Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Okinawa and Aomori

For one person, living is cheaper in Aomori: $1,219 a month against $1,379 in Okinawa, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

66

Cost of Living Index in Okinawa
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Okinawa Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Aomori
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Aomori Living Index

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Okinawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,379

/mo nomad

Aomori

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,219

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Okinawa and in Aomori

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,379 in Okinawa versus $1,219 in Aomori.

Okinawa $1,379
Aomori $1,219

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,171 in Okinawa versus $1,911 in Aomori.

Okinawa $2,171
Aomori $1,911

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,964 in Okinawa versus $2,602 in Aomori.

Okinawa $2,964
Aomori $2,602

Living in Okinawa is roughly 13% more expensive than in Aomori, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Okinawa is 2% above, Aomori is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.74 ¥1,544

$6.20 ¥982

57.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.63 ¥6,439

$32.12 ¥5,090

26.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.87 ¥1,089

$4.93 ¥782

39.35%

Cappuccino

$3.91 ¥620

$3.11 ¥493

25.72%

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

$1.40 ¥222

$1.16 ¥184

20.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.93 ¥147

$0.79 ¥126

17.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.61 ¥414

$2.64 ¥418

-1.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.02 ¥955

$3.14 ¥498

91.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 ¥258

$1.48 ¥235

10.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 ¥333

$1.62 ¥256

29.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.89 ¥617

$4.22 ¥668

-7.82%

Eggs

$1.78 ¥283

$2.10 ¥333

-15.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.10 ¥2,868

$10.44 ¥1,654

73.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.89 ¥776

$6.57 ¥1,042

-25.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.24 ¥3,525

$16.53 ¥2,620

34.54%

Apples (1kg)

$3.79 ¥600

$3.64 ¥577

4.12%

Banana (1kg)

$2.59 ¥411

$2.28 ¥362

13.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.14 ¥339

$2.98 ¥472

-28.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.18 ¥820

$4.23 ¥670

22.46%

Potato (1kg)

$2.49 ¥394

$2.47 ¥391

0.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.48 ¥393

$2.61 ¥414

-4.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 ¥200

$1.23 ¥195

2.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 ¥123

$0.87 ¥137

-10.34%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.03 ¥638

$3.93 ¥622

2.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.40 ¥1,014

$6.79 ¥1,076

-5.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 ¥297

$1.89 ¥299

-0.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 ¥503

$2.10 ¥333

51.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 ¥237

$1.44 ¥227

4.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.1 ¥10.3K

$58.0 ¥9,193

12.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.92 ¥620

$3.14 ¥498

24.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.47 ¥550

$2.92 ¥462

18.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.44 ¥1,813

$18.36 ¥2,910

-37.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 ¥166

$1.02 ¥162

2.94%

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

$21.3K ¥3.4M

$21.8K ¥3.4M

-2.15%

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

$15.0K ¥2.4M

$15.4K ¥2.4M

-2.79%

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

$162 ¥25.7K

$137 ¥21.7K

18.42%

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

$25.31 ¥4,012

$24.50 ¥3,883

3.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ¥8,497

$31.77 ¥5,034

68.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.8 ¥11.4K

$50.7 ¥8,036

41.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$56.8 ¥9,006

Cinema Ticket

$12.04 ¥1,908

$12.86 ¥2,038

-6.38%

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

$330 ¥52.2K

$705 ¥111.7K

-53.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,654 ¥896.0K

$12.6K ¥2.0M

-55.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.74 ¥7,723

$49.60 ¥7,859

-1.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.34 ¥3,699

$31.35 ¥4,968

-25.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.3 ¥12.9K

$62.5 ¥9,902

30.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.0 ¥15.5K

$89.4 ¥14.2K

9.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$407 ¥64.5K

$547 ¥86.6K

-25.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$327 ¥51.7K

$344 ¥54.4K

-4.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$825 ¥130.8K

$998 ¥158.2K

-17.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$667 ¥105.7K

$737 ¥116.8K

-9.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,711 ¥1.4M

$4,272 ¥677.0K

103.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,220 ¥193.4K

$2,317 ¥367.2K

-47.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,814 ¥287.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.23

2.21

0.90%

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

Last update for Okinawa: November 1, 2026

Last update for Aomori: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Okinawa

$330 23.9%

Aomori

$290 23.8% 12% $40

Accommodation & Living

Okinawa

$327 23.7%

Aomori

$344 28.2% 5.2% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Okinawa

$241 17.5%

Aomori

$193 15.9% 19.9% $48

Eating Out

Okinawa

$180 13.1%

Aomori

$129 10.6% 28.3% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Okinawa

$113 8.2%

Aomori

$105 8.6% 7.4% $8.3

Sport & Entertainment

Okinawa

$96 7%

Aomori

$76 6.3% 20.3% $19

Getting Around

Okinawa

$92 6.7%

Aomori

$81 6.7% 11.7% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $407 in Okinawa and $547 in Aomori. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $41 in Okinawa vs $32 in Aomori for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $330 vs $290 per month, with Aomori cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Okinawa

🇯🇵 Aomori

🕒 Local time

10:21 10:21 AM

Same time as Okinawa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

142,752

275,192

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.31 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.64 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.31 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Okinawa Aomori 1,980 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

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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

Okinawa vs Aomori: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,379 in Okinawa and $1,219 in Aomori, so Aomori is about 12% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,068 in Okinawa and $1,828 in Aomori to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $407 in Okinawa versus $547 in Aomori. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $330 in Okinawa versus $705 in Aomori. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 14% higher in Okinawa. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Aomori gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Okinawa and Aomori are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.