What search engine do they use in Japan?

If you’re looking to expand your business in Japan, it’s important to understand the search engine landscape in the country. While Google is the dominant search engine worldwide, it’s not the only player in Japan. Here are the top 3 search engines in Japan and tips on how to optimize your website for each one.

The Top 3 Search Engines in Japan

According to SimilarWeb, the top search engine in Japan is Google, with a market share of over 70%. Yahoo! Japan and Bing are distant second and third, respectively.

Another list of search engines in Japan and their popularity is provided by statcounter. According to this list, Yahoo! Japan, Bing, and Google are also the top three search engines in Japan, with Yahoo! Japan having a slightly higher market share than Bing.

Comparison with other countries

According to statcounter, the top search engine in the US is Google, with a market share of almost 90%.

The top search engine worldwide is Google, with a market share of over 90%.

There is little use of other search engines. Have you understood the uniqueness of the support rate for Japanese search engines?

Does Japan use Google search engine?

While Google is the dominant search engine worldwide, it’s also the most popular search engine in Japan, but the share is lower compared with its worldwide share.

SEO for Google in Japan

However, it’s important to note that Japanese users tend to use different search terms and phrases than English-speaking users. To optimize your website for Google Japan, make sure to use relevant Japanese keywords and phrases in your content and meta tags. Additionally, consider using local Japanese backlinks to improve your website’s authority and visibility in the search results.

Why is Yahoo’s share so high in Japan?

Originally in Japan, Yahoo! Japan was more famous than Google and held the top share as a search engine. However, as Google’s popularity increased, this share was reversed.

Even now, a certain number of users still use Yahoo! Japan as their search engine.

Yahoo! Japan and Yahoo! in the US are different

Yahoo! Japan’s search engine, which holds the second largest market share in Japan, incorporates Google’s technology. Yahoo! in the United States, which incorporates Bing’s technology instead of Google’s, is independent and separate from Yahoo! Japan.

SEO for Yahoo! Japan in Japan

As mentioned earlier, Yahoo! Japan’s search engine incorporates Google’s technology, so it can be said that Google’s SEO measures and Yahoo! Japan’s search measures are the same.

Yahoo! Japan Banned Europe

Most of the services offered by Yahoo! Japan are no longer accessible in the EEA and the UK as of April 6th 2022.

However, there’s no need to worry. If you want to access Yahoo! Japan from Europe, all you need to do is use a VPN.

Bing Search Engine for B2B

Bing is a search engine provided by Microsoft, which is familiar with Windows.

Most major companies in Japan use PCs with Windows 10.

Since Bing is set as the default search engine for Microsoft Edge, the default browser for Windows 10, those who haven’t changed the search engine from the default setting would continue to use Bing as their search engine.

Bing Japan may not be as well-known as Google, but it shouldn’t be ignored by companies that are looking to expand their B2B business in Japan. Find out why Bing Japan can help you reach your marketing goals.

What is the Bing search engine?

Bing has a different search logic compared to Yahoo! Japan and Google.

With its unique features and audience, Bing Japan can offer valuable opportunities for marketing success.

SEO for Bing in Japan

Google search results and Bing search results differ. As mentioned earlier, the search algorithm is different, so different SEO measures are required from Google and Yahoo! Japan.

It is unclear how the algorithm differs as it has not been disclosed, but Bing has published an official SEO guide.

Both Bing and Google have something in common from the perspective of searchers.

Bing Webmaster tools

For Bing SEO measures, it is best to follow Bing’s official Bing Webmaster Tools, which is similar to Google Search Console. After publishing an article for SEO purposes, use Bing Webmaster Tools to prompt indexing of your created content on Bing’s search engine, just like you would do with Google Search Console.

Summary

If you’re looking to expand your B2B business in Japan, it’s important to understand the search engine landscape in the country. While Google is the dominant search engine worldwide, Yahoo! Japan and Bing are also popular in Japan.

Particularly in the B2B world, the fact that most Japanese companies are using Windows 10 needs to be taken into account.