City guides Japan
Tokyo
Japan has a nomad visa, but it is narrow: JPY 10 million a year, six months, no extension and no residence card. Tokyo itself is easy to work from, with fast home broadband, a Spaces day pass at JPY 3,900 and a beef bowl at JPY 489. The catch is the rent. Single-flat rents in the 23 wards are at record highs, and in 2026 the routes to settling got longer and harder.
Every figure checked 8 Oct 2026
- JPY 127,000 to 160,000 a month Furnished studio, monthly let
- JPY 42,900 a month Coworking hot desk
- JPY 489 Gyudon
- Country Japan
- Time zone UTC+9 14:22 there now
- Language Japanese
- Currency Japanese yen (JPY, written ¥)
- Plugs Type A and B, 100V
How far English gets you Limited. Japan ranks 96th of 123 on the EF English Proficiency Index 2025, in the Very Low band, with a score of 446; Tokyo scores 480. English carries you through stations and tourist-facing places. It stops with staff: in a government survey of departing visitors, 15.4 per cent struggled to communicate with facility staff, and 10.9 per cent with a lack of signs in other languages. No source says whether English reaches leases, ward offices or doctors.
Honestly
Is this your kind of place?
It suits you if
Salaried remote employees, or freelancers with JPY 10 million a year in profit, who want one intense six-month stint and no plan to settle. You need private health insurance arranged before you go, and a passport on the eligible list: British and American passports are on it. For a shorter trial, British visitors get 90 days on arrival and can apply for 90 more without the nomad visa. Choose where to live by rail line: an unfurnished 1K in Koenji or Shimokitazawa averages JPY 86,800 to 101,000, but furnished monthly lets cost more.
It does not suit you if
Anyone below JPY 10 million, especially freelancers with high turnover but lower profit. Anyone who wants a base to build towards residence: the nomad visa cannot be extended, gives no residence card and leads nowhere stated. In 2026 citizenship moved to ten years in practice, and permanent residence gained income, pension and B1 Japanese tests. Anyone who needs English beyond stations and hotels. Anyone who cannot take heat and rain, because June to October is hard work. And anyone hoping for a cheap Asian base: listed single-flat rents in the 23 wards averaged JPY 135,764 in August 2026, up 15 per cent in a year.
Money
What everything else costs
| Furnished monthly 1K, 23 wards | JPY 140,000 to 180,000 a month | A letting agent's estimate, all-in. High-spec flats in Minato and Shibuya go well past JPY 300,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Unfurnished single flat, listed | JPY 135,764 a month | LIFULL HOME'S average for studio to 2K in the 23 wards, August 2026, up 15.0 per cent in a year. The average enquiry rent was JPY 102,543, a record |
| Unfurnished 1K or 1DK, four areas | JPY 86,800 to 148,500 a month | At Home averages for Koenji, Shimokitazawa, Asakusa and Nakameguro over the last three months |
| Coworking day pass | JPY 3,900 to 5,900 | Spaces JPY 3,900, Regus from JPY 5,900. Neither says whether tax is included |
| Metro day ticket | JPY 600 | Tokyo Metro for 24 hours. Metro and Toei together for a day is JPY 900 |
| Yamanote line fare | JPY 155 by IC card | The minimum fare since JR East's March 2026 rise, JPY 160 on a paper ticket. There is no citywide monthly pass |
| Cafe coffee | JPY 571 | The average kissaten cup in the Tokyo wards, 2024. A 7-Eleven hot coffee is JPY 130 before tax |
Paperwork
Can you legally stay?
| Freelancers | Judged on profit after necessary overheads, not on what you invoice |
|---|---|
| The threshold | A fixed yen figure set by the Immigration Services Agency, with no indexing stated. Its value in pounds or dollars moves with the exchange rate |
| Official name | Designated Activities (Digital Nomad), with a separate status for an accompanying spouse or child. Dependants have no income test |
| How long | Six months, with no extension. You must then spend six months outside Japan before you apply again |
| Health insurance | Private cover for death, injury and illness, with at least JPY 10 million of medical cover. There is no residence card and no public health insurance |
| Who qualifies | Employees of a foreign company doing ICT work, and freelancers selling to clients abroad. Working for a Japanese organisation is not allowed. Company owners are not mentioned |
| Where it leads | Nowhere stated. The immigration agency says nothing about permanent residence or switching status |
| Permanent residence | In principle ten years, at least five on a work or residence status. Revised on 1 October 2026 to add household income, pension, B1 Japanese and absence tests. The full guideline applies to applications from 1 April 2027 |
| Citizenship | In principle ten years since 1 April 2026, with longer checks on tax and social insurance. The Nationality Act still says five |
| Without a visa | British passports: 90 days on arrival, and you can apply for 90 more at an immigration office. American passports: less than 90 days, for tourism or business, unpaid |
| Tax residency | No day count. You are resident if your base of life is in Japan, or once you have lived there continuously for a year |
Where to live
Where to base yourself
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Koenji
JPY 86,800 for a 1K, unfurnishedThe cheapest of the four, on the JR line straight into Shinjuku, in Suginami, whose ward average of JPY 94,700 is among the lowest of the central and western wards
The catch Old, small, thin-walled housing
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Shimokitazawa
JPY 101,000 for a 1K, unfurnishedTwo private lines into Shibuya and Shinjuku, with cafe and vintage-shop streets
