YouTube has become the ultimate platform for beauty and makeup YouTubers in Japan to showcase their skills, share expert advice, and captivate audiences worldwide. As we step into 2024, the Japanese beauty scene has seen a meteoric rise in the number of talented YouTubers who have taken the internet by storm with their mesmerizing tutorials, product reviews, and unique perspectives.
Japanese culture places a strong emphasis on “kawaii,” or cuteness, which is reflected in fashion, makeup, and hairstyles. This preoccupation with appearing youthful and innocent is exemplified through the widespread use of pastel colours, hair accessories, and makeup to achieve a “doll-like” aesthetic. However, this is not the only trend and we find many variations. Compared to Western societies, where beauty is often associated with glamour and sex appeal, Japan’s beauty culture places a greater emphasis on subtlety, harmony, and balance. The goal is to achieve a look that is natural and effortless, yet still polished and refined.
Japanese beauty standards prioritise clear and radiant skin, which led to popular Japanese beauty skincare trends. This philosophy promotes using gentle, natural ingredients like green tea and rice bran, and following a multi-step routine that includes cleansing, toning, moisturising, and face masks for healthy skin. Japanese beauty YouTubers are relatable because they focus on honesty and explain product reviews in a way that is easy to understand, unlike many fashion magazines that focus on perfection.
The go-to social media platform in Japan for information is YouTube, as users can easily find topics that interest them and product recommendations videos. Regarding makeup, female influencers dominate on YouTube, so YouTube is the right place to find Japanese influencers giving beauty advice. Since Japan lifted face-covering restrictions in public spaces last year, many Japanese feel urged to revisit makeup and beauty tips.
Top 10 Japanese Beauty YouTubers in Japan 2024
- Maataso
- Haruna Kawaguchi official channel
- Hera Hera Three Musketeers
- nanako
- Saaya
- Naenano
- Yuuri Fukuse
- Miki Kawanishi
- Yokiki
- Misato Mizukoshi
1. Maataso
Subscribers: 2.07M
Maataso is an unconventional beauty YouTuber who calls herself ‘miraculously ugly.’ She first became famous when she posted a before-after makeup photo on Twitter. Since she jokes about her looks and laziness in her videos, she is popular among a male audience as well.
2. Haruna Kawaguchi official channel
Subscribers: 1.87M
Haruna, a Japanese actor and model, is one of the most popular female Japanese YouTubers. She started her YouTube channel in 2020 and gained over 700K subscribers in a month. Her beauty content includes makeup and hairstyle tutorials, daily routines, hot springs and more. Her authentic and honest attitudes are widespread among audiences.
3. Hera Hera Three Musketeers
Subscribers: 1.76M
This Japanese girl group’s YouTube channel posts many things about their private life – from beauty surgery, relationship talks, to nights out. They share updated beauty trends and information thanks to their experience as an idol group and study abroad in South Korea, which is famous for its beauty industry.
4. nanako
Subscribers: 1.47M
This Japanese beauty content creator and influencer posts about makeup, fashion, skincare, diet, and product reviews. Her makeup tutorial is especially popular among young women. Last year she launched her own cosmetic brand ‘leur charme.’
5. Saaya
Subscribers: 1.1M
Saaya used to be a model in the Japanese fashion magazine Popteen but started to focus on YouTube after her makeup videos became popular. Her feminine and ‘kawaii’ style fashion and makeup videos are popular, but videos featuring her little brother are also popular.
6. Naenano
Subscribers: 1.1M
Naenano is very popular among Japanese teenagers. Her overall followers on Japanese social media, including YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, exceeds 5 million. On YouTube, she mainly shares makeup, daily routine and baking videos.
7. Yuuri Fukuse
Subscribers: 1.09M
As a fan of Marilyn Monroe, Yuuri has always been interested in makeup since she was very young. This has led to her gaining advanced makeup skills and to her success as a beauty YouTuber. Being a mother of two, she also shares diet food, cooking and lifestyle information.
8. Miki Kawanishi
Subscribers: 1.04M
Miki is a Japanese fashion model and YouTuber having been on the platform for almost 10 years. She creates videos for makeup tutorials as well as product reviews from famous websites and shops such as the online shopping site Qoo10 and the lifestyle goods store PLAZA.
9. Yokiki
Subscribers: 977K
Yokiki is the only male makeup YouTuber who ranks in this list. He became interested in makeup during high school and became famous when he posted so-called ‘deceit makeup’, which describes a technique where you look completely like a different person after makeup.
10. Misato Mizukoshi
Subscribers: 787K
Misato is a Japanese Beauty YouTuber with a growing fanbase, creating a variety of beauty-focused content such as makeup, skincare, lookbooks & shopping, and occasional vlogs. Her makeup and skincare product reviews are known to be highly detailed and comprehensive, positioning her videos as reliable go-to’s when researching new products.
Working with popular Makeup and Beauty YouTubers in Japan!
This year’s list of Japanese Beauty and Makeup YouTubers is more diverse than ever, with a range of creators from different backgrounds, ages, and themes. This shows that people are becoming more accepting of different styles in Japan, no matter their gender or identity. It’s a great time for influencer marketing in Japan because businesses can now better understand and target their audience. It also opens up new opportunities for the beauty industry to reach a wider and more diverse customer base than before.
If you’re looking to work with Japanese beauty and makeup influencers you can read our guide which is a great place to get started, or you can get in touch.
