The pottery of the Yayoi Period (250 B.C.E. - 250 C.E.) is much different than that of the Early through Late Jomon Period. Yayoi pottery is less decorated, lacking luster and appears more like its original makeup. Moreover, the Yayoi people were ethnically different from the original Jomon people, most likely arriving in Japan from the Korean peninsula. As a result, the differences in Yayoi pottery are also due in part to the influence of this new of people.

Like Jomon pottery, Yayoi pottery is also geometric. While they typically lack paints, some pieces are painted with a red pigment (such as the ceremonial pieces). What they lack in luster they make up in practicality, for they are considered to be more practical than their predecessors, the Jomon pottery. They are simple, but their usages are easily discernible, unlike that of the overly-complex Jomon pottery: jars were for storage, large jars for cooking, high-footed cups/bowls were for making offerings.