Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Japan and the United Kingdom

Name: United Kingdom
Address: GB

For one person, living is cheaper in Japan: $1,297 a month against $2,478 in the United Kingdom, rent and utilities included – about $14,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Japan
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Japan Living Index
119

Cost of Living Index in the United Kingdom
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United Kingdom Living Index

Jump to prices

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,297

/mo nomad

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,478

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Japan and in the United Kingdom

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Japan and in the United Kingdom actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,297 per month in Japan vs $2,478 in the United Kingdom, rent included.

Japan $1,297
United Kingdom $2,478

A couple spends around $1,998 per month in Japan vs $3,608 in the United Kingdom, rent included.

Japan $1,998
United Kingdom $3,608

A family of three spends $2,699 per month in Japan vs $4,739 in the United Kingdom, rent included.

Japan $2,699
United Kingdom $4,739

The regional cost range is wider in the United Kingdom ($1,143–$4,049) than in Japan ($724–$1,648), so city choice matters more there.

The cost of living in Japan is roughly 48% lower than in the United Kingdom on average.

Japan sits 4% below the global median, while the United Kingdom is 83% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.39 ¥1,010

$21.61 £16.21

-70.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.17 ¥5,082

$87.7 £65.8

-63.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.17 ¥816

$10.82 £8.12

-52.22%

Cappuccino

$3.07 ¥486

$4.77 £3.58

-35.64%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.16 ¥183

$2.64 £1.98

-56.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.79 ¥125

$1.88 £1.41

-57.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ¥512

$6.59 £4.94

-50.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 ¥585

$6.56 £4.92

-43.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 ¥233

$1.64 £1.23

-9.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ¥228

$1.65 £1.23

-12.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.77 ¥754

$2.23 £1.68

113.90%

Eggs

$2.09 ¥331

$4.06 £3.05

-48.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.54 ¥1,823

$9.64 £7.23

19.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.05 ¥956

$9.14 £6.86

-33.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.21 ¥2,718

$14.77 £11.08

16.52%

Apples (1kg)

$4.80 ¥758

$2.92 £2.19

64.38%

Banana (1kg)

$2.41 ¥380

$1.65 £1.24

46.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.11 ¥649

$2.80 £2.10

46.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.40 ¥695

$3.32 £2.49

32.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.74 ¥433

$1.81 £1.36

51.38%

Onion (1kg)

$2.58 ¥408

$1.56 £1.17

65.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 ¥199

$1.24 £0.93

1.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 ¥130

$1.66 £1.25

-50.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 ¥630

$23.79 £17.85

-83.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.35 ¥1,161

$10.46 £7.85

-29.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 ¥303

$2.94 £2.21

-34.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.59 ¥409

$3.39 £2.54

-23.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 ¥222

$3.51 £2.63

-60.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$58.4 ¥9,225

$104 £78.3

-44.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.68 ¥582

$5.42 £4.06

-32.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.21 ¥507

$2.40 £1.80

33.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.82 ¥3,131

$27.06 £20.30

-26.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥168

$1.96 £1.47

-45.92%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$21.7K ¥3.4M

$38.7K £29.0K

-44.00%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$15.8K ¥2.5M

$41.2K £30.9K

-61.74%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$151 ¥23.9K

$323 £242

-53.26%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$24.37 ¥3,851

$18.55 £13.92

31.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.59 ¥5,149

$42.14 £31.61

-22.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.1 ¥8,228

$46.76 £35.08

11.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.37 ¥2,903

$17.95 £13.47

2.34%

Cinema Ticket

$12.39 ¥1,957

$13.85 £10.39

-10.54%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$529 ¥83.7K

$1,725 £1,294

-69.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.8K ¥1.9M

$22.6K £16.9K

-47.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.12 ¥7,287

$92.8 £69.6

-50.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.36 ¥4,639

$46.58 £34.94

-36.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.7 ¥9,750

$102 £76.5

-39.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.2 ¥12.2K

$102 £76.6

-24.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$565 ¥89.3K

$1,348 £1,011

-58.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$389 ¥61.4K

$1,098 £824

-64.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,321 ¥208.8K

$2,160 £1,620

-38.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$761 ¥120.3K

$1,745 £1,309

-56.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,415 ¥855.5K

$5,578 £4,184

-2.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,746 ¥433.8K

$4,418 £3,315

-37.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,068 ¥326.6K

$3,358 £2,519

-38.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.13

5.32

-59.96%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Japan: October 19, 2026

Last update for the United Kingdom: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Japan

$389 30%

United Kingdom

$1.1K 44.3% 182% $709

Groceries & Markets

Japan

$308 23.7%

United Kingdom

$305 12.3% 0.8% $2.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Japan

$208 16%

United Kingdom

$384 15.5% 84.5% $176

Eating Out

Japan

$135 10.4%

United Kingdom

$327 13.2% 142% $192

Clothing & Footwear

Japan

$96 7.4%

United Kingdom

$155 6.2% 60.1% $58

Getting Around

Japan

$84 6.5%

United Kingdom

$136 5.5% 62.1% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Japan

$77 5.9%

United Kingdom

$74 3% 3.1% $2.4

Cost Breakdown

Average rent: $522 in Japan vs $1,265 in the United Kingdom. For reference, capital cities sit at $1,288 in Tokyo and $2,852 in London.

Average salary: $1,926 in Japan vs $3,250 in the United Kingdom. The income gap affects purchasing power and how far your budget stretches in each country.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 142% higher in the United Kingdom.

Dining out costs 152% more in the United Kingdom.

Public transport is 73% more expensive in the United Kingdom.

Salaries are 69% higher in the United Kingdom, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Japan.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Japan

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🕒 Local time

23:21 11:21 PM

15:21 3:21 PM

8 h behind Japan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

125,440,000

67,326,569

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Japan United Kingdom 9,560 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Japan
United Kingdom

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Japan vs United Kingdom: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Japan is the cheaper option – living costs run roughly 91% lower on average.

Housing costs more in the United Kingdom: a central one-bedroom averages $1,265 versus $522 in Japan.

$2,000 buys a comfortable lifestyle in Japan, but in the United Kingdom it only works with careful planning outside the capital. Same money, very different lives.

Japan is the budget-friendly choice for expats – lower housing and daily costs. But cost isn't everything: visa policies, language, healthcare quality, and job markets all weigh in too.