Introducing The Average Salary in Tokyo! Also Introduces Wages for Foreigners

If you are a foreigner who has decided to live alone in Tokyo, you may be wondering how much money people working in Tokyo make. So in this article, we will explain the average income of people working in Tokyo, wages for foreigners and popular occupations.

The following article is also for you!

What is The Average Income in Japan? Introducing Some of The Best Jobs for Foreigners Living in Japan

What is the average income of Japanese people working in Tokyo?

The table below shows the average annual salary for Tokyo and the rest of Japan from 2014 to 2020. The average annual salary in Tokyo is around 6 million yen, while the national average is around the low 4 million yen range, making Tokyo a region with a considerably higher annual salary than the national average.

[Average annual salary in Tokyo

counter for years (following a number in the hito-futa-mi counting system)	Average annual salary in Tokyo	national average
2020	5.95 million yen	4.43 million yen
2019	6.2 million yen	4.36 million yen
2018	6.22 million yen	4.41 million yen
2017	6.16 million yen	4.32 million yen
2016	6.06 million yen	422,000,000 yen
2015	6.24 million yen	4.2 million yen
2014	6.13 million yen	4.15 million yen

Average annual salary and wages of Japanese working in Tokyo by category

Next, let’s take a closer look at the average annual salary in Tokyo, broken down by gender, age and more.

sexual distinction

The table below shows the average annual salary by gender in Tokyo from 2014 to 2020. Men will earn around the upper 6 million yen range, while women will earn around the upper 4 million yen range, with men earning around 2 million yen more.

Average annual salary by gender in Tokyo

counter for years (following a number in the hito-futa-mi counting system)	masculine gender	woman
2020	6.61 million yen	4.68 million yen
2019	6.92 million yen	4.84 million yen
2018	6.95 million yen	4.77 million yen
2017	6.85 million yen	4.75 million yen
2016	6.77 million yen	4.65 million yen
2015	6.92 million yen	4.74 million yen
2014	6.78 million yen	4.7 million yen

by age

The table below shows the average annual salary by age in Tokyo, and while there is little difference between men and women in their twenties, the older the age, the higher the average annual salary for men. This is thought to be related to the fact that women often take time off or quit their jobs due to marriage or childbirth, and even after returning to work, there are cases where they work part-time to raise their children.

[Average annual salary by age in Tokyo

years	masculine gender	woman
20 years old	2.54 million yen	2.6 million yen
30 years old	4.95 million yen	4.31 million yen
40 years old	6.84 million yen	5.13 million yen
50 years old	8.11 million yen	5.37 million yen
60 years old	7.17 million yen	4.73 million yen

by educational background

The average annual salary by educational background in Tokyo is shown in the table below. The higher the educational background, the higher the annual salary, and the average annual salary for male university graduates is 8.23 million yen.

[Average annual salary in Tokyo by educational background

academic background	masculine gender	woman
university graduate	8.23 million yen	6.45 million yen
Technical college and junior college graduates	6.45 million yen	5.74 million yen
high school graduate	5.99 million yen	4.73 million yen

23 distinctions

Tokyo has a characteristic that the average annual salary varies greatly depending on the ward. The highest average annual salaries are in Minato and Chiyoda wards, where the average annual salary exceeds 10 million yen. On the other hand, Adachi and Katsushika wards have low annual salaries, in the 3 million yen range.

However, this does not mean that you can earn a high income if you work in Minato or Chiyoda Ward, because high-income people often live in Minato or Chiyoda Ward.

[Top 3 average annual salaries by Tokyo 23 wards

order	district	average annual salary
first place	Harbour Ward (e.g. in Tokyo)	11.63 million yen
second place	Chiyoda Ward	10.06 million yen
third place	Shibuya Ward	8.86 million yen

[The 3 worst average annual incomes by Tokyo’s 23 wards

order	district	average annual salary
23rd.	Adachi Ward	3.47 million yen
22nd.	Katsushika-ku	3,353,000 yen
21st place	Itabashi Ward	3.69 million yen

industry-classified

The table below shows the average annual salary for major industries in Tokyo. Professional jobs such as system engineers and physical work such as civil engineering workers tend to have high annual salaries, while customer service jobs such as sales clerks tend to have low annual salaries.

Average annual salary by industry in Tokyo

type of industry	average annual salary
systems engineer	5.58 million yen
taxi driver	4.81 million yen
heavy truck driver	4.44 million yen
Care Worker at Welfare Facilities	4.03 million yen
civil engineering worker	5.89 million yen
entertainment bureaucrat	3.72 million yen
salesperson	3.71 million yen

Average Wage of Foreigners Working in Tokyo

There is no detailed information on the average annual salary of foreigners in Tokyo, but considering that the national average monthly salary for foreigners is about 210,000 yen and the average annual salary in Tokyo is about 1.4 times the national average, I guess that the monthly salary is about 290,000 yen (210,000 yen x 1.4 = 290,000 yen). Then the annual income would be 290,000 yen x 12 = 3,480,000 yen, and if you add bonuses, it might be about 4 million yen.

However, there are many foreigners who work in special ways, such as technical interns, and their annual income can vary greatly depending on their status of residence classification.

Source: 2020 Basic Survey on Wage Structure, Wages by Status of Residence https://www.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/itiran/roudou/chingin/kouzou/z2020/dl/08.pdf

Professions with many foreigners working in Tokyo

Foreigners can work in a variety of occupations in Tokyo, but engineers, language school teachers, and the restaurant and service industry are popular with many foreigners.

Programmer/Engineer

Programmers and engineers are popular job opportunities for foreigners, as they are industries where it is often possible to work even if your Japanese language skills are not that high. Another reason for their popularity is that they tend to have a high annual salary. However, programmers and engineers are often busy with their work, and they also need motivation to keep studying the latest programming languages.

Language School Teachers

Teaching at a language school is a very popular job opportunity for foreigners. Since you are teaching your own language to Japanese students, the biggest advantage is that you have the skills right from the start. However, it is important to note that employment opportunities may be limited for minor languages, and that university degrees are often a requirement for employment.

Restaurant and service industry

There are many restaurants and entertainment facilities in Tokyo, so there are many foreigners working there. Japanese language skills are required to serve customers, but you don’t need to be perfect at Japanese to work if you just want to ask for orders. In Tokyo, there are restaurants of various countries such as Italian and Indian cuisine, so it will be easy to work in restaurants of your own country with many people of the same country.

summary

Tokyo is Japan’s capital and has the largest population, and the average annual salary tends to be higher than in other parts of Japan. It is also a great place for foreigners to find high-paying jobs.