Market size of online dating and matchmaking services Japan in 2019-2028

The user expenditure on online dating and matchmaking services in Japan was estimated at 78.8 billion Japanese yen in 2023. The market exhibited a strong growth in 2020 and 2021, which was partly a result of the decrease in offline encounters during the COVID pandemic. It was expected that the market would continue to grow at a lower pace in the coming years and reach a size of 86 billion yen by 2028.

Well-known services in Japan

Currently there are a high number of online dating and matchmaking services available in Japan. With the increasing adoption of smartphones, several dating and matchmaking apps emerged during the 2010s. Some of the more well-known apps include Pairs, which launched in 2012, Tapple, which was released in 2014, and With, which started in 2015. A ranking of the leading dating apps based on app revenue shows that Tinder, which entered the Japanese market in 2013, is the most successful foreign app in this area. Next to an increasing adoption, advertisements and appearances in various media also played a role in raising the awareness of such services in Japan.

Demographic factors

Japan has an increasing number of single-person households as well as an increasing share of people who remain unmarried by the age of 50, which indicates that there is a growing pool of potential customers for online dating and matchmaking apps. Since these services allow for a more convenient and time-effective way to find a partner, they can be especially attractive for people who lack time or feel that love life is bothersome. As survey data shows, these are some of the most common reasons why young singles are not proactive about their love life. Some services, such as Omiai, also cooperate with local municipalities in hosting matchmaking events and encouraging couples to move to rural areas, which can help in alleviating the depopulation of such areas.