A literature-based list of sea spiders (pycnogonids) recorded in Japanese waters since 1891 is provided. The list includes a comprehensive collection of sampling records with geographical and bathymetric data. The present list reveals that 171 species of pycnogonids in 34 genera and 11 families have been recorded in Japanese waters. From the last comprehensive counting in 1991, 17 species have been added to the list of Japanese pycnogonid fauna over the past 30 years. The present species number nearly reaches the previously estimated species number (173 spp. in 2010). However, more species are expected in further collections from abyssal and even shallow waters.