Japan vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Japan United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1131
$2515
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$2766
$5738
🏠 One person rent
$508
$1593
🏘️ Family rent
$842
$2641
🍽️ Food expenses
$391
$654
🚐 Transport expenses
$133
$101
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1971
$4433
💸 GDP per capita
$32487
$84534
😃 Human freedom index
8.6
8.71
❤️ Life expectancy
84
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
71
64
🌐 English speaking %
15%
95.3%
🎓 Higher education
98
100
😀 Quality of life
89
88
🏙️ Population
124M
340M

The average cost of living in Japan ($1131) is 55% less expensive than in the United States ($2515). Japan ranked 78th vs 10th 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 1.7 months in Japan compared to 1.8 months in the United States. Ranked 20th and 21st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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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
$6.55
$19.7
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$34.6
$78.4
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$4.99
$11.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.16
$6.36
 Cappuccino
$3.09
$5.38
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.12
$2.69
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$526
$1682
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$353
$1341
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1138
$3111
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$682
$2433
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$94.4
$129
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$146
$198
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$30.9
$68.4
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
1.89%
6.36%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5340
$4955
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2928
$3526
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.62
$2.34
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$60.5
$70.6
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$24.8
$17.9
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.11
$0.91
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.43
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.4
$3.61
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.31
$4.52
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.1
$4.83
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.9
$13.5
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.36
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$20.7
$17.2
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.87
$5.09
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.37
$1.86
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.9
$4.5
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.67
$4.76
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.6
$2.87
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.59
$2.94
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.55
$1.52
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.37
$2.75
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$9.07
$14.8
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.95
$2.43
🚬 Cigarette pack
$3.92
$11
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.73
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.47
$6.64
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.31
$4.55
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.56
$2.22
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$55
$52
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$12.2
$14.5
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$35
$123
💇 Haircut, simple
$15.8
$22.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$46.6
$55.1
👟 Brand Sneakers
$57.2
$93.8
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$388
$1517
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$13435
$21058

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
$1698
14.3M
Yokohama
$1343
3.76M
Osaka
$1274
2.75M
Nagoya
$1196
2.33M
Kawasaki
$1399
1.54M
Sapporo
$1121
1.96M
Hiroshima
$877
1.2M
Kobe
$1103
1.52M
Kyoto
$1128
1.46M
Fukuoka
$1045
1.6M
Saitama
$1073
1.33M
Sagamihara
$992
726K
Sakai
$1127
824K
Chiba
$1263
975K
Shizuoka
$961
686K
Kitakyushu
$1088
935K
Sendai
$1010
1.06M
Hachioji
$1343
576K
Funabashi
$1130
641K
Niigata
$1024
791K
Kawaguchi
$1050
594K
Kumamoto
$957
738K
Hamamatsu
$991
788K
Kagoshima
$991
594K
Machida
$1066
434K
Kashiwa
$1145
428K
Himeji
$1009
528K
Utsunomiya
$1036
518K
Nishinomiya
$1093
487K
Okayama
$910
720K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4207
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3378
3.9M
Chicago
$2822
2.75M
Houston
$2265
2.3M
San Diego
$3507
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2597
1.6M
Phoenix
$2357
1.61M
San Francisco
$4040
874K
Dallas
$2461
1.3M
San Antonio
$2063
1.43M
San Jose
$3962
1.01M
Seattle
$3154
737K
Austin
$2444
962K
Boston
$3638
676K
Washington
$3306
690K
Hempstead
$2697
793K
Fort Worth
$2219
919K
Charlotte
$2403
875K
Indianapolis
$2374
888K
Jacksonville
$2224
950K
Columbus
$2127
906K
Denver
$2791
716K
Portland
$2738
653K
Nashville
$2477
689K
Atlanta
$2617
499K
Oklahoma City
$1922
681K
Las Vegas
$2407
642K
Baltimore
$2234
586K
Sacramento
$2846
525K
Oakland
$3212
441K