How much do foreigners make in Japan? What is the minimum wage in Japan? This is what we are going to reveal in this blog. Through national surveys, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) is responsible for publishing the results of the average salary within Japan.

– Average salary for men in Japan: 350,900 yen per month.

– Average salary for women in Japan: 262,600 yen per month.

Men’s wages have increased by 2.6% compared to 2022 (8,900 yen) and women’s by 1.4% (3,700 yen).

Datum: In 2021 this situation was the other way around, the increase in women’s salary had been higher than that of men by 0.7%.

The large wage gap that exists in Japan between men and women has to do with the fact that there is a large percentage of women who leave the labor market to get married, have children and raise them.

It is true that today there are more women who continue to advance and grow professionally, but management positions, that is, those with the highest economic rank, continue to be mostly in the hands of men.

Secondary: 281,900 yen per month (+3%*).

Vocational school: 300,200 yen per month (+2%*).

Technical college / junior college: 297,400 yen per month (+1.7%*).

University: 369,400v yen per month (+1.8%*).

Graduate school: 467,700 yen per month (+2.7%*).

(* indicates increase (+) or decrease (-) compared to 2022).

As can be clearly seen in the breakdown, the salary increases the higher the level of education attained.

Datum: More than 50% of Japan’s students attend university, and the university attendance rate is 90%.

• Up to 19 years old: 190,000 yen per month (+3.1%*).
• Ages 20-24: 224,600 yen per month (+2.8%*).
• Ages 25-29: 258,300 yen per month (+2.8%*).
• Ages 30-34: 286,000 yen per month (+1.8%*).
• Ages 35-39: 314,800 yen per month (+0.7%*).
• 40-44 years old: 338,800 yen per month (+1.5%*).
• 45-49 years: 355,700 yen per month (+1.9%*).
• 50-54 years: 371,100 yen per month (+1.8%*).
• 55-59 years: 376,400 yen per month (+1.7%*).
• 60-64 years: 305,900 yen per month (+3.5%*).
• 65-69 years: 269,800 yen per month (+4.7%*).

(* indicates increase (+) or decrease (-) compared to the previous year, 2022)

For the Japanese, the main productive age ranges from 35 to 59 years old.

As the data shows, we can see that the salary increases as people age and gain more experience. The highest salary is between 55 and 59 years old, when people usually reach the highest positions in companies.

So , how much do foreigners earn in Japan? As we can see in the graph below and comparing it with what we previously analyzed, the salary for foreigners is a little lower than that of locals.

As we can see, comparing it with what we previously analyzed, the salary for foreigners is a little lower than that of locals.

And why do foreigners earn less in Japan?

The main reason why this happens is the difference in average age and years of service. Those foreign workers who arrive in Japan are usually young people, between 20 and 30 years old, and as we have already seen in our table, in Japan the salary increased proportionally with age.

In addition, many of the foreign employees return to their countries after meeting their objectives, which leads to their service time in companies being shorter than that of the Japanese.

• Large-scale corporations (More than 1000 employees): 346,000 yen per month (-0.7%*).
• Medium-sized corporations (between 100 and 999 employees): 311,400 yen per month (+2.8%*).
• Small corporations (10-99 employees): 294,000 yen per month (+3.3%*).

(* indicates increase (+) or decrease (-) compared to 2022)

Here we can see that the larger the company, the higher the value of the salary.

However, it is important to note that this is the first time in 3 years that large-scale companies have a decrease in average income, due to the increase in the hiring of temporary workers to make up for the lack of labor.

※ Source: Nikkei Asia, “変わる働き方、賃金配分に変化 大企業の中堅社員が減少” [2024.03.27]

• . Regular employees: 336,300 yen per month (+2.5%).
• Temporary employees: 226,600 yen per month (+2.4%)

(* indicates increase (+) or decrease (-) compared to the year 2022)

• 常用労働者 (Jouyou Roudousha) “Regular Employee”
• It includes permanent employees and employees for a fixed period of more than one month.
• 臨時労働者 (Rinji Roudousha) “Temporary Employee”
• Workers hired on a day-to-day basis or for less than a month.

※ Source: MHLW, “Basic Survey on Wage Structure – Outline of Survey”

The average age of full-time workers is 43.9 years and the length of service is 12.4 years.

Men: 44.6 years – service 13.8 years.

Women: 42.6 years – service 9.9 years.

Foreigners: 33 years – service 3.2 years.

Includes:

Teacher / Arts / Religious Activities / Journalism / Highly Skilled Professional / Business Administrator / Legal・Accountant / Medical / Research / Instructor / Engineer・Humanities Specialist・International Services / Intra-Company Transfer / Nursing Care / Entertainment / Skilled Workforce

Within this category are the “Highly Skilled Professional” and “Engineer/Humanities” residency statuses (visa types), these usually have higher incomes. In this way, the average salary for this category is the highest among the categories of states of residence.

It includes the residency statuses “SSW(i)” and “SSW(ii)” (visa types).

The SSW can only work for up to 5 years maximum, making it difficult to get salary increases, as well as promotions and high-ranking positions. On the other hand, this particular industry tends to coexist with labor shortages, which causes them to offer lower wages.

Average salary: 264,800 yen per month.

There are 4 types of residency that apply to this category:

Permanent Resident / Spouse of Permanent Resident / Spouse of Japanese National / Long Term Resident

The average salary of people in this category tends to be a bit higher since they have lived in Japan for a relatively long time, which leads to more years of work service.

As you will see this salary is lower compared to other visas, the reason is that the interns are learning on the job, and that is the main objective of these programs, to pass on their knowledge to foreigners.

However, his salary has increased every year. From 2022 to 2023 it increased by 2.2%.

※ MHLW, “令和5年賃金構造基本統計調査 – 概況” [2024-03-27] Page 14

In Japan there are 47 prefectures, and the minimum wage (最低賃金, Saitei Chingin), varies depending on which one you are in.

It is important that being a part-time employee who works by the hour, by the event or for a certain time you know what the minimum wage is.

• The average minimum wage is 1,004 yen per hour.
• Tokyo is the prefecture with the highest minimum hourly wage with a value of 1,113 yen, and in second place is Kanagawa Prefecture with 1,112 yen.
• The prefectures with a minimum wage higher than the national average are: Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Aichi, Kyoto and Osaka.
• The lowest minimum hourly wage in Japan is held by Iwate, at 893 yen.

※ MHLW, “地域別最低賃金の全国一覧” [令和5年度地域別最低賃金改定状況]