Japan
The rich country that got cheap. The yen remains far below where it sat a decade ago.
Slightly cheaper. The exchange rate moved +3.6%; local prices rose +2.2%.
- Lean
- $61
- Comfort
- $299
Ranked 11 of 65.
What your money buys there
30 monthsThe dashed line is what a currency converter shows. The solid line is the same thing after prices in both countries are taken into account. When they part, the solid one is telling the truth.
How the score is built
- Dislocation ×0.36
- 72
- Price floor ×0.30
- 33
- Safety ×0.20
- 100
- Ease ×0.14
- 100
Real price drop vs last year and vs the five-year norm
How low the daily cost is in absolute terms
From the current travel advisory
How well set up the country is for visitors
The full reading
| Real change, 3 months | +0.7% | Is the move still going, or already reversing? |
|---|---|---|
| Real change, 12 months | +4.9% | The headline: what your money buys versus a year ago. |
| Exchange rate alone, 12 months | +3.6% | What a currency converter would tell you. |
| Local inflation, 12 months | +2.2% | How much of that the destination's own prices took back. |
| Versus five-year average | +20.6% | Cheap or dear against its own recent history. |
| Advisory | Level 1 | Normal precautions |
| Ease of travel | 5.0 / 5 | Effortless |
- Flawless business hotels at $60–90
- Set lunches under $8
- A rail pass that still earns its price off the main line
Kyoto and Tokyo are crowded and hotel rates there have risen with demand. Value is in second cities and the countryside.
When to go
November is peak season- Janshoulder
- Febshoulder
- Marpeak
- Aprpeak
- Maypeak
- Junshoulder
- Juloff
- Augoff
- Sepoff
- Octpeak
- Novpeak
- Decshoulder
Safety and ease
- US State Department
- Level 1: Normal precautions · updated 14 May 2025
- Read the full advisory ↗
- Advisories are often regional. A country-wide level can hide both safe areas and no-go zones, and other governments may judge differently.
- Tourism infrastructure
- Effortless · 5.0 / 5
Dispatches on Japan
The falling-currency trap: why a weak exchange rate is not a cheap trip
The lira is down 19% against the dollar in a year, and Türkiye is 6.5% more expensive to visit. The gap between those two numbers is what this site measures.
Elsewhere in East Asia
Reading of 12 November 2026. In US dollars, Japan reads +4.9% over twelve months in real terms with a mid-range day near $131. Costs are modelled, not quoted: see the method.