Cost of living comparison

compared to

Japan vs. El Salvador Cost of Living Summary

Japan is 10.0% cheaper than El Salvador overall.

Restaurants
pay 11.4% less in Japan
Groceries
pay 0.2% more in Japan
Transportation
pay 0.8% more in Japan
Housing
pay 32.8% less in Japan
Childcare
pay 2.5 times more in Japan
Entertainment and Sports
pay 47.3% more in Japan
Clothing
pay 36.8% less in Japan

The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, transportation, and groceries in Japan are more expensive than in El Salvador. Expenses including clothing, housing, and restaurants are lower in Japan. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Japan.

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Japan vs. El Salvador Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Japan instead of El Salvador, you would:

pay 11.4% less for restaurants

 
El Salvador
Japan
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $6.75
SVC59.06
$6.75
¥1,066
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
 $7.00
SVC61.25
$5.10
¥805
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.14
SVC10.01
$1.13
¥179
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pay 0.2% more for groceries

 
El Salvador
Japan
Bread
1 loaf
 $2.53
SVC22.11
$1.53
¥241
Local cheese (8 oz) $3.85
SVC33.72
$5.55
¥877
Milk (1 gallon) $6.71
SVC58.72
$5.56
¥879
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pay 0.8% more for transportation

 
El Salvador
Japan
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.75
SVC41.60
$4.11
¥649
Monthly public transit pass $37.50
SVC328.13
$63.20
¥9,986
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $25,000.00
SVC219K
$21,047.50
¥3M
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pay 32.8% less for housing

 
El Salvador
Japan
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
 $42.50
SVC371.88
$33.54
¥5,300
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $824.50
SVC7,214.43
$546.58
¥86,367
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $660.00
SVC5,775.07
$360.78
¥57,008
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pay 2.5 times more for childcare

 
El Salvador
Japan
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $162.67
SVC1,423.35
$417.01
¥65,893
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $4,720.00
SVC41,300.50
$11,300.14
¥2M
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pay 47.3% more for entertainment and sports

 
El Salvador
Japan
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $2.00
SVC17.50
$2.57
¥406
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.55
SVC31.02
$3.06
¥483
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
 $4.00
SVC35.00
$3.83
¥605
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pay 36.8% less for clothing

 
El Salvador
Japan
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
 $67.15
SVC587.57
$46.32
¥7,320
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
 $47.00
SVC411.25
$31.33
¥4,950
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
 $118.33
SVC1,035.43
$59.45
¥9,394
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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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Compare further: El Salvador vs. Japan

Salary Calculator · Free tool
What salary would you need in Japan?
→
Quality of Life Comparison · 21 statistics
Make 6.2 times more money in Japan
→
Size Comparison · See true size
El Salvador is about 18 times smaller than Japan.
→
Moving from El Salvador to Japan · OECD 2023
94 people moved from El Salvador to Japan.
→
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