Saddest Songs Ranking [2026]

Hello/How are you?nanou8rank/position

[Hatsune Miku Soft] Hello/How Are You [Original] with Chinese Subtitles

A pop song featuring charming, memorable piano tones.

According to the creator, it’s a song about a hopeless person who hesitates to say what they want or what they should.

It conveys that no one is going to pay you for enduring hardship.

The melody is so catchy you’ll find yourself humming along.

Karakuri Pierrot40mP9rank/position

[Hatsune Miku (40mP)] Karakuri Pierrot [Original]

This is a Vocaloid song that makes you feel the pain of self-deprecation—calling oneself a clown for simply being strung along by the person they like.

It’s a track by 40mP, a prolific Vocaloid producer known for creating numerous masterpieces like “Torinoko City,” “Love Trial,” and “Eye Examination,” and it was released in 2011.

One of its features is a sound that’s lively and glamorous, yet tinged with sadness.

At first listen, you might think it’s a bright song, but if you unravel the lyrics, the true meaning of the arrangement comes into focus.

You can almost see the protagonist’s smile—and it brings you to tears.

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Araki Jakkan

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HAPPY BIRTHDAYback number10rank/position

back number – HAPPY BIRTHDAY (full)

Back number is a three-piece rock band beloved by a wide range of listeners for their poignant falsetto and lyrics that vividly paint emotional scenes.

Their 20th single, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY,” used as the theme song for the TV drama A Story to Read When You First Fall in Love, features an arrangement that feels both transparent and tinged with melancholy, leaving a deep impression.

Many listeners likely find themselves overlaying the wish that anyone with unrequited love would harbor onto their own experiences.

With its deft use of the title, this is a love song that makes you want to root for the protagonist nursing a one-sided crush.

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Hoshino Takashi

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Dawn and Firefliesn-buna11rank/position

Dawn and Fireflies / n-buna

Ahead of autumn, if you’re unsure how to move forward and feel troubled about the path ahead, I recommend “Yoake to Hotaru” by n-buna.

It’s a track included on his 2015 solo album “Flowers, Candy and the Last Train,” released by the guitarist and composer of Yorushika.

Sung with the same kind of poetic expression found in Yorushika’s music, the song depicts someone hesitantly searching for a way forward yet gradually discovering a light toward the future.

It’s a bittersweet piece that still manages to evoke hope.

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SAKI

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I want to be your lover.Abe Mao12rank/position

Mao Abe – I Want to Be Your Lover [Official Music Video]

Mao Abe’s second single, “I Want to Be Your Girlfriend,” is a love song that portrays a bittersweet unrequited love.

The lyrics tighten your chest as they tell of a summer romance, a secretly held wish that never comes true, and a fleeting end.

It candidly expresses the feelings anyone in love is bound to have, making it painfully relatable.

The melody also captures that indescribable, sentimental mood as summer draws to a close, overlapping with the end of the romance and deepening the sense of poignancy.

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Kado(guchi) Shichigatsu

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Colorless Self-Harmnekobōro13rank/position

[Hand-drawn] Self-Harm Colorless [PV]

This is a song that makes you reflect on who you are and what you live for.

It was released in 2013 by Nekobolo, a Vocaloid producer who also works under the name Sasanomaly.

The meaning of life and your own worth—things you didn’t think about as a child—can become sources of pain as you grow up, especially when you feel powerless, and many people may feel discouraged by that.

While this song expresses those feelings that are hard to share with others, it also offers a hopeful portrayal at the end, and I think listening to it when you’re feeling down will gently lighten your heart.

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sasashina

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wishsumika14rank/position

sumika / Wish [Music Video]

A song by sumika that portrays the bittersweet feelings of unrequited love and hope for the future.

The protagonist’s inner struggle—wishing happiness for the one they love while being unable to suppress their own feelings—is especially striking.

Released in December 2019 as the theme song for the drama “Ossan’s Love -in the sky-,” it reached No.

6 on the Oricon charts.

The music video has also been viewed over 20 million times, capturing the hearts of many.

It’s recommended not only for those wrestling with love, but also for anyone who wants to cherish the feeling of wishing someone else happiness.

Why not listen to this piece and face the “wish” that lies within you?