Japan Survey Finds More than Half of People Use ¥100 Shops at Least Once a Month

Just One Coin

According to a survey conducted by the online research company MyVoice Communications, looking at how often people used ¥100 shops, colloquially referred to as hyakkin (from hyakuen kin’itsu, “uniform ¥100 pricing”), the majority of respondents, at 25.4%, used them “around once a month” and a further 25.1% visited “several times a month.” When those who went “three or more times a week” and “one to two times a week” were included, the rate of monthly use rose to 57.0%. More than 50% of men visited the shops; however, women were the more frequent users with over 60%.

The survey, conducted in January 2026, received responses from 11,280 men and women aged from their teens to their seventies.

Within the past year, the products most often purchased were “kitchen goods” at 54.4%, followed by “stationery” (40.2%) and “cleaning supplies and detergent” (32.0%). At 70%, women stood out as the purchasers of “kitchen goods,” while older men tended to buy “electronic accessories” and “DIY supplies.”

Asked the reason why they used ¥100 shops (with multiple responses possible), 50.4% said “they’re cheap, so I can buy things easily,” 48.5% did it “to save money,” and 38.4% felt it was “good value for the price,” indicating that the main draw for people was the sense of affordability. This did lead to harsh criticism as well though, including “the quantity or size is often reduced without warning” and “there are products that cost more than ¥500, so it can’t be called a ¥100 shop.”

Data Sources

• Survey on the usage of ¥100 shops (Japanese) from MyVoice Communications.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)