Clean and highly functional Japanese tankless toilets

The secrets of Japanese toilets that surprise foreign tourists

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The Function, History, and Hospitality of Japanese Toilets

Foreign tourists are often surprised and impressed by Japanese toilets.
You often hear stories of Hollywood stars falling in love with washlets and people saying, “Japanese toilets are cleaner than an American operating room.”

For us Japanese, who are used to having warm toilet seats in the winter and bidet-style warm water washing in every home, it’s surprising to hear that people are surprised by these things.
But there are anecdotes of a foreigner who, upon using a bidet for the first time, shouted “Wonderful!” and “Unbelievable!” from inside the stall.

This amazement isn’t just about the number of functions.
It’s a concentrated expression of Japan’s unique cultural background, technological advancements, and deep consideration for others.
This article delves into the surprising functions of the latest Japanese toilets, explores why multi-functional toilets have become so widespread in Japan, and traces their historical journey.

Table of Contents

A Look at the Amazing Features of Japan’s Latest Multi-Functional Toilets

Japanese toilets have evolved from a simple place for waste into a high-tech space that pursues comfort and cleanliness.
At the heart of this evolution is a remarkable increase in features.

Technology That Pursues Ultimate Cleanliness

The latest toilets are equipped with advanced technology that significantly reduces the effort of cleaning and maintains a constant state of cleanliness.
Leading models, such as TOTO’s “Neorest” series, incorporate special features to prevent dirt from sticking to the toilet bowl’s material.
For example, TOTO’s proprietary “CeFiONtect” technology smoothes the ceramic surface to a nano-level, one-millionth of a millimeter, to prevent dirt from adhering.
Meanwhile, LIXIL’s flagship model “Satis” features “Aqua Ceramic” technology, which uses a super-hydrophilic coating to prevent the buildup of hard water stains and allows waste to lift and wash away easily.

Furthermore, there are many functions that maintain cleanliness automatically.
TOTO’s “EWATER+” (Electrolyzed Water) is made by electrolyzing ordinary tap water.
This chemical and detergent-free water is automatically sprayed into the toilet bowl and onto the nozzle to break down and sanitize bacteria that cause stains.
LIXIL’s “Foam Clean” generates fine foam inside the bowl to not only clean away stains but also prevent urine splash-back.

The cleanliness of the nozzle is also pursued with great thoroughness.
TOTO’s “Nozzle Clean” function automatically cleans and sanitizes the nozzle’s inside and outside before and after use.
In addition to “Nozzle Auto-Cleaning,” LIXIL’s models feature a “two-nozzle” system, with separate nozzles for posterior and feminine wash, ensuring hygienic use.

The rapid progress of Japanese sanitation technology is deeply connected to the O-157 food poisoning outbreak that occurred across Japan in the mid-1990s.
This crisis heightened society’s fear of unseen bacteria and pushed consumer hygiene awareness to an extreme level.
As a result, the concept of “prevention” – inhibiting bacterial growth and preventing dirt from adhering in the first place – became a top priority in toilet development, rather than just washing away dirt.
This societal demand directly led to the creation of core technologies like “CeFiONtect” and “Aqua Ceramic.”
It was also during this period that Japan’s anti-bacterial standards were evaluated and adopted into international standards (ISO), demonstrating how Japanese toilets evolved from a societal crisis into products that provide a sense of security and safety.

Comfort and Convenience Features That Create a Pleasant Experience

Japanese multi-functional toilets focus not only on physical cleanliness but also on providing psychological comfort and peace of mind.
“Instant Heating Seat” is now a standard feature, making the discomfort of sitting on a cold seat a thing of the past.
The “Full Auto Seat” function, which automatically opens and closes the lid in response to a person’s presence, reduces back strain and offers a hygienic, touch-free experience.

Ease of cleaning is also a key theme. The rimless design, or “rimless bowl,” allows for quick and easy cleaning with just a single wipe.
The gap between the seat and the bowl is a common spot for dirt to accumulate, but the “Auto Lift Seat” function, which electronically lifts the seat, makes cleaning this area effortless.

Some features were born out of a uniquely Japanese consideration for “sound.”
The “Otohime” (Toilet Sound Princess), a device that plays flushing sounds to mask bodily noises, was born from the psychological concern of Japanese women and is now a staple in public restrooms.
LIXIL’s latest models even include “Relaxing Music” that automatically plays inside the stall to create a more pleasant atmosphere.

These comfort features are directly linked to the “spirit of hospitality” that surprises foreign tourists.
“Otohime” and “Relaxing Music” especially symbolize a “consideration for others” within a private space.
They are products that go beyond mere convenience, embodying a manufacturer’s imagination and effort to ensure users can feel completely comfortable and at ease.

A New Frontier: Health Management Features

The evolution of Japanese multi-functional toilets has finally entered the new domain of “health.”
TOTO’s latest “Neorest” model, scheduled for release in June 2025, will feature a groundbreaking function called “BENSCAN.”

This technology uses a sensor built next to the washlet nozzle outlet that projects and receives LED light onto the user’s stool during defecation to automatically measure its “shape (firmness),” “color,” and “volume.”
The measured data is automatically transferred via Bluetooth to a smartphone, where it can be easily checked daily on a dedicated app, “TOTO Wellness.”
The stool’s shape is classified into seven types based on TOTO’s unique system, which references the internationally recognized “Bristol Stool Chart.”

This is a revolutionary change that redefines the toilet from a simple place of excretion to a “personal healthcare platform” for easily checking one’s health status in daily life.
By automating and visualizing information that individuals rarely recorded or managed on their own, this technology aims to support users’ healthy lifestyles and contribute to preventative medicine.

Even Japanese people are surprised by this function.
If I were to replace my toilet, I would definitely consider a model with this feature.

Feature/Performance	TOTO “Neorest LS/AS”	LIXIL “Satis X”
Water-saving performance	3.8L flush (large)	ECO5/ECO6 (LIXIL’s proprietary ultra water-saving technology)
Toilet bowl material	CeFiONtect	Aqua Ceramic
Auto-clean function	EWATER+	Foam Clean
Flush system	Tornado Flush	Kiwami Triple Flush
Nozzle clean function	Nozzle Clean	Nozzle Auto-Cleaning
Number of nozzles	1	2 for posterior and bidet
Privacy features	Otohime	Relaxing Music
Comfort/Convenience features	Full Auto Seat, Auto Flush	Full Auto Seat, Auto Flush
Health management features	BENSCAN	Not available

Comparison of Latest Japanese Toilet Models (TOTO vs. LIXIL)

Why Japan? The Reasons Behind the Birth of Multi-Functional Toilets

Why have such feature-rich, high-performance toilets become so widespread and evolved so uniquely in Japan?
The background is a complex interplay of cultural, environmental, and technological factors.

Cultural and Psychological Background

Since ancient times, Japan has had unique attitudes toward human waste.
Most Japanese people were taught by their grandparents or parents the story of the “Toilet God,” a deity who resides in the toilet.
They were taught that homes with clean toilets would prosper, while those that neglected toilet cleaning would fall into decline.
This teaching may be at the root of the Japanese culture of naturally keeping toilets clean.

One theory suggests that while there are positive stories in Shintoism where gods are born from excrement, there are also stories that treat waste as dirty, leading to a “neutral” stance on excretion.
Especially from the Kamakura to the Edo periods, human waste was a valuable fertilizer (“shimogoe”) for crops and was commercialized.
This unique culture of using human waste formed a non-binary concept of viewing excretion not merely as waste but as a resource.

However, after Japan opened up to the West during the Meiji period, exposure to Western hygiene concepts led the Japanese to perceive their own waste culture as “dirty.”
As negative accounts from foreigners attest, society as a whole developed an inferiority complex about its lack of hygiene and sought to catch up with and surpass the West.
As a reaction, Japan was compelled to “differentiate” itself not only in superficial cleanliness but also in function and psychological comfort.
This “distinction competition” became the driving force behind the creation of the superior cleanliness and diverse features like bidets, sound masking devices, and deodorizing functions that surpass those of other countries.

Technological and Environmental Factors

A crucial factor in the evolution of Japanese multi-functional toilets is that Japan’s tap water is “soft water.”
Bidets are precision electrical products that spray water from a motor and nozzles.
In many countries, especially in Europe and Southeast Asia, tap water is “hard water,” and limescale buildup can cause motors and pipes to fail within a few years.

In contrast, Japan’s fortunate environment of soft water allowed manufacturers to focus on developing more complex and multi-functional products without having to solve the technical problem of hard water failure.
This environmental advantage is a major reason why Japanese toilets evolved in a “Galapagos” fashion.
When attempting to expand overseas, many technical and legal hurdles – such as differences in voltage, plumbing, and toilet bowl sizes, as well as strict waterproofing standards – have hindered the global spread of Japanese multi-functional toilets.

A Historical Look at the Trajectory of Multi-Functionality

The multi-functionality of Japanese toilets is not a mere accident but has progressed in stages, with a close link between historical milestones and technological innovation.

Birth and Dawn (1960s-1970s)

The history of Japanese sanitary ware began in 1914 when TOTO’s founder, Kazuchika Okura, was impressed by Western toilet culture and developed Japan’s first Western-style flush toilet at a time when sewer systems were barely developed.

The story of the bidet began in 1964 when Ina Seito (now LIXIL) started importing and selling a Swiss bidet, and Toyo Toki (now TOTO) began importing and selling an American model.
At first, they were treated as specialized products for medical and welfare use. Later, Ina Seito launched Japan’s first bidet-equipped toilet in 1967, and Toyo Toki successfully commercialized a Japanese-made bidet in 1969, marking the full-scale start of product development by Japanese manufacturers.

