---
title: "Christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand: Which brands are most popular in search?"
description: "Compare Japanese restaurants in Christchurch, New Zealand. Share of Search among Kinji, Mugen Sushi, Sakimoto Japanese Bistro and Tomi, the christchurch japanese restaurants Brandwave compares in New Zealand, using the same methodology, market, and reporting period. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time."
canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/categories/nz-christchurch-japanese-restaurants"
publisher: "Brandwave"
---

# Christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand: Which brands are most popular in search?

Compare Japanese restaurants in Christchurch, New Zealand. Share of Search among Kinji, Mugen Sushi, Sakimoto Japanese Bistro and Tomi, the christchurch japanese restaurants Brandwave compares in New Zealand, using the same methodology, market, and reporting period. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time.

## Key facts

- **Competitive set**: Christchurch Japanese restaurants
- **Market**: New Zealand
- **Brands compared**: 4
- **Month measured**: Aug 2026
- **Highest Share of Search**: Kinji, 44.4%

## Which brand is most popular in search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand?

- In August 2026, Kinji was the most searched among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand, with an estimated 5.9K branded searches and 44.4% estimated Share of Search within this set.
- Mugen Sushi is in 2nd place, 12.3 percentage points behind at 32.2% Share of Search.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Kinji’s estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand increased from 40.3% to 44.4%.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Mugen Sushi’s estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand decreased from 33.1% to 32.2%.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Sakimoto Japanese Bistro’s estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand decreased from 26.3% to 23.2%.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Kinji’s estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand peaked at 46.1% in February 2026 and was lowest at 34.3% in May 2026.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Mugen Sushi’s estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand peaked at 37.1% in May 2026 and was lowest at 29.6% in February 2026.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Sakimoto Japanese Bistro’s estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand peaked at 29.9% in December 2025 and was lowest at 22.6% in June 2026.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Tomi held steady: its estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand moved less than 0.5 percentage points.

## Compare search popularity between leading brands

- [Kinji vs Mugen Sushi: compare search popularity](/demand/nz/compare/kinji-vs-mugen-sushi): 44.4% against 32.2% Share of Search.
- [Kinji vs Sakimoto Japanese Bistro: compare search popularity](/demand/nz/compare/kinji-vs-sakimoto-japanese-bistro): 44.4% against 23.2% Share of Search.
- [Mugen Sushi vs Sakimoto Japanese Bistro: compare search popularity](/demand/nz/compare/mugen-sushi-vs-sakimoto-japanese-bistro): 32.2% against 23.2% Share of Search.

## How did search popularity change for New Zealand christchurch japanese restaurants in August 2026?

- In August 2026, Kinji gained estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand, from 43.4% to 44.4%.
- In August 2026, Mugen Sushi lost estimated Share of Search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand, from 33.4% to 32.2%.
- Estimated monthly branded searches for Tomi in New Zealand fell 25% over 11 measured months, from 40 to 30 in August 2026.
- Estimated monthly branded searches for Sakimoto Japanese Bistro in New Zealand fell 19.7% over 11 measured months, from 3.9K to 3.1K in August 2026.

## Share of Search ranking

| Rank | Brand | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | Change vs prior month | Owned by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Kinji | 44.4% | 5.9K | -0.5% | Kinji |
| 2 | Mugen Sushi | 32.2% | 4.3K | -6.5% | Mugen Sushi |
| 3 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 23.2% | 3.1K | -1.9% | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro |
| 4 | Tomi | 0.22% | 30 | -25.0% | Tomi |

