The sourced starting points
Use these as a starting range, not as a single true price. Rent methods differ, and that difference matters more than any single average. Tokyo layout labels also differ: a 1LDK is a one-bedroom with a living, dining, and kitchen area, which is larger than a small 1K or studio, so ranges for different layouts are not the same product.
| Item | Denver | Tokyo | Source and caveat |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-bedroom rent, per month | $1,427 median to $1,550, depending on the listing sample | About JPY 120,000 to JPY 250,000 per month for a 1LDK across the 23 wards, about $765 to $1,594 at $0.006375, with central wards higher | Denver: Apartment List October 2026 Rent Report, 1-bedroom median $1,427, all sizes $1,613, September 2026 estimates. Zumper rent research, updated 24 October 2026, Denver 1-bedrooms around $1,550 per month, all sizes median $1,904. Tokyo: X-House 2026 guide, 1-bedroom across the 23 wards about JPY 120,000 to JPY 160,000 per month, from advertised rents. KidNihon early 2026 guide, 1LDK average JPY 120,000 to JPY 160,000 per month, suburbs JPY 100,000 to JPY 130,000, central JPY 150,000 and above. Real Estate Guide 2026, 1LDK JPY 130,000 to JPY 200,000. Housing Japan 2026 guide, 1LDK JPY 140,000 to JPY 250,000. The combined range above is the span of those guides, not one survey. A separate July 2026 At Home figure, via GTN, puts single-occupancy units of 30 square metres or smaller at about JPY 110,000 per month on average, which is a smaller layout than a 1LDK. Do not pick one guide as the Tokyo price. Pick the ward and layout, then replace the range with listings you have actually seen. Also budget separately for upfront costs: deposit and key money can add months of rent before you get the keys, and they are not in the monthly calculator. |
| Japan income tax, national, 2026 | Progressive national rates on taxable income: 5% up to JPY 1,950,000. Then 10% to JPY 3,300,000. Then 20% to JPY 6,950,000. Then 23% to JPY 9,000,000. Then 33% to JPY 18,000,000. Then 40% to JPY 40,000,000. Then 45% above JPY 40,000,000. On top of the national tax, a 2.1% reconstruction surtax applies to the national tax amount, and local inhabitant tax is generally about 10% of taxable income, plus a per-capita charge that varies by municipality. | National rates as summarised in the 2026 Japan tax guides checked on 24 October 2026, consistent across the guides checked. Taxable income is after deductions, including the basic deduction and employment income deduction, and residence status changes the scope of taxation, so get a personal calculation before you rely on any tax figure. The calculator below uses a single user-entered effective rate, including national tax, inhabitant tax, and social insurance if you want them in the rate, not these bands. | |
| US tax, Denver | No single rate is used here. Federal tax plus Colorado tax both apply, and your effective rate depends on income, filing status, and deductions. | Enter your own effective tax rate in the calculator. Do not use a headline marginal rate as if it were your total tax. | |
| Healthcare, in one line | Mainly employer or private insurance in the US, with premiums, deductibles, and copays on top of tax. | Japan has mandatory public health insurance for residents staying 3 months or more, with patients generally paying 30% of medical costs, and the rest covered by insurance. | This is a system difference, not a price. Premiums vary by scheme and municipality, and the 30% share still leaves copays to budget for. |
Why the Tokyo range is so wide: the same 1LDK label covers a small outer-ward flat and a new central-ward flat, building age moves the price a lot, and each guide samples advertised rents differently. The calculator default below, JPY 150,000, sits inside the lower guides and below the top of the Housing Japan range, so it is a starting point, not a finding.
Try it: match your life, not just your salary
Tokyo rent is entered in yen and converted at the editable exchange rate, so you can see the conversion instead of guessing it. Other Tokyo costs are an example only, replace them with your own.
