Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Utsunomiya and Osaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Utsunomiya: $1,316 a month against $1,396 in Osaka, rent and utilities included – about $960 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Osaka outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

61

Cost of Living Index in Utsunomiya
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Utsunomiya Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Osaka
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Osaka Living Index

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Utsunomiya

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,316

/mo nomad

Osaka

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,396

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Utsunomiya and in Osaka

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,316 in Utsunomiya versus $1,396 in Osaka.

Utsunomiya $1,316
Osaka $1,396

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,971 in Utsunomiya versus $2,027 in Osaka.

Utsunomiya $1,971
Osaka $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,625 in Utsunomiya versus $2,658 in Osaka.

Utsunomiya $2,625
Osaka $2,658

Living in Utsunomiya costs roughly 6% less than in Osaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Utsunomiya is 3% below, Osaka is 3% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.07 ¥958

$6.50 ¥1,027

-6.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.88 ¥2,666

$31.93 ¥5,041

-47.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.86 ¥768

$5.15 ¥813

-5.63%

Cappuccino

$3.52 ¥556

$3.03 ¥478

16.17%

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

$1.07 ¥169

$1.39 ¥220

-23.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 ¥133

$0.71 ¥113

18.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.11 ¥490

$2.75 ¥434

13.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ¥293

$3.89 ¥614

-52.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 ¥229

$1.46 ¥230

-0.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.67 ¥264

$1.30 ¥205

28.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.63 ¥888

$5.46 ¥863

3.11%

Eggs

$2.25 ¥356

$2.03 ¥321

10.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.56 ¥1,825

$9.63 ¥1,520

20.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 ¥1,074

$9.45 ¥1,492

-28.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.74 ¥2,644

$18.58 ¥2,933

-9.90%

Apples (1kg)

$4.85 ¥766

$3.39 ¥535

43.07%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 ¥358

$2.00 ¥316

13.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.25 ¥672

$2.09 ¥329

103.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.27 ¥832

$4.14 ¥654

27.29%

Potato (1kg)

$3.40 ¥536

$1.57 ¥247

116.56%

Onion (1kg)

$3.01 ¥476

$1.17 ¥185

157.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 ¥187

$1.37 ¥217

-13.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 ¥124

$0.81 ¥128

-2.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 ¥626

$4.02 ¥635

-1.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.70 ¥1,531

$9.72 ¥1,535

-0.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 ¥265

$1.94 ¥306

-13.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 ¥434

$3.19 ¥503

-13.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.25 ¥198

$1.35 ¥213

-7.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.4 ¥10.2K

$32.79 ¥5,178

96.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 ¥486

$3.90 ¥616

-21.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.13 ¥495

$3.26 ¥515

-3.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.99 ¥2,998

$21.50 ¥3,395

-11.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥167

$1.11 ¥176

-4.50%

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

$22.8K ¥3.6M

$22.3K ¥3.5M

2.22%

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

$15.2K ¥2.4M

$14.9K ¥2.3M

2.59%

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

$150 ¥23.6K

$141 ¥22.3K

6.04%

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

$23.41 ¥3,696

$24.00 ¥3,790

-2.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.11 ¥4,754

$30.50 ¥4,815

-1.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.5 ¥7,980

$51.7 ¥8,168

-2.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.49 ¥1,972

$18.86 ¥2,978

-33.78%

Cinema Ticket

$13.12 ¥2,072

$12.85 ¥2,028

2.10%

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

$1,408 ¥222.3K

$709 ¥111.9K

98.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.2K ¥2.9M

$13.2K ¥2.1M

37.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.1 ¥8,694

$48.77 ¥7,700

12.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.60 ¥5,148

$30.94 ¥4,885

5.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.8 ¥10.2K

$72.9 ¥11.5K

-11.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.1 ¥11.4K

$90.8 ¥14.3K

-20.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$609 ¥96.2K

$732 ¥115.6K

-16.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$388 ¥61.3K

$516 ¥81.5K

-24.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$893 ¥141.0K

$1,693 ¥267.3K

-47.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$721 ¥113.9K

$773 ¥122.1K

-6.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,783 ¥597.2K

$6,542 ¥1.0M

-42.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,111 ¥333.3K

$3,063 ¥483.6K

-31.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,363 ¥373.1K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.25

2.21

1.81%

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

Last update for Utsunomiya: October 26, 2026

Last update for Osaka: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Utsunomiya

$388 29.5%

Osaka

$516 37% 32.9% $128

Groceries & Markets

Utsunomiya

$327 24.8%

Osaka

$305 21.9% 6.6% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Utsunomiya

$203 15.4%

Osaka

$195 14% 3.7% $7.5

Eating Out

Utsunomiya

$132 10.1%

Osaka

$134 9.6% 1.1% $1.5

Clothing & Footwear

Utsunomiya

$101 7.7%

Osaka

$110 7.9% 8.4% $8.5

Getting Around

Utsunomiya

$88 6.7%

Osaka

$58 4.2% 33.7% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Utsunomiya

$77 5.8%

Osaka

$77 5.6% 0.8% $0.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $609 in Utsunomiya and $732 in Osaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $17 in Utsunomiya vs $32 in Osaka. Groceries flip the comparison at $327 vs $305, with Osaka cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Utsunomiya

🇯🇵 Osaka

🕒 Local time

05:47 5:47 AM

Same time as Utsunomiya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

519,217

2,691,185

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Utsunomiya vs Osaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,316 in Utsunomiya and $1,396 in Osaka, so Utsunomiya is about 6% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,974 in Utsunomiya and $2,094 in Osaka 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: $609 in Utsunomiya versus $732 in Osaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Osaka runs roughly 49% less than in Utsunomiya. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $1,408 in Utsunomiya versus $709 in Osaka. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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, Utsunomiya and Osaka are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.