

Results from Anime Insider's monthly web-poll, reader comments, and selected fan art are posted here.

Five summarized a popular anime title debuting domestically that month by suggesting the top five reasons why viewers would enjoy this particular series/OVA/movie.

Each month, a new manga title scheduled to be released in America was previewed in Anime Insider, publishing a chapter from an upcoming volume.