Japan cost of living

Rent and everyday costs across the 9 priced Japan cities we track, in USD.

Cheapest priced cityKyoto$879 essentials/mo
Priciest priced cityTokyo$1,306 essentials/mo
Average 1-bed outside centre$411across 9 priced cities
Kyoto vs the worldCheaper than 338 of the 535 priced cities we trackessentials, single person, USD
Tourist stay signal90 days visa-free for the US, UK, EU and 70+ other passports; 15 or 30 days for a handful of others.as of 2025-09

City-by-city monthly costs

Essentials are sourced rent outside centre plus utilities, groceries, dining, and local transport. They are not a full lifestyle budget.

Kyoto$87996.1 city$329$565$164$190$133$63$1,903
Fukuoka$88390.2 city$297$468$157$164$225$40$1,535
Sendai$88698 city$333$571$195$147$173$38$875
Nagoya$940102.9 city$354$530$202$176$147$61$1,876
Sapporo$96892.8 city$271$443$142$136$373$46$1,724
Yokohama$988103.6 city$446$1,173$158$162$165$57$2,692
Osaka$99595.6 city$517$689$150$139$157$32$1,883
Kobe$1,16784.2 municipality$465$689$193$162$284$63$1,776
Tokyo$1,30699.8 city$683$1,257$189$175$184$75$2,308

Single person, USD. Data updated August 6, 2026.

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Tokyo, Japan

Photo: Morio, CC BY-SA 3.0.