The catch A 1LDK averages JPY 165,600, about JPY 65,000 a month more than a 1K, and the weekends are crowded
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Nakameguro
JPY 123,600 for a 1K, unfurnishedA canal-side, design-led neighbourhood one stop from Shibuya and Ebisu
The catch The dearest of the four, with a 1LDK at JPY 211,900, and packed in cherry blossom season in late March
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Asakusa
JPY 124,300 for a 1K, unfurnishedThe old-Tokyo east side, near Ueno and on the Tsukuba Express
The catch Not cheap despite its reputation: Taito's ward average of JPY 154,500 is above Setagaya's and Meguro's, and the streets round the temple are full of tourists
Timing
The best time to come
- Jan Cold, 5.4C mean, 60mm
- Feb Driest month, 6.1C mean
- Mar Cherry blossom about 24 March
- Apr Mild, 14.3C mean
- May 18.8C, before the rains
- Jun Rainy season from about 7 June
- Jul Rain to about 19 July, then heat
- Aug Hottest, 26.9C mean
- Sep Wet, 225mm, still 23.3C
- Oct Wettest, 235mm, 18.0C
- Nov 12.5C, drier, 96mm
- Dec Dry, 7.7C mean
Come now Fine Avoid
Spring and late autumn are the months to come. The rainy season normally runs from about 7 June to 19 July, and then the heat sets in: August is the hottest month, and July 2026 averaged 27.2 degrees against a normal of 25.7. September and October are the wettest months of the year. Cherry blossom normally opens on 24 March; in 2026 it was 19 March. The temperatures here are monthly means, not daytime highs. Japan had a record 42.7 million visitor arrivals in 2025, but there is no checked figure for which months are busiest or how much prices swing.
Connectivity
The internet, honestly
That is the median fixed download for Japan as a whole, from Ookla's index for March 2026, read second-hand. Opensignal, which measures everyday use rather than speed tests, puts the main providers between 101.6 Mbps (FLET'S Hikari) and 175.1 Mbps (NURO Hikari) for January to March 2026. There is no Tokyo figure.
There is no source on laptop rules, time limits or wifi in Tokyo cafes, so do not plan calls around them. For a full working day, pay for a desk: Spaces sells a day pass for JPY 3,900, and WeWork's all-sites desk is JPY 42,900 a month including tax.
Work
Remote roles open to someone in Japan
A remote job is not in any one city. These are roles whose employer will hire someone living here, pulled from the board as you load the page.
Eating
What to eat, and what it costs
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Gyudon
JPY 489A beef bowl at Yoshinoya, Sukiya or Matsuya, the cheapest hot sit-down meal. It was JPY 298 in 2003
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Kissaten coffee
JPY 571A sit-down cup in a traditional cafe, the Tokyo wards average for 2024
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Konbini coffee
JPY 130 before tax7-Eleven's regular hot coffee, the everyday takeaway alternative
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Eggs, ten
JPY 316A record high in December 2025, and a fair guide to what the supermarket costs
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White bread
JPY 544 a kiloA record high in March 2025. The official unit is a kilo, so a single loaf on the shelf costs less
Days off
Worth a Saturday
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Meiji Jingu
FreeA forest shrine between Harajuku and Yoyogi, open every day from sunrise to sunset: 5.40am to 4.40pm in October. Go early
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Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden
JPY 500The biggest formal garden in central Tokyo, with a chrysanthemum show in early November. JPY 250 for over-65s and students, free for children 15 and under
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Tokyo National Museum, Ueno
JPY 1,000The national collection of Japanese art in Ueno Park, closed on Mondays. Higher prices for foreign visitors are planned, with no date or amount yet
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Hama-rikyu Gardens
JPY 300A former shogun's bayside garden beside Shiodome, with a teahouse on a tidal pond. Closed over New Year
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teamLab Planets, Toyosu
JPY 4,200Walk-through digital art, wading in water. It sells out at weekends
The rest
Things the other guides leave out
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No residence card, no public health insurance
The nomad visa needs private cover with at least JPY 10 million for medical costs
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Six months on, six months off
There is no extension, and you must spend six months outside Japan before you apply again
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Not a tax shield
Treaty relief on your pay usually needs 183 days or less in the tax year, and is lost if a Japan-resident employer pays you
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Travel will count against permanent residence
For applications from 1 April 2027, one absence of six months, or two and a half years in ten, generally counts against you
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100V mains
Kit rated only for 220 to 240V needs a transformer or a 100 to 240V power supply. Tokyo runs at 50Hz, Osaka and Kyoto at 60Hz
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Departure tax is JPY 3,000
It tripled from JPY 1,000 on 1 July 2026 and is charged every time you leave. Some transport contracts made before that date keep the old rate
Work out whether you can actually afford to go
Every role on the board says which countries you can live in and still take it, so remote means remote.
Every figure on this page was checked on 8 Oct 2026. Prices move and rules change; tell us when something is wrong and we will fix it.