After the success of my previous JAV performer tierlist post, I figured why not do another one but this time ranking some select JAV studios. Obviously I'm only using studios that I watch or have watched to some capacity. I left off a few like SOD Create as I only really watch them for Momona Koibuchi so I can't really get a good feel for them. And as you'll soon notice I didn't put any studios in F tier as I think all these offer up something of value. I was close on one of them though. Feel free to yell at me in the comments about what ones I got wrong. Now without further ado, let's get this started.

S tier

Moodyz

Codes: MIAA, MIDV, MIDE, MIAE, MIRD, MIMK

I don't think including Moodyz in S-tier is gonna shock too many people. I firmly believe Moodyz is one of the most consistent and well-respected studios in all of JAV. They've been chugging along since 2002 and show no signs of stopping. They're a studio that needs no introduction and they dabble in just about every mainline genre including bukkake, gokkun, anal, DP, creampies, and interracial just to name a few. Moodyz enlists some quality exclusive actresses but also hires the best freelancing talent around too. The variety among their films is fantastic and even better is their production values. It's not always perfect but for the most part, they always hit the mark in regards to their lighting, camerawork, pacing, and makeup. I think most JAV fans would agree with me that Moodyz is an absolute titan of the industry and more than deserving of a high-tier placement.

Chijo Heaven

Codes: BBI, CJOD

As someone who loves slut themes, this studio is top of the class. Chijo Heaven casts their actresses into slutty and sultry roles spanning a nice array of different scenarios and themes. They utilized the "BBI" code early on before switching to their currently used and most popular "CJOD" code in 2015. They work entirely with freelancers and manage to hire some of the best and most talented actresses around. Their production values are almost always on point and don't feel half-assed at all. Chijo Heaven absolutely nails the slut themes extremely well but they also frequently shoot collaboration films. These in particular make for some of my favorite videos overall in the past several years. A few examples include CJOD-346 between Shiori Tsukada and Yuria Yoshine and CJOD-362 with Alice Otsu and Yayoi Mizuki. They rarely ever disappoint and are easily among my top favorite studios in all of JAV.

A tier

S1

Codes: SSIS, SSNI, SNIS, SOE

S1 needs no introduction right? They're by far one of the most well-known and prestigious studios around. They were established back in 2005 and made their name with their top-notch pool of exclusive actresses that were all known for their striking beauty. Starting out with some old classics like Sora Aoi and Maria Ozawa and all the way up to now with the likes of Yua Mikami and Konan Koyoi. Some big-name actresses you may not have known were exclusives there at one point such as Anri Okita, Minori Hatsune, Yuma Asami, Meguri, and Ruri Saijou just to name a few. In addition, their production values are among the most consistent in the industry. But I must say that they play it way too safe nowadays. Earlier on they used to feature interracial, bukkake, and even kimomen type films. There's not of that now and at times they feel very creatively bankrupt. But still, you can't deny their stunning roster and sharp production values.

Wanz Factory

Codes: WAAA, WANZ, WNZ, NWF, WF,

Wanz Factory often reminds me of a Moodyz lite. That's not in any way a jab at them as they're a terrific studio and just like Moodyz they offer up a nice range of different themes that encompass a vast range of genres. Funny enough they were founded in 2002 at the same time so they've been around for some time. They're a studio that doesn't host any of its own exclusive actresses and instead hires primarily freelancers. Just like Moodyz their production values are almost always on the mark but do occasionally underwhelm. Now I'd be remiss if I didn't mention their most famous series and one they're mostly known for, the "if you can last 10-minute series". This is where "fans" are brought on to endure 10 minutes with the featured actress. If successful they can fuck her, if not...well they got to cum at least so it's still a win. It's a brilliant series and one that still continues to this day every month years after its debut.

