Daniel Slotta
Research expert covering Greater China
Social media usage in Japan - statistics and facts
Within the Japanese social media landscape, the messaging app LINE stands out as the most widely adopted service. The app was released in June 2011 as a response to the Great East Japan Earthquake that had disrupted conventional communication channels in affected areas and made an alternative form of communication necessary. LINE proved an instant hit and recorded 18 million registered users in Japan by June 2012, just one year after its release. Part of its appeal were cute and customizable stickers that could be used to give messages a more personal touch. Today, the service boasts a penetration rate of over 90 percent and has become a part of daily life for many people. Next to the basic app, which is predominantly used to communicate with friends, acquaintances, and family members, the LINE ecosystem also includes additional apps that can be used for online shopping and various forms of entertainment, such as manga, music, and mobile games.
Other leading social media services
Next to LINE, internationally successful networks, such as Instagram, X (formerly known as Twitter), and Facebook, enjoy a high popularity in Japan. As is the case in many other countries, YouTube is the most successful video sharing platform, while TikTok is particularly well-received among young people. Japan was the first country in which Twitter grew faster than Facebook in terms of user numbers. This was partly a result of the Japanese writing system, which allowed for more content to be written per single tweet, and partly because of the prior availability of services that were similar to Facebook. One of these was Mixi, which recorded increasing user numbers until the beginning of the 2010s and was known as Japan’s leading social network before becoming gradually supplanted by its competition.Social media is shaping everyday culture
Survey data show that the average time people spend on social media has increased significantly compared to the mid-2010s. Next to the spread of smartphones and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, factors such as the expansion of the social commerce market and the growing importance of social media platforms as purveyors of information played a role in this development. One survey found that entertainment and news about current events are leading categories for which people use social media as a source of information. Since Japan is a country that is prone to natural disasters, social media services also represent an important way of gathering and sharing information for citizens and government bodies during emergencies. In addition, insights into user preferences and the possibility of directly connecting with followers of entertainers and brands make platforms increasingly attractive for advertisers. Consequently, social networks and similar services shape everyday culture to an unprecedented degree, both in the private and in the public sphere.