## Historical estimated branded-search demand

| Month | Brand | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oct 2025 | Kinji | 5.9K | 40.3% | 1 |
| Oct 2025 | Mugen Sushi | 4.8K | 33.1% | 2 |
| Oct 2025 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 3.9K | 26.3% | 3 |
| Oct 2025 | Tomi | 40 | 0.27% | 4 |
| Nov 2025 | Kinji | 4.9K | 36.3% | 1 |
| Nov 2025 | Mugen Sushi | 4.7K | 34.5% | 2 |
| Nov 2025 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 3.9K | 29% | 3 |
| Nov 2025 | Tomi | 30 | 0.22% | 4 |
| Dec 2025 | Kinji | 6K | 37.5% | 1 |
| Dec 2025 | Mugen Sushi | 5.2K | 32.4% | 2 |
| Dec 2025 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 4.8K | 29.9% | 3 |
| Dec 2025 | Tomi | 30 | 0.19% | 4 |
| Jan 2026 | Kinji | 7.3K | 41% | 1 |
| Jan 2026 | Mugen Sushi | 5.8K | 32.2% | 2 |
| Jan 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 4.8K | 26.5% | 3 |
| Jan 2026 | Tomi | 40 | 0.22% | 4 |
| Feb 2026 | Kinji | 7.4K | 46.1% | 1 |
| Feb 2026 | Mugen Sushi | 4.7K | 29.6% | 2 |
| Feb 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 3.8K | 24% | 3 |
| Feb 2026 | Tomi | 50 | 0.31% | 4 |
| Mar 2026 | Kinji | 5.9K | 40.3% | 1 |
| Mar 2026 | Mugen Sushi | 4.8K | 32.8% | 2 |
| Mar 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 3.9K | 26.5% | 3 |
| Mar 2026 | Tomi | 50 | 0.34% | 4 |
| Apr 2026 | Kinji | 5.9K | 39.6% | 1 |
| Apr 2026 | Mugen Sushi | 5.2K | 34.4% | 2 |
| Apr 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 3.9K | 25.8% | 3 |
| Apr 2026 | Tomi | 40 | 0.27% | 4 |
| May 2026 | Mugen Sushi | 4.2K | 37.1% | 1 |
| May 2026 | Kinji | 3.9K | 34.3% | 2 |
| May 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 3.2K | 28.3% | 3 |
| May 2026 | Tomi | 40 | 0.35% | 4 |
| Jun 2026 | Kinji | 4.9K | 41.9% | 1 |
| Jun 2026 | Mugen Sushi | 4.1K | 35% | 2 |
| Jun 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 2.7K | 22.6% | 3 |
| Jun 2026 | Tomi | 60 | 0.51% | 4 |
| Jul 2026 | Kinji | 6K | 43.4% | 1 |
| Jul 2026 | Mugen Sushi | 4.6K | 33.4% | 2 |
| Jul 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 3.2K | 22.9% | 3 |
| Jul 2026 | Tomi | 40 | 0.29% | 4 |
| Aug 2026 | Kinji | 5.9K | 44.4% | 1 |
| Aug 2026 | Mugen Sushi | 4.3K | 32.2% | 2 |
| Aug 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | 3.1K | 23.2% | 3 |
| Aug 2026 | Tomi | 30 | 0.22% | 4 |
| Sep 2026 | Kinji | — | — | — |
| Sep 2026 | Mugen Sushi | — | — | — |
| Sep 2026 | Sakimoto Japanese Bistro | — | — | — |
| Sep 2026 | Tomi | — | — | — |

## What is being compared

- **Kinji**: Measured on the search terms “kinji japanese restaurant”, “kinji menu” and “kinji restaurant”, summed into one figure.
- **Mugen Sushi**: Measured on the search terms “mugen christchurch”, “mugen sushi”, “mugen sushi burnside”, “mugen sushi cbd”, “mugen sushi christchurch”, “mugen sushi menu”, “mugen sushi moorhouse”, “mugen sushi restaurant” and “mugen sushi wigram”, summed into one figure.
- **Sakimoto Japanese Bistro**: Measured on the search terms “sakimoto christchurch”, “sakimoto japanese bistro”, “sakimoto japanese bistro christchurch” and “sakimoto japanese bistro menu”, summed into one figure.
- **Tomi**: Measured on the search terms “tomi christchurch” and “tomi restaurant christchurch”, summed into one figure.

- [Kinji](/demand/nz/brands/kinji)
- [Mugen Sushi](/demand/nz/brands/mugen-sushi)
- [Sakimoto Japanese Bistro](/demand/nz/brands/sakimoto-japanese-bistro)
- [Tomi](/demand/nz/brands/tomi)

## Methodology

- [How is branded search demand measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused.

## Frequently asked questions

### Which brand is most popular in search among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand?

In August 2026, Kinji was the most searched among christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand, with an estimated 5.9K branded searches and 44.4% estimated Share of Search within this set.

## Cite this page

Brandwave. "Christchurch japanese restaurants in New Zealand: Which brands are most popular in search?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/categories/nz-christchurch-japanese-restaurants

This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/categories/nz-christchurch-japanese-restaurants. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.