“A5 wagyu” gets used as a marketing term almost as often as it gets used correctly. If you've searched for what A5 or A4 actually means, here's the real breakdown of how Japan grades Wagyu — and how it compares to the other grading systems you'll see on Super Farm.
The Two Numbers Behind Japanese Wagyu Grading
Japan's official beef grade — the “A5” you see everywhere — is actually two separate scores combined:
- Yield Grade (A, B or C) — how much usable meat the carcass yields. A is the highest yield.
- Quality Grade (1 to 5) — marbling, meat colour, meat texture and fat colour/quality, combined into one score. 5 is the highest.
Put them together and you get grades like A5, A4, B5, C3 and so on. A5 is simply the best possible combination of both scores.
What Is BMS (Beef Marbling Standard)?
Marbling itself is separately measured on the BMS scale, from 1 (almost no marbling) to 12 (extreme marbling). Quality Grade 5 requires a BMS of roughly 8–12, which is why “A5” and “heavily marbled” are usually — but not always — the same thing.
A5 vs A4 — Is the Extra Grade Worth It?
In practice, A4 is still exceptional beef — most Western grain-fed beef doesn't come close to A4 marbling. A5 pushes further into extremely rich, almost dessert-like richness, at a noticeably higher price. If you're new to Wagyu, A4 is the more approachable (and more affordable) place to start; A5 is for when richness is the whole point of the meal.
Wagyu Grading Isn't Universal
Japan's A5/A4/BMS system only applies to Japanese Wagyu. Other Wagyu-adjacent beef on Super Farm uses different scales entirely:
- Snake River Farms (American Wagyu) — graded Silver, Black or Gold by marbling. See the Snake River Farms collection.
- Sir Harry (Australian Wagyu) — graded on the Australian Marble Score, roughly MB4 to MB9+. See the Sir Harry collection.
- Hanwoo (Korean beef) — not Wagyu at all, but graded on its own 1++ to 3 scale. See our Hanwoo buying guide.
None of these grades convert directly onto each other — a Gold-grade Snake River Farms ribeye and an A5 Kagoshima ribeye are both excellent, but they're not measured the same way.
Shop Japanese Wagyu by Region and Grade
Super Farm carries A4 and A5 Wagyu from multiple Japanese regions — Kagoshima, Kumamoto, Saga, Miyazaki, Miyagi, Iwate, Hida and Hokkaido — across ribeye and striploin cuts. Browse the full Japanese Wagyu collection, or message us on WhatsApp at +852 6633 8638 if you want a recommendation by grade or occasion.