Sanrio’s 2025 Character Awards Are Heating Up This Year — Here’s Who Has Top Spot So Far

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the much-anticipated Sanrio Character Ranking, which takes 90 characters from the Sanrio universe and ranks them based on audience votes. Generally, the same few characters take the top 10 spots, though there is some year-to-year variation on what characters are most popular. 

Generally, fan favorites like My Melody, Kuromi, and (of course) Hello Kitty take the top spots, while lesser-known Sanrio characters like “Seven Silly Dwarfs” fall all the way down to the bottom of the ranking (the latter sadly taking 83rd place in 2024). 

While Cinnamoroll took first place in the Sanrio rankings in 2024, that doesn’t seem to be the case for 2025 — but it’s a close call. Cinnamoroll currently sits in second place, with Pochacco in third, followed by Kuromi and then the titular Hello Kitty, who last held the title of first place in 2019.

As of the last ranking before the official results are announced, Pompompurin is in first place. He is a round golden retriever wearing a small brown beret, which contributed to his name — “pom pom” referring the hat he wears, and “purin” meaning pudding (his favorite food).

Last year, Pompompurin took 4th place, ranking one spot ahead of Hello Kitty in 2024. If Pompompurin does win the 2025 Sanrio Rankings, he’ll have stolen the first place streak from Cinnamoroll, who has won first place every year since 2020. 

The difference between first and second place in 2024 was significant, with over one million votes totaling the difference between Cinnamoroll in first place and Pochacco in second. With voting now closed for the 2025 rankings, if Pompompurin in first place sits that far ahead of Cinnamoroll in second, it’s possible that we already know exactly who won the rankings.

Fans will have to remain waiting on the edges of their seats until June 29th, however, when the ratings will be officially announced. After that, the winner will keep their crown until next year’s results are announced in June. If you missed your chance to vote this year, keep an eye out for Sanrio’s next character ranking announcement, which should appear sometime in April. Fans can vote for their favorites every single day.