How Big Is Japan's Oshi-Katsu Market? The Latest Data for 2026

“The oshi-katsu market is X trillion yen.” The number differs by article, and you can’t tell what it actually is. To answer that, we’ve organized the main survey data on oshi-katsu (推し活, literally “oshi activity”) as of 2026, with sources, in a form you can use as is, whether you’re researching oshi-katsu or building a document for work.

(For an explanation of the culture of oshi-katsu itself, see What Is Oshi-Katsu? The Complete Guide.)

The Bottom Line: The Representative Estimate Is “Roughly ¥4.1 Trillion”

A large-scale survey of about 23,000 people published by Oshi-katsu Soken in 2026 estimated the oshi-katsu market at roughly ¥4.1 trillion (roughly $27 billion) and the share of people who do oshi-katsu at about 24 percent (roughly 19.4 million people by population estimate) (estimate, in Japanese). A separate survey of 1,000 people found that 30.0 percent do oshi-katsu (Net Shop Tantosha Forum’s survey report, in Japanese).

But “market size” changes a great deal depending on what you count as oshi-katsu spending. Keep this range in mind when you use the numbers.

Key Data at a Glance (As of 2026)

Reading the Numbers: Three Points

1. What’s Behind a “Trillion-Yen” Market Is a Broad Base

More than 70 percent of people spend under ¥10,000 a month. In other words, the oshi-katsu market is not just a few heavy spenders but the accumulation of small spending by a huge number of casual fans. If you design only high-priced products on the rough idea that “otaku spend money,” you miss this base.

2. The Range of Estimates Is a Range of Definitions

The roughly ¥1.2 trillion from Yano Research Institute (major otaku fields) and the broad ¥4.1 trillion differ over whether peripheral spending is included, such as transportation and lodging for trips, café bills and the cost of birthday parties. When you cite a number, a phrase saying which definition it uses makes it come across much more accurately.

3. It Has Become a Form of Consumption the State Notices

The Ministry of Finance’s public relations magazine Finance ran a column titled “Oshi-Katsu: A Form of Consumption Growing Rapidly, Mainly Among Young People” (in Japanese). Nomura Securities’ analysis (in Japanese) also takes it up as “spending that holds up against rising prices,” and oshi-katsu has become a topic discussed from a macroeconomic point of view.

“People With an Oshi” and “the Oshi-Katsu Population” Are Not the Same

The shares in the table span a range because the way the question is asked differs by survey.

• Surveys asking whether you have an oshi ask about the presence of a feeling, so more people qualify
• Surveys asking whether you do oshi-katsu ask about actions such as buying merch and attending events, so the numbers narrow

There is also a thick layer of people who “have an oshi but hardly spend money.” Simply telling which question a number came from explains most of the discrepancies between surveys.

Checklist Before You Cite a Number

When you use market size data in materials or reports, check these four points.

1. When was the survey? Oshi-katsu figures update quickly, and old numbers tend to take on a life of their own
2. Who conducted it? Adding the surveying body and the survey scale (sample size) conveys the reliability of your document
3. Which definition does the number use? Is it limited to direct spending, or does it include peripheral spending like trip costs?
4. What is it being compared with? Placing numbers with different definitions side by side and reading “rapid growth” is risky

A short note on each point changes how persuasive the same number is.

Notes From The Oshi Lab: What It Means for Companies

1. A market outside price competition. Spending on an oshi is not “buying because it’s cheap” but “buying because it means something”
2. Designing for casual fans is the key. Products and projects that are easy to join, aimed at the 70 percent who spend under ¥10,000 a month, are the heart of the market
3. Understanding the culture is the entry requirement. Enter drawn by the size of the numbers without understanding the culture and you will fail. The design principles are explained in What Is Oshi-Katsu Marketing?
4. Numbers are only an entrance. Market size is only a starting point. What fans actually do, what pleases them and what wears them out: understanding behavior determines how precise your plan is. At the Lab, we treat data and cultural understanding as a set, and that is the basis of our support for companies

Drawing on a database of more than 1,000 case studies and our own research, The Oshi Lab supports companies’ oshi-katsu marketing. For consultations on projects that use data, contact KAZAORI Inc. (in Japanese).

Note: The figures in this article are based on materials published as of August 2026. Please check each source for the latest numbers.