In the year 2023, Japan witnessed an extraordinary surge in the sales of comic books, both in print and electronic formats, reaching an unprecedented ¥693 billion. This remarkable achievement marked the third consecutive year of setting record highs, as detailed by the All Japan Magazine and Book Publishers’ and Editors’ Association in conjunction with the Research Institute for Publications. Notably, the comics market expanded its share within the broader publishing industry, climbing by 2.0 percentage points to reach 43.5%.
The driving force behind this surge can be traced back to 2020 when comic sales surpassed the ¥600 billion milestone for the first time, fueled by heightened demand during the pandemic-induced period of stay-at-home orders. Fast forward to the present, and the market stands tantalizingly close to breaching the ¥700 billion mark.
Breaking down the sales figures by media type, electronic comics, which are typically read on smartphones and other mobile devices, experienced a significant uptick, recording a robust 7.8% increase to ¥483 billion. In contrast, sales of traditional print-based comic books, specifically in the tankōbon digest format, saw a notable decline of 8.2%, settling at ¥161 billion. Similarly, comic magazines witnessed a decrease of 7.4%, amounting to ¥49.7 billion in sales.
Delving deeper into recent trends, it becomes apparent that the landscape has been marked by fluctuations. While print-based comic books experienced substantial growth in 2020 and 2021, this momentum began to wane in 2022, eventually dipping below the pre-pandemic levels of 2019 by the following year. Conversely, the market for electronic comics nearly doubled in size compared to its 2019 figures.
The decline in print circulation is exemplified by the case of Weekly Shōnen Jump, which boasted a circulation of 6.53 million copies in 1994 but has since witnessed a significant downturn, with circulation plummeting to 1.13 million by the end of 2023, based on average print numbers from October to December as announced by the Japan Magazine Publishers Association. Responding to shifting consumer preferences, Shūeisha has proactively embraced the electronic comics market, distributing content through its mobile app and website Shōnen Jump+.