Cost of living comparison

compared to

United States vs. Kyoto Cost of Living Summary

United States is 2.0 times more expensive than Kyoto.

Restaurants: pay 2.4 times more in United States
Groceries: pay 34.0% more in United States
Transportation: pay 3.5% less in United States
Housing: pay 2.8 times more in United States
Childcare: pay 3.8 times more in United States
Entertainment and Sports: pay 56.5% more in United States
Clothing: pay 37.9% more in United States

The cost of childcare, housing, restaurants, entertainment and sports, clothing, and groceries in United States are more expensive than in Kyoto. Notably, childcare, housing, and restaurants are significantly more expensive in United States.

United States vs. Kyoto Cost Breakdown

If you lived in United States instead of Kyoto, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 2.4 times more for restaurants

	Kyoto	United States
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$10.02 ¥1,557	$19.45	+94.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.35 ¥831	$11.12	+108.0%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.92 ¥144	$2.56	+176.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.74 ¥116	$2.00	+169.2%
Average			+136.9%

Kyoto vs. United States - Cost of restaurants

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pay 34.0% more for groceries

	Kyoto	United States
Bread 1 loaf	$1.70 ¥264	$3.56	+109.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.57 ¥709	$6.50	+42.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.67 ¥1,037	$3.97	-40.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.23 ¥346	$4.27	+91.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.09 ¥480	$5.41	+74.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.42 ¥377	$2.37	-2.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.11 ¥173	$0.78	-29.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.83 ¥440	$2.04	-28.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.72 ¥267	$2.21	+28.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.71 ¥110	$1.34	+90.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.01 ¥157	$1.38	+37.0%
Average			+34.0%

Kyoto vs. United States - Cost of groceries

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pay 3.5% less for transportation

	Kyoto	United States
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.43 ¥689	$3.41	-23.0%
Monthly public transit pass	$66.82 ¥10,382	$65.85	-1.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,332.63 ¥3,469,597	$32,336.38	+44.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$26.86 ¥4,173	$17.61	-34.4%
Average			-3.5%

Kyoto vs. United States - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.8 times more for housing

	Kyoto	United States
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$32.58 ¥5,061	$68.97	+111.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$570.06 ¥88,565	$1,664.59	+192.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$318.25 ¥49,443	$1,416.15	+345.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$82.56 ¥12,826	$150.19	+81.9%
Average			+182.7%

Kyoto vs. United States - Cost of housing

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pay 3.8 times more for childcare

	Kyoto	United States
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$434.36 ¥67,482	$1,387.27	+219.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$5,345.93 ¥830,544	$23,196.46	+333.9%
Average			+276.6%

Kyoto vs. United States - Cost of childcare

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pay 56.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Kyoto	United States
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.34 ¥519	$5.84	+74.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.20 ¥497	$5.15	+61.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.01 ¥623	$9.90	+146.9%
Monthly membership at local gym	$55.73 ¥8,658	$51.45	-7.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$12.70 ¥1,973	$13.64	+7.4%
Average			+56.5%

Kyoto vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 37.9% more for clothing

	Kyoto	United States
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$44.33 ¥6,887	$51.08	+15.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$30.91 ¥4,802	$41.81	+35.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$50.12 ¥7,786	$87.56	+74.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$88.54 ¥13,756	$112.04	+26.5%
Average			+37.9%

Kyoto vs. United States - Cost of clothing

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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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