サイレント値上げ

• 読み: サイレントねあげ
• ローマ字: sairento neage
• 漢字の分解: サイレント (from English 'silent') + 値上げ (price increase; 値 = price/value + 上げ = raise) → silent/stealth price hike
• 発音: /sa.i.ɾeɴ.to.ne.a.ɡe/

意味

A stealth price hike where a product's quantity or size shrinks while the listed price stays the same or barely changes.

サイレント値上げ (also called ステルス値上げ or シュリンクフレーション/shrinkflation) has become a hot-button consumer issue in Japan. As costs rise, companies reduce package sizes, lower filling amounts, or use thinner materials while maintaining the same price. Examples are regularly documented and shared on social media: chocolate bars getting smaller, ice cream cups shrinking, snack bag weights decreasing. It's a source of genuine frustration and viral outrage.

例文

1. このお菓子、サイレント値上げで内容量20g減ってるの気づいた？
2. サイレント値上げされてるの分かるけど、何も言えない消費者が悔しい。
3. 企業のサイレント値上げをまとめたツイートがバズってて、みんな怒ってた。

使い方ガイド

場面: social media, consumer discussions, news, daily conversation

トーン: critical, frustrated

正しい言い方

• またサイレント値上げされてるじゃん、量減ってない？ (It got stealth-raised again — didn't the portion shrink?)
• サイレント値上げよりも正直に値上げしてくれた方がまだいい。 (I'd rather they honestly raise the price than do a stealth hike.)

避ける言い方

• 従業員に「サイレント値上げひどいね」と言っても仕方ない — 決めているのは経営陣 (Complaining about stealth price hikes to store employees is pointless — management makes those decisions)

よくある間違い

• Using サイレント値上げ for a standard announced price increase — the term specifically implies the increase is hidden or disguised through quantity reduction

起源と歴史

From English 'silent' (サイレント) + 値上げ (price increase; 値 = price + 上げ = raise). Became a widely used consumer term in the 2010s-2020s as inflation-wary Japanese companies chose to shrink products rather than raise prices visibly.

文化的背景

時代: 2010s-2020s, accelerated during post-pandemic inflation

世代: All ages, especially household shoppers

社会的背景: Universal

地域メモ: Used across all of Japan. Also called ステルス値上げ or the loanword シュリンクフレーション (shrinkflation). Social media accounts dedicated to documenting サイレント値上げ have gained large followings.