Formula, in plain words: take-home needed in Tokyo equals Tokyo monthly costs in dollars plus your current monthly cushion, divided by one minus your Tokyo tax rate. This is illustrative maths, not a tax calculation. The Japan bands above are the check, not a substitute for a personal calculation. The result is in US dollars at the rate you entered. Multiply it by JPY 156.86 for the yen equivalent at the 24 October 2026 rate.
Your result
Equivalent gross salary needed in Tokyo, in US dollars at the rate entered
Worked example on the defaults above: take-home now $6,175 per month, left after costs $2,648 per month, Tokyo rent about $956 per month, Tokyo total costs about $1,721 per month, equivalent salary about $72,821 per year in US dollars, about JPY 11.42 million at JPY 156.86 per dollar, and a savings difference of about $1,806 per month. The 28% Tokyo tax rate in this example is user-entered, not computed from the bands. Savings difference is Denver monthly costs minus Tokyo monthly costs in dollars. Positive means Tokyo costs less on these inputs. It is not a savings forecast, because tax, healthcare, transport, upfront rental costs, and lifestyle are only partly in these fields.
Saved comparisons stay in this browser only, on this device. No account, no email, no data sent anywhere.
Official links to check, not search results
No official government link is included on this page, because no official Japan government URL for the national tax rates table or for health insurance enrolment for this pair was verified from a search result or an official site check on 24 October 2026. That gap is stated here on purpose, rather than filled with a guessed government address or a commercial guide dressed up as an official link.
Sources note: the Japan tax bands on this page are from the 2026 tax guides checked on 24 October 2026, which cite National Tax Agency rates. Before publication, verify them against the National Tax Agency site and add the verified official link. Do not link to a copycat tax or visa site in the meantime.
What this page still does not do
- Family size: one-bedroom rent and a single-person budget do not scale cleanly to a family. A family version needs bedroom count, schooling, and childcare as separate fields.
- Housing ownership: buying, mortgage, and US property tax are not in this calculator. Renters only, for now.
- Pension and remote income: salary mode only on this page. Pension mode and remote-income mode are not yet built.
- Visa and residence: a short visit is not a move. A work or residence move needs a separate immigration route, with its own advice.
Next step: US passport to Japan, entry and scouting trip budget →
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The US passport to Japan visa page is now live at ../visas/us-to-japan.html.
Sources, checked 24 October 2026
- Apartment List October 2026 Rent Report, Denver: 1-bedroom median $1,427, 2-bedroom $1,778, all sizes $1,613, September 2026 estimates.
- Zumper rent research, Denver, updated 24 October 2026: 1-bedrooms around $1,550 per month, all sizes median $1,904 per month.
- X-House 2026 Tokyo guide: 1-bedroom across the 23 wards about JPY 120,000 to JPY 160,000 per month, from advertised rents.
- KidNihon Tokyo housing costs 2026: 1LDK average JPY 120,000 to JPY 160,000 per month, suburbs JPY 100,000 to JPY 130,000, central JPY 150,000 and above.
- Real Estate Guide Tokyo 2026: 1LDK JPY 130,000 to JPY 200,000 per month.
- Housing Japan 2026 guide: 1LDK JPY 140,000 to JPY 250,000 per month, 23 wards.
- GTN guide, citing At Home July 2026 asking rents: single-occupancy units of 30 square metres or smaller about JPY 110,000 per month on average.
- Japan national income tax 2026: 5% to JPY 1,950,000, 10% to JPY 3,300,000, 20% to JPY 6,950,000, 23% to JPY 9,000,000, 33% to JPY 18,000,000, 40% to JPY 40,000,000, 45% above, plus 2.1% reconstruction surtax on national tax and about 10% local inhabitant tax.
- Exchange rate: $1 = JPY 156.86 on 24 October 2026, so JPY 1 = $0.006375 rounded. Editable in the calculator.
- Other Tokyo costs in the calculator, JPY 120,000 per month, and the 28% Tokyo tax rate in the worked example, are editable examples only, not sourced.
If any figure above has moved since 24 October 2026, the page is out of date until it is rechecked. That is the point of the last-checked stamp.