Hello!
I’m considering moving to Japan for a postdoctoral fellowship and would really appreciate some advice on how far the salary typically stretches in real life.
The fellowship provides ¥362,000 per month take-home (this is after tax, not a gross salary, and includes health insurance arrangements through the fellowship). There’s also a one-off settling-in allowance (200,000) at the start, but I’m mainly interested in the monthly living situation.
I’d likely be based in Tokyo or slightly outside central Tokyo, and I’m trying to understand what kind of lifestyle this realistically supports.
For context:
– I’d prefer a private studio or 1-bed apartment (not a share)
– gym regularly
– visit cafe often
– I eat out occasionally but not luxury dining
– don’t party much
– I enjoy weekend trips / domestic travel sometimes
– Ideally I’d like to save something each month if possible
Does 362,000/month net feel:
-
comfortable
-
average
-
tight
for this type of lifestyle in Tokyo (or nearby commuter areas)?
If anyone is living on something similar, I’d love to hear your approximate monthly breakdown (rent, utilities, food, transport, savings, etc.) 🙏
by Working_Well22
14 comments
I would say it’s between average to comfortable depending on your rent (which could be your biggest expense) which in turn depends on your location. closer to a train station is costly, away is cheaper.
Depends on your rent. I was living in tokyo in 2019 on around 260k. My rent back then was 80k for a small studio and live was comfortable without any worries.
Now with 100k more for you and things being more expensive these days, it should amount to an equally comfortable life, just don’t expect to save a lot.
For your life style that you outlined here? Reasonably comfortable.
For a studio away from big hub stations, not drinking much other than coffee, maybe a day or weekend trip somewhere close once a month or so? You’ll be *fine* on that salary.
It’s not “Support a family”, but for one person you’ll be fine.
Your first few months will likely be more expensive than you predict simply due to being new and unaware.
However, after a while, you will be able to settle in well financially. 362K per month is more than enough to live by, especially alone. A pretty average to comfortable lifestyle.
Seems comfortable. When I did my master’s degree 3-4 years ago, I was living with 150k/month scholarship and that was quite tight, it covers rent utilities and groceries but I had to shell out some personal savings for things like furniture, traveling, nice clothes (not luxury but slightly above Uniqlo tier), and some nice eating out (like 2500-3000 range restaurant, not fine dining or anything). There’s been some inflation but 362k is still more than enough for one person. You should be able to save enough money still as long as your rent isn’t ridiculously expensive. I think it’s safe to aim for apartments that are 80-120k range at that amount.
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Congratulations on your JSPS International Fellowship!
Many on here are eikaiwa worker types and will think it’s a fortune. You could have a comfortable student-type lifestyle in a commuter area. Most locals earning that would be living with parents and saving most of it. You would struggle to save each month if you want to live beyond a student lifestyle.
This is very, very average for Tokyo. As a single person, you will be fine.
Personally I would choose to live outside of Tokyo on this salary.
¥350,000 is literally what I pay in rent for a small but nice 2ldk in central Tokyo. Prices drop dramatically outside of the 5 central wards.
Dining out and traveling frequently will kill your budget. Everything else will be manageable.
Check out japanfinance too, you might live comfortably on that now but it’s probably best living a bit below your means and saving/investing too.
¥362,000/month net in Tokyo is actually quite comfortable for a single person.
Based on typical costs, you might spend around ¥90k–140k on rent, ¥40k–70k on food, and about ¥20k–40k on utilities, transport, and other essentials. That still leaves room for savings and occasional travel.
With your lifestyle (no luxury, but active), it would feel closer to “comfortable” than “tight.”
As long as you dont mind living outside 23ku, the money can afford a very comfortable lifestyle. I dont know about domestic traveling far away though. Thats enough for a single person to live comfortably inland.
JSPS? I got that one too, but never ended up moving to Japan for it.
But I have lived in Tokyo for a short amount of time. Like others said, it’s enough to generally live average to comfortable on your own. You can easily do all of those things you mentioned. You won’t get rich off it. I would say with the current exchange rate, it definitely hits a bit different if you plan to convert any savings back to your own currency if/when you leave Japan, so much so that it might not even be worth it to go. A post doc in Japan could potentially hold your career back quite substantially unless the PI you’re working with is well known in their field. Otherwise, if you just want to dick around for 2 years to experience something new and jump into industry, go for it.
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