Shoto was the fourth student in Class 1-A to be created by Horikoshi, following Izuku Midoriya, Katsuki Bakugo, and Ochaco Uraraka.

[2] In the series' anime adaptation, Shoto is voiced by Yuki Kaji in Japanese and David Matranga in English.

The injury caused a scar around his left eye, and negatively affected both Shoto's mental health and his feelings towards his father, alienating himself from his peers.

[8] Shoto has consistently ranked in the top three in popularity polls for the series alongside Izuku Midoriya and Katsuki Bakugo.

[9][10] In Tumblr's top anime and manga characters, Shoto ranked third behind Izuku and Katsuki in 2019;[11] he was seventh in 2020;[12] and eighth in 2021.

[23] Daniel Kurland from Den of Geek also offered some praise, stating that Shoto was one of the coolest characters of the series.

[24] The Anime UK News reviewer praised the character, as well as his voice actor in both the original Japanese and English dubbed versions.

[25] Princess Weekes and Briana Lawrence of The Mary Sue also offered praise for Shoto, specifically for his character development and personality.

[26][27] Brittney Hemmands of Comic Book Resources felt that Shoto became less likeable as the series progressed.