The number of Japanese people aged 100 and over has approached a record 100,000, NHK reported, citing data from the Japanese Ministry of Health.
“According to the Basic Resident Register, the number of people aged 100 and over living in Japan increased by 4,644 compared to last year, reaching 99,763,” the ministry reported as of September 1, 2025.
This number is the highest recorded for 55 consecutive years since 1970.
Women account for the largest proportion of centenarians (88%)—87,784. According to the published data, the oldest person in Japan is 114-year-old Shigeko Kagawa, a resident of Yamatokoriyama, Nara Prefecture.
The oldest man is 111-year-old Mizuno Kiyoshi, a resident of Iwata City, Shizuoka Prefecture. The highest percentage of Japanese residents aged 100 years or older per 100,000 inhabitants resides in the prefectures of Shimane, Kochi, and Tottori.
In 2024, Japan set the world record for longest life expectancy among women for the 40th time. According to the Ministry of Health, the average life expectancy of Japanese women was 87.13 years.
For men, the average life expectancy reached 81.09 years, unchanged from 2023.
Japanese men ranked sixth in life expectancy, behind those in Sweden, Switzerland, and Norway.
