Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa announced at the company’s 86th Annual General Meeting in Kyoto on June 26 that the company has raised base salaries for its employees by 10%. The announcement came during a shareholder Q&A session when Furukawa was asked about how Nintendo looks after its workers, given that the company does not have a workers’ union.

“We maintain salaries at an appropriate level,” Furukawa told shareholders.

“We believe it is important to ensure that compensation remains at an appropriate standard. For example, we have increased pay, including raising base salaries by 10%.”

The news was first shared publicly through live translations posted on X (formerly Twitter) by user @NStyles, who attended the meeting and shared notes in real time. Nintendo has not yet released an official English transcript of the Q&A session.

回答3
古川：給与を適切な水準を維持している。
報酬水準を適切にすることが重要だと考えている。
基本給を10%あげるなど、給与引き上げをしている。

— あれっくす (@NStyles) June 26, 2026

The timing of the salary news stands out because Nintendo’s stock has been under significant pressure. Nintendo shares fell 7.5% following the company’s Nintendo Direct presentation, which did not feature titles from major franchises like Super Mario. The stock has been weighed down by concerns over a lack of high-profile games to build momentum for the Switch 2. Overall, the shares are down around a third for the year so far.

Against all of that, the salary raise gives a different picture of what is happening inside the company. Some observers have noted that Furukawa’s wording could be describing the company’s general approach to compensation rather than a brand new raise announced at this meeting, as Nintendo also raised base salaries by 10% back in 2023. An official transcript from Nintendo would clarify the exact scope and timing of the increase.

What is clear is that employee pay remains a stated priority for Nintendo leadership, even as the company navigates a challenging stretch on the stock market.