IdeaPocket

Codes: IPZZ, IPX, IPZ, IPTD, SUPD

I may not watch a TON of IdeaPocket at the moment as I really only watch them for Rin Hachimitsu and Iori Himeka. But even so, I can confidently say they're easily one of the better exclusive-focused studios out there. I used to watch them way more back during their "golden era" when their roster consisted of some huge names like Kaho Kasumi, Minori Hatsune, Rio, Aino Kishi, and more. They still have a great talent pool and their production values are among the best around. What I really appreciate is the diversity of their setups and how they sometimes lean into the goofier side of it all. I always love a silly or lighthearted plot. And just like Moodyz or S1, they're very consistent across the board. Their technical aspects rarely disappoint.

Honnaka

Codes: HMN, HND

Good ol' Honnaka. A studio that cut its teeth on the promise of real, genuine creampies. Now? Well...not so much. They were founded back over a decade ago in 2010. They've only used two codes throughout their history so it's easy to keep track of their releases. You're probably most familiar with the "HND" prefix which they used until 2021 when they switched to "HMN". Their films span a wide array of different themes and genres but one thing always remained a key component and that is creampies. And yes they were real. But currently, creampies are still a factor in their films but it's all fake. That said, I'm personally not that bothered by it. I do wish they were still real but I think their content is still rock solid nowadays. They manage to enlist some of the hottest freelancers around and just like other studios in this tier, their technical aspects are mostly on the mark. But it is a shame that the most integral element of their films is completely fake.

Fitch

Codes: JUFE, JUFD, NIMA

Knowing my tastes, it makes a lot of sense to see Fitch higher up on my list. Fitch was established back in 2007 and primarily focuses on voluptuous and curvy actresses. They employ mostly freelancers but do have a few exclusive actresses such as Mina Kitano and Reina Kuroki to name a few. They feature a wide range of different setups across their films and their production values are solid. Their "JUFD/JUFE" code is the standard for them but they also have "NIMA" which is for various doujinshi adaptations.  And "JUNY" for their NIKUYOKU label which seems to focus on showcasing an actress's figure while utilizing a fish eye lens. What's really nice about Fitch is that they have two release cycles a month averaging about six new films for each. When it comes to thicker actresses, few studios do it better than Fitch.

B tier

Madonna

Codes: JUQ, JUY, JUC, JUKD

I have such a love/hate relationship with Madonna. I know this studio has plenty of fans that will argue they belong higher up but I just can't. So first off they definitely have their own niche which is obviously milfs and mature roles. That's all fine but I really loathe how repetitive their plots can be. Now in all fairness, they're not all bad but I feel like every other release from them features the starring actress in a married woman role with some NTR premise. I'm just not a fan of these drama-heavy plots so I couldn't care less personally. But I absolutely have to commend their production values. Their lighting and camerawork are always pristine and handled very professionally. And to their credit, they employ a nice equal mix of both exclusive actresses and freelancers. I also enjoy their label that adapts doujinshi works. So while their plots may not be my cup of tea, I certainly respect their craft.

Digital Ark

Codes: FLAV, LUKE, DIGI

Make no mistake about it. I am fully aware that Digital Ark has its flaws and can be repetitive. But I'll be damned if they're not a huge guilty pleasure for me. Digital Ark's niche typically invokes a "nightclub" type of aesthetic, as coined by ZENRA, thanks to its lighting. That does apply to some of their works but not all. One of the biggest aspects of their films is the use of fish eye lens. It's present in nearly every release from them. This results in most of their videos feeling quite formulaic as they all feature the same structure pretty much. Their "FLAV" code is probably the one you're most familiar with and is mainly about showcasing their ass and body. They have a few other codes as well such as "DIGI" which typically focuses on gyaru or "gal" type actresses but has gone quiet lately besides a few sporadic releases here and there. I can definitely see why some would loathe them but I really enjoy their work, despite how repetitive it can be.

