Japan Manga Market Shrinks for First Time Since 2017
The data signals that digital manga growth can no longer reliably compensate for print declines, forcing publishers to confront a shrinking overall market for the first time in nearly a decade.
Reporting from 1 sources: Animenomics.
Japan's domestic manga market contracted in 2025 for the first time in eight years, according to data from the Research Institute for Publications. The market shrank by 1.7 percent to an estimated ¥693 billion (US$4.45 billion). Print manga volume sales fell 14.4 percent, and manga magazine sales dropped 12.7 percent. Digital manga grew only 2.9 percent, pushing its market share to 76.1 percent of total sales, exceeding three-quarters for the first time. The slowdown in digital growth in the second half of the year meant it could no longer offset the decline in print. Manga's combined share of Japan's broader publishing market held steady at 44.8 percent. Titles with popular anime adaptations, such as Kodansha's Medalist and The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity, sold well, but no title matched the sales levels of My Hero Academia, Jujutsu Kaisen, or Oshi no Ko, all of which ended publication in 2024. Despite falling revenue, publishers released over 16,000 new manga volumes in 2025, the largest annual increase since 2008. Convenience stores continued to reduce shelf space for books and magazines, further pressuring print sales.
The Research Institute for Publications, a unit of the All Japan Magazine and Book Publishers and Editors Association, compiled the data. The 1.7 percent decline in the domestic manga market to ¥693 billion marks the first contraction since 2017. Print manga volume sales fell 14.4 percent, while manga magazines dropped 12.7 percent. Digital manga grew just 2.9 percent, bringing its share to 76.1 percent of total sales, the first time it has exceeded three-quarters. Manga's combined share of Japan's broader publishing market remained at 44.8 percent.
Manga titles with popular anime adaptations like Medalist and The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity, both from Kodansha, sold well, but no title approached the sales levels of My Hero Academia, Jujutsu Kaisen, or Oshi no Ko, all of which ended publication in 2024. Manga magazine sales suffered as convenience stores continued to reduce shelf space for books and magazines. Despite falling revenue, publishers released over 16,000 new manga volumes in 2025, the largest annual increase since 2008.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.