Market Overview

Based on sales from relevant businesses, the virtual assistant services market size, which comprises eleven segments, was estimated at 42.515 billion yen in FY2024, marking an impressive year-over-year increase of 20.1%. This substantial growth was driven by severe labor shortages and recruitment difficulties experienced by companies across industries. Many of these companies sought to outsource personnel, including virtual assistants, as a solution.

The widespread adoption of remote work during the pandemic reduced companies’ hesitation toward outsourcing, further contributing to market expansion. As working from home became commonplace, employees were freed from commuting and no longer constrained by location. Consequently, more workers chose to work online, attracting a larger labor pool than other HR services, such as temporary staffing. This, in turn, helped virtual assistant services become more prevalent.

Noteworthy Topics

The Largest and Most Growing Segment in Virtual Assistant Services is Bookkeeping

In FY2024, the largest segment within virtual assistant services by work category was bookkeeping. As mentioned above, the more severe a company's labor shortage, the more reliant it became on outsourcing essential tasks— and bookkeeping was no exception. An increasing number of companies have engaged external experts to handle their internal bookkeeping operations.
Since cloud services and SaaS solutions now cover most bookkeeping functions, virtual assistant services in this field are closely aligned with these digital platforms. Accordingly, the anticipated expansion of cloud and SaaS adoption is expected to drive further growth in virtual assistant services for bookkeeping.

Future Outlook

Based on sales from relevant businesses, the market size of virtual assistant services, which comprises eleven segments, is projected to reach 50.670 billion yen in FY2025, marking a 19.2% year-over-year increase. The market is also expected to reach 89.5 billion yen by FY2029.

Amid ongoing severe labor shortages, virtual assistant services are expected to become an essential labor resource after FY2025, since they enable remote work and facilitate recruitment.

Traditionally, only large companies were able to benefit from cost reductions through outsourcing, since conventional outsourcing services required a certain volume of work. As a result, few SMEs could take advantage of these services. However, virtual assistant services make it easier for companies of all sizes—including sole proprietors—to complete necessary tasks regardless of volume or timing. Consequently, these services are likely to become increasingly widespread.

Additionally, virtual assistant services allow experts to assist companies irrespective of their location. As awareness grows, outsourcing is expected to become more accessible to SMEs. 

Furthermore, given their close alignment with digital services such as SaaS and AI, the continued spread of these technologies is likely to drive further adoption of virtual assistant services across multiple segments. 

Research Outline