E-Body

Codes: EBOD

Good ol' E-Body. I think everyone is familiar with E-Body and has probably seen a film or two of theirs at some point. Sorta like my previous entry, Digital Ark, they too are a bit of a guilty pleasure but quite as formulaic. E-Body was first founded back in 2008 and makes its mark specializing in busty actresses. Another aspect they're notorious for is excessive photoshop, as you can see from this post here. They're not quite as bad as they used to be but back in the day it used to be very egregious with the lengths they'd go to in enhancing an actress's face and chest. So many times you'd find an appealing cover and check out the video only to find the actress looks nothing like she does on the cover. But currently, I think E-Body is quite solid. They utilize a decent array of different plots and themes on top of featuring some quality actresses and even pushing out some enticing new debuts. All in all, a nice slightly above-average studio. 

Materiall

CODES: MTALL

Materiall is certainly one of, if not, the youngest studio on my tierlist. Some of you reading this may not have ever heard of them actually. They were established pretty recently in 2021 releasing their first film at the end of the year. You can expect a monthly output of about four new films a month which isn't too bad really all while utilizing freelancing actresses. Throughout their time they've hired some of the best talent around like Alice Otsu, Ichika Matsumoto, Non Ohana, and even Ruri Saijou for her brief re-debut. Their content often reminds me of some classic Moodyz in that they often have a lighthearted or silly tone to some of their films such as MTALL-056 where Yayoi gets stuck in a doorway thanks to her big ass or trips herself in a goofy fashion. Their covers give me Moodyz vibes as well. And they don't feel like a cheap knockoff or anything either. I certainly hope they stick around because they provide some quality content.

Rocket

Codes: RCT, RCTD

This is yet another studio that needs to introduction at all. Everyone that is even just slightly familiar with JAV knows who Rocket is. For those two people who don't, they specialize in the wacky and bizarre side of JAV. Their setups run the gambit of just about anything you can think of. Such as a man who can transform into a woman's bicycle seat, news anchors doing a live telecast while taking multiple facials, and a guy who can take over women's bodies and ends up having sex with himself. And that's just a small sample of what they have to offer. Their catalog spans a wide array of setups and themes. But as diverse as they can be, sometimes they cheap out on the production side of things. And oftentimes their films lack "fappability". Basically meaning they're entertaining..but not the most sensual or sexually captivating. You can always count on being entertaining if nothing else.

Deep's

Codes: DVDMS, DVDES, DVDPS

Ever heard of the magic mirror bus? You can consider Deep's to be the pioneer of that particular theme. It's certainly one of, if not, the biggest claim to fame on their resume. Deep's was originally founded clear back in 2001. They'd primarily focus on films featuring a large cast of actresses and titles featuring "amateurs" both male and female alike. To this day they've branched out a little bit but still heavily focus on their magic mirror bus series and what they call "real life monitoring" which involves actresses being put into abnormal situations with an amateur male. One series in particular I wanna highlight is their big-ass housekeeper series such as DVDMS-879. It always makes for some stellar booty eyecandy and is easily my favorite of theirs. I applaud the variety and creativity among their films as they always try to innovate and keep things fresh.

Premium

Codes: PRED, PJD, PGD

Premium is just one of those studios that I consider to be the definition of just solid. They're not a huge favorite of mine but I do enjoy their works most of the time and have never been that too disappointed by them. Premium made their debut back in 2006 with the prefix "PGD" before transitioning to "PRED" in 2017. They don't really have a particular theme to be honest as most of their films are straight vanilla with an attention to beautiful and youthful actresses. Their production values tend to be pretty high-mark too. Another aspect to appreciate is their wide range of themes. You'll get everything from NTR to fan thanksgiving style films and even debuts. And they employ mostly freelancers but do have their own exclusives such as Karen Yuzuriha and in the past, they featured the likes of Yuu Shinoda and Yuria Satomi to name a few. Just an all-around quality studio.

Oppai

Codes: PPPE, PPPD

I love Oppai but they have their flaws for sure. Now I don't think this studio needs much explaining. Their specialty is in their name, boobs. Oppai has been around since 2008 and has stayed true to its name ever since. They only have one code, "PPPD", but in the past year or so did roll that over to "PPPE". Their production values are pretty middle of the pack with various ups and downs and their themes are mixed as well. Sometimes they're quite good and other times they are very uninspired and dull. But I gotta give them praise for pioneering the "GES" theme centering on the actress stealing away her sister's boyfriend. Now regarding their talent pool they mostly employ freelancers but have used exclusives such as Karen Yuzuriha currently and in the past, the legendary Hitomi Tanaka. At the end of the day, they're a flawed but enjoyable studio that caters to their niche quite well.

