Pompompurin tops Sanrio's character ranking for 2025

One thing I appreciate greatly about living here is the fact that cute things permeate everyday life in many ways. For instance, it's not weird at all to see grown adults with plush character keychains on their bags, or companies having character mascots to represent their brand.

Of all the characters across Japan, though, the plethora of Sanrio ones are probably the best known. They're so popular that there's even a ranking that comes out annually of the top Sanrio characters, and for 2025 it was Pompompurin who snagged first place.

Second place went to Cinnamoroll, and third place was Pochacco -- so not a Hello Kitty in sight. 

If you do like the cuteness of Sanrio characters, I would recommend a visit to Sanrio Puroland in Tokyo, or Harmonyland in Oita, both of which have characters aplenty.

From Harmonyland in Oita several years ago. The teacups were all character themed!