Japan’s bestselling mirrorless camera isn’t showing signs of slowing down – and one retailer says "many" photographers are switching from other brands

The Sony A7 V has topped best-seller lists since its launch at the end of the 2025 – and one retailer in Japan says the full-frame mirrorless isn’t just attracting creators using older A7 cameras but photographers switching from other brands.

The insight comes from Map Camera, a major camera retailer in Japan. While sales trends in Japan – and just from one retailer – don’t always translate to other markets, with many major camera manufacturers based in Japan, the region’s sales lists tend to carry some clout. (And the Sony A7 V has similarly been a best-seller in the US.)

The retailer says that the Sony A7 V’s March sales figures exceeded the previous month, noting that while many shoppers were upgrading from previous A7 models, others were first-time Sony users. “The Sony phenomenon that has swept through the market with each new model release in the A7 series is once again powerful,” the retailer wrote (translated by Google).

While Sony’s most recent mirrorless camera is topping the best-seller list in Japan, the A7 V isn’t the only camera from the brand on the list of top ten. The next Sony on the list is from the fall of 2023, the Sony A7C II, a more compact model in the brand’s line-up, while the crop sensor Sony A6700 also came in on the list at ninth place. The model before the A7, the A7 IV, was also the retailer’s best-selling used camera for March.

Looking at the rest of the March bestsellers, a clear trend continues to emerge: size matters, as many of the top sellers are smaller mirrorless bodies, along with three compact cameras.

The March 2026 best-sellers at Map Camera include:

1. Sony A7 V
2. Fujifilm X-T30 III
3. Fujifilm X-E5
4. Sony A7C II
5. Canon PowerShot SX740 HS
6. Ricoh GR IIIx
7. Fujifilm X-M5
8. Ricoh GR IV
9. Sony A6700
10. Nikon Z5 II

Matching Sony with three cameras on the list, Fujifilm’s best-seller hits are all mirrorless cameras with a design that focuses on smaller bodies. The Fujifilm X-T30 III is arguably best described as a happy medium camera – it’s rather compact, but it still has a viewfinder; it doesn’t have the most advanced specs, but it’s one of the brand’s more affordable mirrorless cameras.

The X-T30 III is followed by the Fujifilm X-E5, which is the mirrorless that’s arguably closest to the bestselling X100VI compact camera, which is still hard to find in stock. Coming in at 7th place is the X-M5, which is both Fujifilm’s most compact and most affordable current mirrorless body.

The only Canon on the March list is the Canon PowerShot SX740 HS. It’s unsurprising to find a PowerShot on the best-seller lists, considering the return of the compact camera – even if it is one from 2018. But, photographers may be more surprised that the Canon EOS R6 Mark III, which launched around the same time as the A7 V, hasn’t made the list despite being a top seller in the US.

Two Ricoh GR compact cameras make the list. Interestingly, it’s the older, longer lens GR IIIx that ranks the highest – although that could be because the new GR IV is being released in limited quantities, along with differences in the price and lens.

Nikon slides into the list in the tenth place spot – but it’s not surprising to see the Z5 II on the list, with its balance between price and features, including a highly-rated low-light autofocus.

Choosing a new camera should be about the features, not the trends, but the bestseller lists can hint towards key trends in the camera industry.

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