Das!

Codes: DASS, DASD

I can't say I'm an avid watcher of Das! but do occasionally check out their films if a favorite actress of mine is in the leading role. Das! made their first appearance in 2007 with one of their first major scores being Maria Ozawa, talk about a blast from the past huh? Anyway, they'd primarily focus on more hardcore themes. Some examples include gangbangs, interracial. creampies, and BDSM just to name a few that are allowable here. One famous series from their early days was "100 bukkake barage" was featuring the actress taking 100 fake cumshots which always looked extremely ridiculous. Nowadays they've mellowed out having moved away from most of those hardcore themes in favor of more vanilla themes with a slight edge. Again I don't watch them too often so they come right in at B-tier given my limited watching. They're good but can certainly be a little rough at times. 

C tier

Giga

Codes: GEXP, SPSA, THP...too many to name

Good ol' Giga. They have their specific themes and they absolutely own it. Giga is the only studio where you could pass off their films as an episode of Power Rangers...at least until about halfway through. They clearly specialize in Tokusatsu films and to that, they do a solid job in regards to their special effects. Everything looks pretty good from their uniforms and outfits to the monster costumes. There's always a level of B-movie charm which I love. But sadly their films can be pretty repetitive. Each one often features roughly the same plot with a major focus on forceful sex. As such you can expect lots of submissive acting too. Occasionally you'll get something a bit different with the actress playing a villain which is a nice change of pace. If there was just a bit more variety I could see them moving up a tier or two. But if nothing else, I definitely respect their creativity and special effects.

Venus

Codes: VEMA, VEC, VOD, VENX, VENU

Just like Giga, Venus has their own signature theme and they don't make any effort to hide it. One look at their catalog and you'll immediately know their niche. All their films center around milfs, cougars, and a certain subject that I'm sure you all know. Now you may be asking "Why are they so low?". Well, don't get me wrong as I do think they offer up a decent range of setups for their films. It's easily the best aspect of the studio. However, the execution is nearly ALWAYS the same. You'll typically get one sex scene at the start that properly incorporates the video theme, then a paizuri/handjob shower-type scene followed by a plain sex scene usually taking place in a bedroom. It all feels so manufactured and by the numbers. There are a few outliers here and there of course but it's mainly so repetitive. Doesn't help that the lighting and camerawork don't really stand out too much either.

K.M.Produce

Codes: MKMP, SCPX, SCOP, VRKM

K.M.Produce is a studio that has been around for quite some time, since 2002 actually. They have several different labels that you're probably aware of such as Scoop, Bazooka, REAL, and Million. They manage to pump out an incredible amount of videos every month. They also have a VR label that is quite good and has given us plenty of quality experiences. But when it comes to their standard releases, they can be very hit or miss overall. For example, when it comes to their Million label I find their multi-actress releases to be kinda subpar. Sometimes it feels like the cast is underutilized and their production values are just okay at best. I don't really watch their Scoop label all too much so I can't comment on that but in the few instances that I have, I thought they were just alright. I applaud their long history and large library of titles but I think they're just a slightly below-average studio in the end.

Marrion

Codes: MMKZ, MMKS, MMYU

Marrion has their specific specialty and they certainly own it. They're a household name for any seasoned ass lover out there. All their films focus on one thing only and that is the booty. They mainly produce two different labels. One is their "IRIS" label which utilizes the code, MMKZ. It's just a standard vanilla hyper-ass-focused series. MMKS is the other main code for their soapland series which again centers around the actresses' ass. All in all, I generally like Marrion but sometimes their films feel way too formulaic and manufactured. It's the same structure for every video. Same lighting and camera shots too pretty much. I wish they'd change it up a little bit from time to time. I guess the old adage, if ain't broke don't fix it, applies here.