Year	Event	Major Functions Introduced
1914	Japan’s first Western-style flush toilet developed	–
1964	Ina Seito and Toyo Toki begin importing/selling bidets	Bidet function
1967	Ina Seito launches Japan’s first bidet-equipped toilet	–
1969	Toyo Toki successfully commercializes Japanese-made bidets	–
1980	TOTO launches the “Washlet” bidet	–
1982	“My rear wants to be washed, too” TV commercial becomes a hit	–
Late 1980s	Japanese-style toilet shipments fall below 20%	In-bowl deodorizer function
1992	–	Automatic toilet lid opening/closing function
1995	O-157 problem becomes a social issue	Anti-bacterial toilet, auto-flush function
1999	–	TOTO “CeFiONtect” developed
2000s~	Focus on improved cleanliness and ease of cleaning accelerates	–
2002	Bidet-equipped toilet penetration exceeds 50%	Music playback function
2006	–	Ultra-water-saving (6L flush) toilets appear
2016	–	LIXIL “Aqua Ceramic” launched
2017	Japan Tourism Agency provides subsidies for toilet modernization	–
2022	Domestic cumulative shipment of bidets reaches 100 million units	–
2025	TOTO to release model with “BENSCAN” function	Health management features

Timeline of Japanese Multi-Functional Toilet Evolution

Widespread Adoption and Gaining Acceptance (1980s)

The turning point for the widespread adoption of bidets in Japan was the launch of TOTO’s “Washlet” in 1980 and the impactful 1982 TV commercial with the tagline, “Oshiri datte, aratte hoshii” (My rear wants to be washed, too).
This humorous commercial broke the taboo surrounding washing one’s rear and quickly captured public interest.
As a result, the bidet transitioned from being a mere medical/welfare device to a “comfortable and hygienic daily necessity” that everyone should use.

The success of this commercial was more than just product advertising; it was a social innovation that transformed Japanese toilet culture itself.
The bidet rapidly penetrated homes, and by the late 1980s, the shipment ratio of Japanese-style squat toilets sharply declined, accelerating the shift from Japanese-style to Western-style toilets.
The dramatic increase in adoption during this period laid a solid market foundation for the subsequent increase in features.

Acceleration and Maturation of Multi-Functionality (1990s-2000s)

In the 1990s, bidets entered an era of even greater multi-functionality.
In 1992, the automatic lid opening/closing function was introduced, and in 1995, an auto-flush function appeared.
The O-157 outbreak in 1995 also spurred the spread of anti-bacterial toilets and motivated manufacturers to focus heavily on improving cleanliness and ease of cleaning.

By the 2000s, the household penetration rate of bidets exceeded 50%, and the market matured further.
During this period, features that pursued greater comfort and environmental friendliness, such as water-saving toilets and in-bowl music playback, were introduced one after another.
This was the result of a mature “problem-solving innovation” characteristic of Japanese manufacturing, where manufacturers proactively address users’ latent dissatisfactions and needs.

A Tourism-Oriented Nation and the Hospitality of Toilets (2010s-Present)

Since the 2010s, with the increase in foreign tourists, Japanese toilets have gone beyond being products for the domestic market and have been positioned as a part of a “national strategy” to attract inbound tourism.
As foreign tourists’ awe for Japanese toilets was reported in the media, they became an icon symbolizing “Cool Japan.”

In 2017, the Japan Tourism Agency established a subsidy program to encourage the conversion of public toilets to Western-style ones and the installation of bidets. Many municipalities, including Narita Airport, Toshima Ward, and Shinagawa Ward, are working to create “hospitality toilets” for foreign tourists, introducing multi-language pictograms and striving to improve convenience.
As a result, Japanese multi-functional toilets have elevated their stage from a purely inward-looking evolution to an outward-looking one, showcasing the Japanese spirit of hospitality to the world.

Conclusion: A Japanese Toilet Is More Than Just a Toilet

The reason foreign tourists are surprised by Japanese toilets is not just because they have a lot of functions.
They are surprised because they sense that the Japanese toilet is a symbol of Japanese culture, which pursues cleanliness, comfort, and convenience, and a prime example of “omotenashi” – hospitality – to visitors.

Looking back at history, the multi-functionality of Japanese toilets has evolved uniquely in response to societal demands, with a complex interplay of changing hygiene concepts, geographical advantages, and intense competition among manufacturers.
And now, Japanese toilets continue to evolve, offering a new value of “health” and becoming an indispensable part of our lives.
Japanese toilets are more than just toilets; they are a concentrated expression of Japanese culture, history, and a vision for the future – truly a “wonderful” existence.