Japan’s animation sector expanded by 15.8% in 2025, reaching $28.18 billion (JPY4.45 trillion), with the rise driven by activity both inside Japan and abroad, the Association of Japanese Animations (AJA) reported at TIFFCOM.
The AJA’s breakdown shows overseas revenue amounted to $16.1 billion (JPY2.54 trillion), making up almost 57% of the total, while domestic revenue stood at $12 billion (JPY1.9 trillion), or 43%.
Unlike the prior year—when international sales grew much faster than domestic income—the 2025 figures reflect growth in both markets. Domestic takings climbed slightly more than 14% year-on-year, and revenues from overseas markets increased by 17%.
By comparison, in 2024 overseas sales surged by 26% while domestic revenue was largely unchanged. International receipts first surpassed domestic revenues in 2020 and have continued to outpace them, widening the gap between foreign and home markets. Masahiro Hasegawa, editor-in-chief of AJA’s Anime Industry Report, said many Japanese companies are pursuing revenue overseas, and he expects that outward push to persist.
Hasegawa also pointed out a separate analysis the AJA compiled to show how much money actually flows back to anime production studios, rather than the broader production committees that fund projects and include multiple rights holders.
According to that supplementary data, the sums returning to production companies rose by 8% to $3.2 billion (JPY505 billion) in 2025, up from $2.95 billion (JPY466 billion) the year before. Hasegawa noted that a growing number of studios are taking equity stakes in their works and retaining intellectual property, which allows them to claim a share of overseas earnings.
The 2025 totals were buoyed by a huge domestic and international success: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba The Movie – Infinity Castle, which earned roughly $800 million worldwide and became the highest-grossing Japanese film ever.
Early in 2026, global anime box-office performers have included Chiikawa The Movie: The Secret Of Mermaid Island, which has brought in about $159 million internationally. That title sits at number 31 on Box Office Mojo’s global 2026 chart, just under Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie and ahead of the Bollywood release Dhurandhar: The Revenge.
Hasegawa said the international breakthrough for anime has effectively already happened, and noted that the content sector has been named one of Japan’s core industries. He added that the report indicates the Japanese anime business is keen to expand into emerging regions, but emphasized that localization and anti-piracy efforts remain crucial.
The Japanese government has rolled out a significant support package for the content industries under its IP360 initiative, targeting a rise in exports of Japanese content to $127 billion (JPY20 trillion) by 2033. For anime specifically, the goal is $38 billion (JPY6 trillion) in export revenue by 2033 — nearly double the current level.
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