Japanese women, like Japanese culture, possess a certain but sometimes undefinable allure for the West. Japanese femininity often comes off as beautiful and exotic to the point that it can be intoxicating. 

So if you're interested in dating a Japanese woman I can hardly blame you. 

While the goal of meeting sincere Japanese women is a noble one, you have to understand that it will not be easy. This is not the Philippines. This is not Thailand. This is Japan and (like most with things), things are different here. 

The dating scene in Japan is unique from any other in the world. If I'm honest, like a lot of things in Japan, I don't always get it. But if you're serious about finding a Japanese woman then maybe you do. 

Even so your quest for a serious relationship will not be easy. In Japan you won't have to contend with the scam pitfalls more common in other countries like the Philippines or Thailand. Instead your greatest obstacle will be the deeply imbedded cultural values of Japanese society. 

Japanese people aren't good at dating

No I'm not being racist with that statement. Japan has a sharply declining population rate, and it's not because of economic problems, low quality or life, or anything like that. The problem is that Japanese people aren't making babies. The libido levels of men and women are low with as many as 18% of the population stating that their not interested in sex at all.

Men and women simply aren't dating each other. It's gotten so bad that the government has stepped in to create matchmaking sites and events for young people, in hopes that one day they might procreate. The Japanese government is legitimately concerned because the country's population is projected to drop by over 40 million by 2060.

There's a lot of cultural and social theories as to what is causing this phenomenon. No matter how you look at it, when it comes to love (or at least sex), a lot of Japanese simply aren't that interested. 

To make matters worse online dating did not get off to a good start in Japan. When it came out in the 1990's it was fraught with PPL scam sites that swindled users out of millions of dollars. The trend even continues to the present day, with another huge PPL site taken down in 2015. 

There is also a very strong cultural taboo against dating online. Native Japanese sites and apps have millions of users, but if you ask around no one will admit to using them.  

Japan has a long history of isolationism, and this cultural value will probably be the biggest challenge you face in your search for a Japanese woman. 

Japan is a notoriously polite country, but they're also notoriously unaccepting of foreigners (and not in an overtly mean way, because again...they're really polite). At best foreigners are seen as funny or entertaining (think novelty), but they will rarely be accepted into the exclusive circle that is Japanese society. 

Western expats often write on how they can live in the country for years, only to feel just as much a foreigner as they did when they first arrived.  

This cultural tendency toward exclusivity pretty much guarantees that as a foreigner your romantic options will be limited in Japan. It's simply not mainstream to date foreigners in Japan.   

Is finding a Japanese woman a hopeless endeavor?

To put it simply no. There is hope. Just recognize that if you're intent on dating genuine Japanese women, you're going to have to face the unique challenges we mentioned above.  

There are honest Japanese women out there who are interested in a serious relationship with a foreigner, there just aren't a ton of them. So how can you go about finding them?....

That's where Japanese Cupid comes in.

In comparison to the majority of the Japanese population women who are interested in dating a foreigner might be the exception, but Japanese Cupid makes it easier to find and connect with them.

In this article we'll look at the features of Japanese Cupid, the pros and cons of using the site, and we'll provide a little how-to on how you can get started meeting Japanese women overseas. 

Enjoy!

Japanese Cupid is similar to most dating sites. With a free account you can upload profile pictures and information, as well as look through the profiles of other members. With a premium subscription you can send and read messages. 

A walk through of the search engine used on all Cupid Media sites

Japanese Cupid is also available via app. The app looks slightly nicer (though it's pretty much the same), it's also a bit more user friendly. 

Japanese Cupid is offered in 3  different subscription options: Standard, Gold, and Platinum. 

In the end you don't really need the bells and whistles that come with the platinum subscription. Granted, the price differences between the gold and platinum levels aren't huge. 

The biggest perk of the platinum subscription is probably the translation feature. But as you may already know, on FWHL we usually advice men against dating women they can't communicate with. 

This not only saves you money on translation, it helps protects you from scams. I don't think the whole translator/professional dater scam is much of an issue in Japan. Still, if you don't speak Japanese and your lady doesn't speak English, good luck on your dates. 

I'm not saying it can't happen. But it is unlikely. Japanese women who are interested in foreigners are much more likely to know English anyways, so this shouldn't be too much of an issue.

In the end I recommend the gold level. It provides everything you need to connect with women in Japan.

We don't hesitate to recommend the Cupid media dating sites. The Australian based company has been in business for over 15 years, and there's a reason for it: they provide practical and safe alternatives for international online dating.  

There isn't another company I know of that successfully and honestly runs so many international sites.  

Also, and probably just as important, JC only charges a flat monthly subscription fee, which means you don't have to worry about PPL scams. 

The profiles on Japanese Cupid look and feel legitimate and natural. There's no PPL bait. There can be as many as 800 members online at once so there are a decent amount of active profiles on the site. 

The instance of fake profiles might literally be zero on Japanese Cupid. On other Cupid dating sites (and most international dating sites), you can expect to receive 20+ messages from fake profiles after creating a free account (even if you don't upload any profile information).

On JC you simply don't have this phenomenon  

Remember that Cupid Media can't possibly filter out the intentions and motivations of its members (that'd be impossible and creepy). Just because the site is honest doesn't mean all its users are. 

Cupid Media does provide a way to report suspicious or scammy profiles, but some may still slip through the cracks. 

As always be mindful of the typical signs for online romance scams. 

 As far as I can tell, the pitfalls in the foreign Japanese dating scene are a lot more innocent than the ones in  the nearby countries of South East Asia. 

At best there are categories of insincere women you're likely to meet in Japan (though I don't think we can really call them scammers). 

Gaijin is the transliteration of the Japanese word for foreigner, which literally means outsider. "Gaijin hunters" are usually Japanese women who take a huge interest in foreign guys not because of the guys themselves, but simply because of the fact that their foreigners. 

Japan has the 3rd largest economy in the world, and it's quality of life is pretty high. I say this to say that a Gaijin hunter probably isn't after your money. But she may care more about the novelty of having a foreigner on her arm than she does about you.

English speakers are few and far between in Japan, and people who are learning the language are eager to practice with native speakers. However the way they do it is pretty impersonal. They seem to talk at you not with you, and have little interest in you as a person. This is probably less of an issue when meeting women online, but it's something you might see when you're in the country. 

It's not really a scam, and it's usually pretty obvious when it happens.

If you're serious about meeting women in Japan then Japanese Cupid is probably the best online dating option out there. There are a significant amount of profiles even though the site is smaller than other international dating sites. 

As always be aware of the signs of possible scammers.  There don't appear to be very many if any on the site, but you can never be too careful.