When you have an unrequited crush and feel like “it hurts, I want to cry,” you want to listen to songs that share those feelings, right?
In this article, we’ll introduce “tear-jerking unrequited love songs” we recommend just for you.
From the latest hits to timeless classics, every track is a gem with heartrending lyrics that sink deep into your heart.
“If I confess, we can’t go back to how we were.” “I know I should give up, but I still like you.” “We broke up, but I can’t bring myself to hate you.”
If you’re hurting from unrequited love in any of these ways, please give these songs a listen.
- [Unrequited Love] Heart-wrenching Love Songs | A Roundup of Tear-Inducing Crush and Breakup Tracks
- [Unrequited Love Songs] Recommended for women! Classic tracks that boost your motivation for love
- Unrequited love songs that strike a man's heart. Love songs from a male perspective that really hit home.
- Tear-jerking unrequited love songs that will break your heart: timeless classics about unattainable love
- Bittersweet love songs to listen to when the person you like already has a girlfriend or boyfriend
- [Heartbreak Songs] A selection of poignant love songs that pierce the heart of those with unrequited love
- Unrequited Love Songs Recommended for High School Students | Love Songs to Listen to While Thinking of Your Crush
- Unrequited love songs recommended for junior high school students. Popular love songs and romance tracks.
- [Sweet and Sour] Vocaloid Unrequited Love Song Collection [Bittersweet]
- A heart-wrenching story that tightens the chest! A Showa-era unrequited love song
- Recommended unrequited love songs for teens
- [Mutual Crush Song] Stuck before confession, not quite lovers!? A love song capturing wavering emotions
- [Unrequited Love Song] A Love Anthem to Cheer You On as You Wish for Mutual Feelings
[Unrequited Love Songs] Heart-wrenching love songs for you who are going through a painful romance (1–10)
I wish I were the one you liked.Te ga kuriimu pan
Getting the person you like to like you back is really difficult, isn’t it? But wanting them to fall for you is something anyone in love feels.
That bittersweet, painful feeling in the chest is captured in Tegakuri-mupan’s “I Wish I Were the One You Like.” With its simple instrumentation and understated vocal delivery, the song overflows with the sorrow of unrequited love.
You truly want to confess your feelings and become mutual lovers, but the fear of it not going well makes you hesitate to take that first step…
Many people can probably relate to the dread of a future where love doesn’t come true, and to this situation where, despite that, you just can’t suppress your feelings.
You said the moon is beautiful.berry meet
This song paints a picture of a winter night sky and the bittersweetness of love.
Its delicate vocals and acoustic tones settle quietly in the heart like falling snow.
The melody gently embraces the anxiety, hopes, and unspoken frustrations of someone in love, leaving a strong impression.
Released as berry meet’s single in November 2023, it resonated with many listeners.
Listening during the winter season—especially while gazing up at the night sky—deepens the feelings of someone in love.
It’s a perfect track for those with unrequited feelings or those hesitating to confess.
petalback number
A heartbreaking breakup song that overlays the fleeting memories of love with cherry blossom petals.
The lyrics delicately portray how memories with a lover linger everywhere in the city, turning even everyday scenes into amplifiers of pain.
While still holding on to love, the reality is that they will never meet again.
This song carries a message that gently embraces that hurt.
Released in April 2011, it was featured as the ending theme for JAPAN COUNTDOWN.
It is sure to resonate deeply with anyone who has experienced a painful romance.
waiting in vainrokudenashi
This is a work by Rokudenashi, who began activities in 2021, delicately depicting the emotions of unrequited love.
The subtle shifts of a heart that can’t quite face the other person’s kindness, and the loneliness of being able only to watch them talk with someone else, leave a strong impression.
The vocals woven by Ninjin carry a warmth that feels like it gently heats the heart on a quiet winter night.
Written and composed by Hifumi, the song was released as a single in October 2021.
It’s a track that stands beside those troubled by love, offering empathy and comfort.
For anyone who holds a painful feeling they can’t confess to anyone—their love for someone dear—this song is meant for you.
Happinessback number
Speaking of bittersweet love songs, you can’t leave out this track by back number.
She truly loves him, yet she sits by his side watching him fall for someone else… all while wishing for his happiness.
She’s probably just too kind, isn’t she? A love that can’t be put into words—what would you do?
Kasane AiSoala
Soala’s translucent vocals gently embrace the feelings that pass each other by and the wish to reunite, delicately expressing subtle emotions.
Released in January 2025 as a track on the EP “Bluem,” the song is distinguished by its piano-centered, gentle sound and memorable melodic lines.
The music video—featuring model Ryoka Orita and actor Yusei Ito—has also garnered attention, spreading waves of empathy across social media.
It’s a song I wholeheartedly recommend to anyone who carries a “what if”—wondering how things might have been if you’d met in a different way.
That’s not fair…arekunn
Are-kun’s song, which beautifully portrays aching love and suffering, has deeply moved many listeners.
While harboring intense feelings for the other person, the work delicately weaves the complex emotions of a woman swayed by ambiguous behavior.
Released in August 2021 as an advance track from the album “Breath,” it was also chosen as the ending theme for TV Asahi’s “BREAKOUT” in September, allowing it to resonate with an even wider audience.
Confused and hurt by the other person’s vague kindness, yet unable to suppress her feelings—this piece offers heartfelt empathy and comfort to anyone who bears the pain of an unrequited love.