Cost of living comparison
compared to
Nara vs. Japan Cost of Living Summary
Nara is 9.0% cheaper than Japan overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 3.4% more in Nara
- Groceries
-
pay 15.3% less in Nara
- Transportation
-
pay 7.9% less in Nara
- Housing
-
pay 13.8% less in Nara
- Childcare
-
pay 30.4% less in Nara
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.5% more in Nara
- Clothing
-
pay 5.2% less in Nara
The cost of entertainment and sports and restaurants in Nara are more expensive than in Japan. Expenses including childcare, groceries, housing, transportation, and clothing are lower in Nara.
Nara vs. Japan Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Nara instead of Japan, you would:
pay 3.4% more for restaurants
|
Japan
|
Nara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$6.60
¥1,029
|
$6.68
¥1,041
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.10
¥794
|
$5.51
¥859
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.07
¥166
|
$1.14
¥177
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.76
¥118
|
$0.74
¥116
|
|
Japan vs. Nara - Cost of restaurants
pay 15.3% less for groceries
|
Japan
|
Nara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.50
¥234
|
$1.40
¥219
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.07
¥789
|
$5.08
¥791
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.67
¥883
|
$6.11
¥952
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.08
¥324
|
$2.33
¥363
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.93
¥456
|
$2.80
¥437
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.14
¥333
|
$1.57
¥245
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.12
¥174
|
$0.94
¥146
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.69
¥264
|
$1.11
¥173
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.13
¥332
|
$1.93
¥301
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.22
¥190
|
$0.74
¥115
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.15
¥180
|
$0.55
¥86
|
|
Japan vs. Nara - Cost of groceries
pay 7.9% less for transportation
|
Japan
|
Nara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.39
¥684
|
$4.43
¥690
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$59.14
¥9,212
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$22,599.51
¥3,519,986
|
$22,332.63
¥3,478,419
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$25.32
¥3,944
|
$19.38
¥3,018
|
|
Japan vs. Nara - Cost of transportation
pay 13.8% less for housing
|
Japan
|
Nara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$33.91
¥5,282
|
$29.29
¥4,562
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$543.18
¥84,603
|
$417.65
¥65,051
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$353.61
¥55,077
|
$350.83
¥54,643
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$118.72
¥18,491
|
$97.60
¥15,202
|
|
Japan vs. Nara - Cost of housing
pay 30.4% less for childcare
|
Japan
|
Nara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$296.89
¥46,241
|
$167.06
¥26,020
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,159.48
¥2,049,655
|
$10,914.61
¥1,700,005
|
|
Japan vs. Nara - Cost of childcare
pay 6.5% more for entertainment and sports
|
Japan
|
Nara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.60
¥406
|
$3.31
¥515
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.03
¥471
|
$2.79
¥435
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.89
¥605
|
$3.34
¥520
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$59.54
¥9,274
|
$77.96
¥12,143
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.46
¥1,941
|
$12.03
¥1,873
|
|
Japan vs. Nara - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 5.2% less for clothing
|
Japan
|
Nara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$44.79
¥6,977
|
$43.58
¥6,788
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$32.04
¥4,990
|
$28.07
¥4,371
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$57.37
¥8,936
|
$53.46
¥8,327
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$87.37
¥13,609
|
$88.54
¥13,791
|
|
Japan vs. Nara - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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