Expenses · Japan
Rent and housing costs in Japan
About $939 a month for a 70m² flat — 39.3% of what a median local earner takes home. Estimated; see the caveat below.
The figures
- Rent, 70m² flat
- $939/mo
- modelled from the price basket
- Share of local median wage
- 39.3%
- local median ≈ $2,387/mo
- Price-to-income
- 87.7%
- of this country's own long-run average
- Price-to-rent
- 109.5%
- above 100 favours renting
- Mortgage rate
- —
- not published free outside the euro area
- Housing price level
- —
- EU27 = 100 (Eurostat)
Updated 2026-09-01. Price-to-income and price-to-rent compare Japan with its own long-run average, not with other countries. National averages — not financial advice.
Countries with similar rent
- South Korea — $797/mo , 34.4% of local wage
- Czechia — $842/mo , 36.4% of local wage
- Greece — $852/mo , 41.9% of local wage
- Italy — $1,033/mo , 30.1% of local wage
- United States — $1,109/mo , 21.8% of local wage
- France — $1,192/mo , 32.4% of local wage
See also: all countries ranked · what people earn in Japan · healthcare costs
Frequently asked questions
How much is rent in Japan?
About $939 a month for a 70m² flat — modelled from this site's price basket, which understates housing where it has decoupled from the general cost of living. That is 39.3% of the local median wage of roughly $2,387 a month. A national average, not a quote: what you pay depends on the city, the neighbourhood and when you look.
Can I afford to live in Japan on a remote salary?
That depends on the salary, which is the point. Rent of $939 is 39.3% of a local median wage; on a $6,000/month remote income it would be about 16%. The gap between those two figures is the arbitrage, and the housing tool computes it for any income you enter.
Is buying in Japan good value right now?
Price-to-income currently sits at 87.7% of Japan's own long-run average, so housing is 12% more affordable than its historical norm. Price-to-rent is at 109.5% of its own average — above 100 favours renting. These compare Japan with its own past, not with other countries.
Where does this data come from?
OECD (price-to-income and price-to-rent), the ECB (mortgage rates, euro area only) and Eurostat (measured city rents and housing price levels), refreshed at build time — last updated 2026-09-01. OECD — DSD_AN_HOUSE_PRICES, HPI_YDH_AVG (% of long-term average); OECD — DSD_AN_HOUSE_PRICES, HPI_RPI_AVG (% of long-term average); ECB Data Portal — MIR, new housing loans to households (euro area); Eurostat — prc_ppp_ind, ppp_cat A0104 (EU27=100); Eurostat Urban Audit — SA1049V, average annual rent per m² (EUR); Eurostat Urban Audit — SA1053V, apartment price per m² (EUR); Eurostat Urban Audit — SA1051V, average apartment price (EUR); HUD USER — Fair Market Rents FY2026, One-Bedroom (40th-percentile GROSS rent, incl. tenant-paid utilities, USD/month).