Japan vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Japan United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1200
$2213
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3051
$5003
🏠 One person rent
$546
$1399
🏘️ Family rent
$1049
$2331
🍽️ Food expenses
$407
$568
🚐 Transport expenses
$144
$98
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2447
$4223
💸 GDP per capita
$39313
$70249
😃 Human freedom index
8.39
8.23
❤️ Life expectancy
84.6
77.3
👮 Corruption perceptions index
73
69
🌐 English speaking %
15%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
99
100
😀 Quality of life
93
86
🏙️ Population
125M
331M

The average cost of living in Japan ($1200) is 46% less expensive than in the United States ($2213). Japan ranked 44th vs 5th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 2 months in Japan compared to 1.9 months in the United States. Ranked 11th and 22nd best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Japan vs United States infographic

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Prices in Japan vs the United States

We calculate prices for Japan and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 907 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Japan United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$6.71
$16.6
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$34.8
$63.3
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$5.4
$9.07
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.41
$5.45
 Cappuccino
$3.09
$4.64
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.11
$2.26
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$532
$1483
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$376
$1154
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1146
$2565
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$782
$1971
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$104
$113
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$159
$173
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$35
$67.3
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
1.46%
5.25%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4231
$4618
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2886
$3344
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.9
$2.23
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$65.9
$65.5
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$26.4
$17.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.21
$1.01
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.43
$1.05
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.54
$3.04
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.36
$3.99
🥚 Eggs, x12
$1.89
$3.91
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.6
$11.8
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$7.01
$11.7
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$18.7
$15
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.94
$4.66
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.59
$1.72
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.27
$4.07
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.38
$4.27
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.92
$2.61
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.34
$2.55
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.61
$1.27
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.61
$2.26
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$9.22
$13.1
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.05
$2.7
🚬 Cigarette pack
$4.14
$9.13
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$11.7
$8.81
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.77
$5.27
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.55
$3.89
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.87
$1.95
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$55.4
$43.4
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$12.8
$12.6
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$35.2
$112
💇 Haircut, simple
$16.8
$18.9
👖 Brand Jeans
$46.4
$47.3
👟 Brand Sneakers
$61.2
$82.8
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$347
$1178
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$12476
$15443

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Japan vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Japan

City Cost of living Population
Tokyo
$1778
14M
Yokohama
$1555
3.76M
Osaka
$1296
2.75M
Nagoya
$1379
2.33M
Kawasaki
$1105
1.54M
Kobe
$1322
1.52M
Sapporo
$1143
1.96M
Hiroshima
$1212
1.2M
Sendai
$1128
1.06M
Kyoto
$1226
1.46M
Fukuoka
$1316
1.6M
Saitama
$1133
1.33M
Kitakyushu
$1125
935K
Sakai
$1201
824K
Chiba
$1389
975K
Yokosuka
$1154
390K
Kumamoto
$1064
738K
Sagamihara
$1178
726K
Kagoshima
$1178
594K
Funabashi
$1238
641K
Kawaguchi
$1084
593K
Kashiwa
$1090
428K
Okayama
$1113
720K
Hachioji
$1245
576K
Amagasaki
$1217
451K
Utsunomiya
$1153
518K
Niigata
$1070
791K
Shizuoka
$1121
686K
Hamamatsu
$1203
788K
Himeji
$1213
528K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$3723
8.8M
Los Angeles
$2975
3.9M
Chicago
$2372
2.75M
Houston
$2141
2.3M
Phoenix
$2552
1.61M
Philadelphia
$2463
1.6M
San Diego
$2965
1.39M
Dallas
$2489
1.3M
San Jose
$2972
1.01M
San Antonio
$1885
1.43M
San Francisco
$3507
874K
Austin
$2672
962K
Seattle
$2881
737K
Jacksonville
$2109
950K
Fort Worth
$2104
919K
Charlotte
$2680
875K
Indianapolis
$2086
888K
Washington
$2703
690K
Denver
$2527
716K
Columbus
$2103
906K
Boston
$3013
676K
Hempstead
$2889
793K
Nashville
$2707
668K
Memphis
$1698
633K
Portland
$2375
653K
Baltimore
$2012
586K
Albuquerque
$1833
565K
Milwaukee
$2092
577K
El Paso
$1413
679K
Long Beach
$2538
467K