I discovered Hatsune Miku in 2007, the year she was released, after a friend I made online recommended her to me. After Miku grew to be massively popular in Japan, fans started to reupload the NicoNicoDouga videos to YouTube, allowing foreign fans to connect with them. The first song my friend sent me was “Ievan Polkka”. I was only 12 at the time, so the upbeat and silly song gave me a lot of joy. From there, I found classics such as “Melt”, or “Miku Miku Ni Shite Ageru”, and the more I began to love Hatsune Miku, the more I was able to connect with fans. We would discuss in the comment sections of videos, over chat rooms, and even exchanged fan art. It was exciting to be a part of a growing community.

During my teenage years, Miku only grew in popularity. Artists, writers, producers, and film makers all worked together to create fanmade PVs that spread overseas and across the world. I got to watch Miku, in real time, go from a niche software to a worldwide phenomenon. Fans connected over their love of Miku and created works for each other, creating a true collaborative community. I taught myself how to draw copying scenes from the MVs, and sang karaoke over voice-chat with friends around the world to her songs. Growing up, I struggled with chronic pain, and discovering wowaka’s ‘Rolling Girl’ during this time was pivotal to keeping my head up on difficult days. Even now, I will tell myself to ‘keep rolling’ when times are tough!

I am an adult now, and my friends from that time have moved on. I don’t visit those chat rooms anymore, or discuss in the YouTube comment sections. The underground producers who wrote songs with barely any views are now chart-topping legends - such as DECO*27, who has multiple official figures sold here at HLJ. Some have even passed away, like wowaka and samfree.

There were times when the Vocaloid fandom seemed to be drying up; like the buzz of Miku was finally over. All of the big 3 - DECO*27, wowaka and Hachi - took a break from posting Vocaloid music in the early 2010s, and new names were not gaining popularity at the speed their predecessors had. In 2017, for Miku’s 10th birthday, Hachi released Dune, a commentary on the dying Vocaloid fandom - with a hopeful ending likening the new producers to "the wind that blows away the desert".

Hachi was right - Vocaloid came back stronger than ever. By the late 2010s, one million views no longer seemed to be a huge milestone for Vocaloid releases, and by the 2020s, multiple songs had reached over one hundred million. Every hobby store in Japan is filled with figures and merchandise of Miku and her friends, her songs have made it back to the radio, and Miku even performed at Coachella Music Festival - twice! Fans have dubbed it the "Vocaloid Renaissance”, and there couldn’t be a better time to be a fan, whether you’ve been here from day one, or reading this article inspired you to give Miku a try!

First Nendoroid, 2008

This was the first of many Miku nendoroids, and was an iconic staple of Vocaloid fanculture in the early years. I remember trying to find this anywhere and everywhere - I ended up with my first and only bootleg. Always buy from reputable companies, folks!

Miku has over 100 nendoroids as of 2025, making her the character with the most by far! Here’s some photos from a nendoroid exhibition I went to celebrating her 100th nendoroid!

First Figma, 2008

Coming in at the 14th character to become a figma, Miku has been there since the beginning - this figma released for only 2,500yen!

Miku has continued with the figma line, with around 20 available. Most entries are Racing Miku designs, so these are a must-have for Racing fans!

Scale Figures

Good Smile Company released the “Hatsune Miku 1/8” scale figure in 2008. The style closely resembles KEI’s original artwork, which made it popular enough to have another version release the following year, a “Hatsune Miku CM Ver. 1/8” featuring a different facial expression.

The scale figures are one of the places Miku shines the most. There are many highly detailed, incredibly sculpted scale figures. Due to the price point of these figures, I usually recommend these for dedicated fans or advanced collectors, but there are some budget options too - I recommend brands such as DesignCOCO if you are just getting started with scales!

Prize Figures

The volume of prize figures for Miku is, without exaggeration, massive. Prize figures are my preferred collectible, and despite filling over 5 shelves in my home, I have barely scratched the surface of available prize figures for her. These are a great option for those of you looking for a budget option that is still good quality, especially if you are interested in more experimental designs and collaborations.

Good Smile Racing

Every year since 2010 there has been at least one design for Good Smile Racing. “Racing Miku”, as she is often called colloquially, is one of her most popular subsidiary designs. A different famous illustrator is selected each year, who designs Miku in their style. This allows for a wide range of designs and styles that makes Racing Miku an ideal choice for collectors! My personal favorites are 2023 designed by Toridamono (the illustrator behind some Atelier Ryza games) and 2018 designed by Hiro Kanzaki (the mangaka behind Oreimo).

Snow Miku

Originally, Snow Miku was just a recolour of her original design, but every year since 2011, she has had a new design. Since 2012, these are fan designs chosen by popular vote, so unlike Racing Miku, Snow Miku may be designed by a non-professional. This is always a super exciting event that I look forward to every year! My favourite is 2023 - I missed out on her nendoroid and I am still looking for her second hand!

Miku, or Vocaloid in general, is one of the most accessible spaces for merchandise or figures. Due to having almost 20 years of releases with fairly maintained popularity, Miku has a huge backlog of merchandise, as well as a steady future release schedule. If you’re starting from complete scratch, here’s my recommendations:

Acrylic Stands
Acrylic stands are affordable, and come in a wide variety of designs and sizes. This makes it easy to find the style you enjoy the most for the lowest price! My personal favorite range is the ‘Miku x Rascal’ ongoing collaboration series, but I also recommend the 39Culture range due to the huge variety in designs!

Prize Figures
Another affordable option with a large range, prize figures are great if you are looking for something with more dimension. The challenge with prize figures is short release windows that can make it difficult to get the figure of your dreams, but the upside is the strong second hand market for prizes! A lot of my collection is second hand, so I recommend that too as a way to give collecting a try.