Dandy

Codes: DANDY

I don't watch a whole lot of Dandy these days apart from a few releases here and there. That's the main reason they're a bit low on my tierlist. That and they've kinda fallen off from their glory days. Now Dandy was founded in 2006 and featured some pretty ambitious setups. They featured a lot of public sex situations and themes centering around accidental arousal. By far one of their most famous series involved flying the actress out to L.A for an interracial shoot. It made for a really fun and engaging watch. Hell, sometimes they'd even travel all the way to Africa to meet with a tribe and pretend to have a member from said tribe fuck the actress. But now that's no more and they've kinda mellowed out. They do still implore the same themes but it feels less authentic and way more staged, but I realize that's not entirely their fault. I would still love to see a new entry in their IR series but that's sadly a relic of the past at this point. 

D tier

Lunatics

Codes: LULU

Lunatics is a somewhat recent newer studio having released their first film in 2020. They don't exactly have a specific theme but often the actresses play everyday women who get themselves into different exotic scenarios. This is all well and good except for the fact that their production values are terrible. It's so painfully frustrating as they often cast some big-name actresses and feature a nice plot but every film looks the EXACT same. They pretty much only use one location for filming it seems. It's the same house every time with the same camera angles too. And don't be surprised to see some shoddy static camera use too. But perhaps even worse is the lighting. It's so drab, flat, and saturated. There is next to no variety at all. All of this combines to make every film look identical to one another. If Lunatics could use employ some new lighting at the very least it'd be a big improvement. But as it is, they're extremely subpar.

KiraKira

Codes: BLK, KIRD, KISD

Talk about a fall from grace. I use to really love KiraKira back in the day but now they are a shell of their former selves. For those unaware, KiraKira specializes in "gyaru" or gal-type actresses. They had their niche and they absolutely owned it with a nice variety of actresses and themes. But they took a major hit in 2020 from Covid and then in around 2022 when the new AV law restrictions took effect. Covid resulted in them scaling down their productions to primarily shooting in just hotel rooms. It definitely gets very tiresome after a while. But that new AV law really crippled them since they're more of a low-budget studio. They went from releasing about four new films a month to just one. Just a single new release a month. It's a wonder they're still afloat, to be honest. I'm hoping they can pull out of this and return to their former glory but it's looking a little bleak at the moment.

Dogma

Codes: GTJ, BBTU, DDT, DDB

While I certainly respect the legacy and impact of Dogma, they're not really my cup of tea. Dogma has been around for over two decades having been founded clear back in 2001 by Tohjiro. They specialize in heavy BDSM featuring ropes, binding, restraints, and various other acts that veer on the extreme side. None of that stuff appeals to me at all and that aspect makes up the vast majority of their work. They do have a different label under the code "BBTU" or "Ore No Boin" that doesn't feature any of that stuff and can be decent from time to time as a more vanilla series. Another sub-label of theirs, "Ore No Obasan" featuring the "DDOB" code can be enjoyable too. It's a femdom series shot in 4K with the star actresses playing a more sluttier role with a slight edge to it all. So while I do enjoy those two series occasionally, it's only a mere fraction of their overall catalog. It's just too hardcore for me.

Attackers

Codes: ATID, ADN, SHKD, RBD

I'm sorry but I am personally just not a fan of Attackers whatsoever. As a studio that mostly focuses on drama titles and to be more specific, forceful sex, I have next to zero interest in any of that. I suppose their production values might be solid but it's hard to enjoy any of that when 90% of their catalog is essentially the same thing and completely unappealing. I don't mind a submissive-style film once in a while but it's few and far between. And when scrolling through Attackers' films, it's exhausting as that's the majority of their work. I know Attackers has its fans out there who will disagree with my placement and that's fine. But personally, they're easily one of my least favorite studios. Plus, I hold some resentment toward them as they occasionally get some exclusive actresses and end up wasting their careers as they completely fizzle out. Nami Hoshino is a prime example. Some fans refer to this as "Attackers jail/prison". It's an awful fate.