Hokkaidō Remains Japan’s “Most Attractive Prefecture” for Fourteenth Straight Year
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Hokkaidō cruised to its fourteenth year running as Japan’s most attractive prefecture in the Local Brand Survey 2022, conducted by the Brand Research Institute. Japan’s northernmost prefecture has claimed the top spot every year since the survey started covering prefectures in 2009. Hokkaidō also finished at the top in categories on tourism and brand recall for regional food products. The ranking saw little change in the top 10, with Kyoto holding on to second place, also for the fourteenth consecutive year, while Nara moved past Nagasaki into eighth.
Top 10 Most Attractive Prefectures (2022)
| 2022 Rank (2021) | Prefecture | Attractiveness score in 2022 (2021) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (1) | Hokkaidō | 73.3 (73.4) |
| 2 (2) | Kyoto | 57.3 (56.4) |
| 3 (3) | Okinawa | 53.6 (54.4) |
| 4 (4) | Tokyo | 49.3 (47.5) |
| 5 (5) | Osaka | 43.2 (42.0) |
| 6 (6) | Kanagawa | 41.6 (40.0) |
| 7 (7) | Fukuoka | 40.8 (37.5) |
| 8 (9) | Nara | 36.9 (33.4) |
| 9 (8) | Nagasaki | 35.8 (33.9) |
| 10 (10) | Ishikawa | 33.1 (32.5) |
Created by Nippon.com based on data from the 2022 Local Brand Survey.
At the other end of the ranking, Ibaraki moved up one place to forty-sixth as Saga slipped to the lowest rung (out of all 47 prefectures) for the first time. Yamaguchi fell one notch to forty-third and Gunma and Saitama held steady in slots 44 and 45, respectively. However, this year saw some controversy when Gunma published a roughly 70-page report containing the findings of the survey on September 30 ahead of the official release, with Governor Yamamoto Ichita questioning the evaluation process and calling for a fairer and more accurate assessment.
Bottom Five Prefectures
| 2022 Rank (2021) | Prefecture | Attractiveness score in 2022 (2021) |
|---|---|---|
| 43 (42) | Yamaguchi | 15.4 (15.6) |
| 44 (44) | Gunma | 15.1 (15.3) |
| 45 (45) | Saitama | 14.3 (14.4) |
| 46 (47) | Ibaraki | 13.5 (11.6) |
| 47 (46) | Saga | 13.2 (12.8) |
Created by Nippon.com based on data from the 2022 Local Brand Survey.
Sapporo stayed atop the list of most attractive municipalities for the second straight year, ahead of Kyoto in second and Hakodate in third. Otaru ranked fifth, giving Hokkaidō three cities in the top five.
Most Attractive Municipalities (2022)
| 2022 Rank (2021) | Municipality | Attractiveness score in 2022 (2021) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (1) | Sapporo, Hokkaidō | 63.9 (63.9) |
| 2 (3) | Kyoto, Kyoto | 59.5 (62.0) |
| 3 (2) | Hakodate, Hokkaidō | 58.7 (62.8) |
| 4 (6) | Yokohama, Kanagawa | 56.1 (52.0) |
| 5 (4) | Otaru, Hokkaidō | 55.8 (56.1) |
| 6 (7) | Kobe, Hyōgo | 55.7 (50.4) |
| 7 (5) | Kamakura, Kanagawa | 52.1 (54.8) |
| 8 (9) | Kanazawa, Ishikawa | 50.9 (48.6) |
| 9 (12) | Naha, Okinawa | 49.8 (47.1) |
| 10 (11) | Ishigaki, Okinawa | 49.4 (47.7) |
Created by Nippon.com based on data from the Local Brand Survey 2022. Municipalities in Hokkaidō are highlighted.
The Brand Research Institute has conducted its Local Brand Survey every year since 2006. It tallies and quantifies the responses of around 35,000 people to questions about 1,000 municipalities and all of Japan’s 47 prefectures, gauging respondents’ awareness of places, along with aspects like their desire to visit or reside there and their evaluation of regional resources.
(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)