Living on a Budget in Tokyo

Tokyo has a well-deserved reputation of being one of the most expensive cities in the world, but in comparison, it is not really that different from London, New York, Paris or any other major urban city in developed countries. Along with the cost, comes unparalleled service, quality control, and the privilege of being in one of the world's great cities. For those on a limited budget, it can be a challenge to constrain costs, especially if you are in Japan for an extended period of time, or are socially active and want to take advantage of the opportunities to travel and experience all Japan has to offer. What follows are some recommendations and guidelines for how to live in Japan affordably.

While in Japan, Do as the Japanese Do

Much of the inordinate cost incurred by non-Japanese follows from a tendency for newcomers to live a kind of extended tourist life, outside the normal constraints of daily life, which any local person would recognize and follow. Unfortunately, because you may be traveling around Tokyo to the social hotspots of Shibuya, Shinjuku, and Roppongi (especially when are first in Japan), you may fall prey to the demands of consumer society in the most expensive sections of the city, which tend to have specialty shops catering to affluent shoppers, or those who are indulging a taste for rare treats on a special outing.

A positive aspect of Japan's highly developed economy is a wide range of options, from the rare to the mundane, with affordable shopping more readily available in supermarket chains outside the city center. You can get just about anything in Japan, but you often have to pay a premium to get import items that are not the daily fare of a typical Japanese family. Such supermarkets are accessible to TUJ -- the National Azabu Supermarket in Hiroo, or the Nissay Supermarket in Azabu, for instance -- and they have a wide range of Western (including European) items, with gourmet options, but they are considerably more expensive than local stores. The daily shopping for food and routine items are best done in the local supermarkets and stores outside the entertainment districts, or at discount chains like Hanamasu, Costco, Olympic, Don Quixote or Ito-ya. These large chains are often located in the outer suburbs, and so you might consider a bi-weekly outing to "stock up" on items in bulk, and have boxes mailed back to your residence (if the volume is too large to carry). This can result in dramatic savings on non-perishable items, and over the course of the semester, can have a real impact on your budget.

Living like a Japanese person in practical terms would involve not just shopping locally, but also eating a genuinely Japanese diet, consuming less meat, and more seafood, more rice or noodles and less bread. Certainly, all of these are available, but meat in general is particularly expensive, and cannot serve as the primary portion of a meal without the attending costs.

The Economies of Scale

A Japanese family eating together incurs a considerably less per/person cost than a single person who makes each meal for him/herself. You may find that simply sorting the items to assemble a balanced meal, if done on a one-off, one-time basis, may become inordinately expensive. However, if you cook enough for several meals, and can store portions for future use, it becomes much less expensive on a per/meal basis, and can save preparation and cooking time. Because of this, many students simply eat out rather than go to the trouble to pull together a meal, and over time, this can begin to really add up, not to mention the health costs of eating fast food on a regular basis.

If you do eat out, look closely at the menu costs: often a drink will cost 1/3 to 1/2 of the food portion, and so you can save money simply by not ordering drinks. Note as well that except for family restaurants, it is rare for a typical Japanese restaurant to offer free refills on coffee or tea, so always check to confirm.

"Omori" means more: many restaurants will offer larger portions -- especially of rice or noodles -- at no or little cost if you simply ask.

Choose Your Battles, Protect Your Money

One of the great things about being in Tokyo is all the wonderful food and consumer items that are available, but to "splurge" on a daily basis will undoubtedly affect your budget. While it may seem unduly restrictive, consider the possibility of eating out (and drinking) only on the weekend, or for a special occasion. Often students end up spending a disproportionate percentage of their overall budget in the first few weeks after they arrive, as they want to explore new places, and go out with friends. As a result, this may effect your ability to budget money for special activities or overnight trips and excursions (Kyoto, for instance), and limit your choices later in the semester. If you intend on joining school-arranged outings, we suggest you register and pay at the beginning of the semester, otherwise those funds will disappear incrementally and not be available later in the semester.

Discount Shopping in Japan

Here are a few places that are well known for offering discount items: