HELLO HISTORY: The Annual Sanrio Character ranking

 The Sanrio Character Ranking (officially サンリオキャラクター大賞 in Japanese, sometimes called Sanrio Character Grand Prix) is Sanrio’s annual global fan-vote popularity contest. Fans pick their favorite characters from a lineup of 90+ (Hello Kitty, Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, Kuromi, Pochacco, and dozens more). It’s one of the biggest kawaii popularity polls in the world. 

•  Roots in the 1970s: It started as casual “character popularity contests” in Sanrio’s in-house kids’ magazine Strawberry News (Ichigo Shinbun) back in 1975–76. After a short break, it was revived in 1985 with postcard voting.

•  Official launch: 1986 marks the very first numbered “Sanrio Character Ranking” (43 characters entered, 31,386 votes cast). The winner got magazine covers and posters.

•  Early days (1986–2009): Voting was mostly Japan-only via postcards and the magazine. Only the top 10 were announced publicly.

•  Modern era (2010–present): Web voting launched in 2010 (opening the door to international fans). English site in 2012, more languages added later. Now it’s fully online via the official ranking site and Sanrio apps. You can vote once per day for as many characters as you want. Some years have bonus multipliers (buying merch or magazine issues). Full rankings (all 90+ places) are released, with mid-term updates. Voting usually runs mid-April to late May, finals drop in late June. 

Each year gets a fun theme (2025’s was “Jump! to the future with you!”), special artwork, and tie-in merch. The winner often gets new collaborations, parades at Sanrio Puroland, and bragging rights.

Record-Holders & Epic Streaks

Only about 10 characters have ever taken the #1 crown. Here are the standouts:

•  Hello Kitty— undisputed queen with 15 total wins. She had an insane 12-year consecutive streak (1998–2009) — a record no one has touched. Her first win came surprisingly late (1998), after newer stars like Pochacco and Pompompurin dominated the ’90s.

•  Cinnamoroll — 7 wins total. He went on a dominant run (2017–2018 + 2020–2024), interrupted only by Hello Kitty in 2019.

•  Pochacco — 5 straight wins (1991–1995). The ultimate ’90s dog.

•  Pompompurin — 4 wins (1997 debut-year shocker as a newcomer, 2015–2016, and the big 2025 comeback).

•  My Melody — 3 wins (2010–2011, 2014).

Trivia

•  Dog takeover: Since ~2015, the top spots have been dominated by dog characters (Pompompurin, Cinnamoroll, Pochacco). In 2025 the top 3 were all pups!

•  International flavor: Different countries often crown their own local favorites (Gudetama, Aggretsuko, Yoshikitty, and Kuromi do well abroad).

•  Vote totals exploded: 2025 saw over 63 million votes — a far cry from the 31k in 1986.

•  The winner doesn’t just get bragging rights; they get fresh merch drops, theme-park events, and sometimes a year-long “victory tour.”

That’s the full story — from a tiny magazine poll in the ’80s to a massive global kawaii showdown today. The 2026 race is already heating up (early results are out, and it’s anyone’s game again).