| Year | Film | Actress |
|---|
| 1947 | The Love of the Actress Sumako
Marriage
Fushichō | Kinuyo Tanaka |
| 1948 | Women of the Night
A Hen in the Wind | Kinuyo Tanaka |
| 1949 | Late Spring
Aoi sanmyaku
Here's to the Girls | Setsuko Hara |
| 1950 | Rashomon
Clothes of Deception | Machiko Kyō |
| 1951 | Repast
Early Summer | Setsuko Hara |
| 1952 | Hakone Fūunroku
The Moderns | Isuzu Yamada |
| 1953 | A Japanese Tragedy | Yūko Mochizuki |
| 1954 | Twenty-Four Eyes
The Garden of Women
Somewhere Under the Broad Sky
Aku no Yuyushisa | Hideko Takamine |
| 1955 | Floating Clouds | Hideko Takamine |
| 1956 | Flowing
Neko to Shōzō to Futari no Onna
Boshizō | Isuzu Yamada |
| 1957 | Untamed Woman
Times of Joy and Sorrow | Hideko Takamine |
| 1958 | Summer Clouds
Hotarubi | Chikage Awashima |
| 1959 | Kiku to Isamu | Tanie Kitabayashi |
| 1960 | Her Brother | Keiko Kishi |
| 1961 | Immortal Love
Happiness of Us Alone | Hideko Takamine |
| 1962 | Akitsu Springs
Kotoshi no Koi | Mariko Okada |
| 1963 | The Insect Woman
She and He | Sachiko Hidari |
| 1964 | Sweet Sweat | Machiko Kyō |
| 1965 | A Fugitive from the Past | Sachiko Hidari |
| 1966 | The River Kino | Yoko Tsukasa |
| 1967 | Portrait of Chieko
Clouds at Sunset | Shima Iwashita |
| 1968 | Operation Negligee
Kuroneko | Nobuko Otowa |
| 1969 | Double Suicide
The Song from My Heart | Shima Iwashita |
| 1970 | Where Spring Comes Late
Tora-san's Runaway | Chieko Baisho |
| 1971 | Here to Kill You | Sumiko Fuji |
| 1972 | The Long Darkness | Komaki Kurihara |
| 1973 | Seigen-ki | Atsuko Kaku |
| 1974 | Sandakan No. 8
Three Old Ladies | Kinuyo Tanaka |
| 1975 | Tora-san's Rise and Fall | Ruriko Asaoka |
| 1976 | Brother and Sister | Kumiko Akiyoshi |
| 1977 | Ballad of Orin | Shima Iwashita |
| 1978 | The Love Suicides at Sonezaki | Meiko Kaji |
| 1979 | No More Easy Life | Kaori Momoi |
| 1980 | A Distant Cry from Spring | Chieko Baisho |
| 1981 | Station
Tora-san's Love in Osaka | Chieko Baisho |
| 1982 | Fall Guy
Lovers Lost | Keiko Matsuzaka |
| 1983 | Crossing Mt. Amagi | Yūko Tanaka |
| 1984 | Ohan
Station to Heaven | Sayuri Yoshinaga |
| 1985 | Love Letter
Ikiteru Uchiga Hana Nanoyo Shin-dara Sore Madeyo Tō Sengen | Mitsuko Baisho |
| 1986 | House on Fire
Tokei – Adieu l'hiver | Ayumi Ishida |
| 1987 | River of Fireflies
Yogisha
Gokudo no onna-tachi 2 | Yukiyo Toake |
| 1988 | Kaitō Ruby | Kyōko Koizumi |
| 1989 | Black Rain
Godzilla vs. Biollante | Yoshiko Tanaka |
| 1990 | The Sting of Death | Keiko Matsuzaka |
| 1991 | Rainbow Kids | Tanie Kitabayashi |
| 1992 | The Oil-Hell Murder
Netorare Sosuke | Miwako Fujitani |
| 1993 | All Under the Moon | Ruby Moreno |
| 1994 | Turning Point | Sayuri Yoshinaga |
| 1995 | A Last Note | Haruko Sugimura |
| 1996 | Kyoko | Saki Takaoka |
| 1997 | Tokyo Lullaby | Kaori Momoi |
| 1998 | Begging for Love | Mieko Harada |
| 1999 | Will to Live
Poppoya
The Black House | Shinobu Otake |
| 2000 | Face | Naomi Fujiyama |
| 2001 | Turn | Riho Makise |
| 2002 | The Laughing Frog
Man Walking on Snow
Utsutsu | Nene Otsuka |
| 2003 | Akame 48 Waterfalls
{{citation needed span>text=Vibrator|reason=This is not in Mainichi Film Award, maybe 25th Yokohama Film Festival.|date=April 2015}} | Shinobu Terajima |
| 2004 | Kamikaze Girls | Kyoko Fukada |
| 2005 | Hibi
Itsuka dokusho suruhi | Yūko Tanaka |
| 2006 | Memories of Matsuko | Miki Nakatani |
| 2007 | Town of Evening Calm, Country of Cherry Blossoms | Kumiko Aso |
| 2008 | The Kiss | Eiko Koike |
| 2009 | Nonchan Noriben | Manami Konishi |
| 2010 | Caterpillar[1] | Shinobu Terajima |
| 2011 | Mainichi Kaasan[2] | Kyōko Koizumi |
| 2012 | The Cowards Who Looked to the Sky | Tomoko Tabata |
| 2013 | Pecoross' Mother and Her Days | Harue Akagi |
| 2014 | 0.5 mm | Sakura Ando |
| 2015 | Our Little Sister | Haruka Ayase |
| 2016 | Harmonium | Mariko Tsutsui |
| 2017 | Before We Vanish | Masami Nagasawa |
| 2018 | Shoplifters | Sakura Ando |
1. ^{{cite web |url= http://www.tokyohive.com/2011/01/akunin-wins-the-grand-prize-at-the-65th-mainichi-film-awards/|title= "Akunin" wins the Grand Prize at the 65th Mainichi Film Awards|author= HPriest|date=2011-01-18|accessdate= 2013-03-27|work= tokyohive|publisher= 6Theory Media, LLC.}}
2. ^{{cite web |url= http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2012-01-17/hotarubi-no-mori-e-663114-win-at-66th-mainichi-film-awards|title= Hotarubi no Mori e, 663114 Win at 66th Mainichi Film Awards|date=2012-01-17|accessdate= 2013-03-27|work= Anime News Network}}
{{Mainichi Film Award}}{{Mainichi Film Award for Best Actress}}{{film-award-stub}}