Comparison of cost of living

thechanger

Comparing prices using exchange rates rarely give a good idea on the actual cost for locals. The Yen is at one of its strongest rates in history, with a dollar buying ¥239 in 1985 and ¥79 today.

With the Euro currently buying ¥100, eating out in Tokyo such as Sushi or Ramen is still cheaper than any non-fast food in Dublin or London. However beer for example is ridiculous, along with DVDs to name just a few.

So what would be a realistic exchange rate to get an idea for cost of living – €1/¥130 maybe?

Also what's the average salary like for degree educated office workers?

hibby

thechanger wrote: »

So what would be a realistic exchange rate to get an idea for cost of living – €1/¥130 maybe?

That question may be impossible to answer because it depends so much on the exact "basket" of goods and services that represent your cost of living here. You won't replicate your Irish lifestyle here - your choices will be shaped by Japan's prices and practicalities. Back in Ireland, I flew a plane and had a small motorboat, and we had two cars. In Japan we don't do those things.

In our case, our rent in Osaka is a bit cheaper than it would be in Dublin; car was probably about the same price (but insurance is more expensive); some groceries can be very expensive (fresh fruit and veg, butter, cheese); restaurants are cheap; electricity, gas and water are expensive; commuting ticket is more expensive.

At the end of the day, it all balances out and we probably spend about the same amount of money as in Ireland. Your mileage may vary.

Definitely not €1/¥130 though - I think maybe you meant €1/¥70!

hibby

I googled "Purchasing Price Parity" which is a similar concept to the question you're asking, and I found an OECD index of comparative prices for "private final consumption expenditure".

http://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=CPL (1)

The cross rate for Japan and Ireland in April was 90% (i.e. at the nominal exchange rate in April, the euro would buy you 0.9 euro worth of goods and services in Japan). The euro has weakened from 107 to 100 JPY since April, so the current implied rate is probably closer to 84 JPY/EUR.


(1) This dataset contains monthly Comparative Price Levels (CPL) for OECD countries. CPLs are defined as the ratios of PPPs for private final consumption expenditure to exchange rates. They provide measures of differences in price levels between countries. The monthly PPPs used to derive the table are OECD estimates. The table is to be read vertically. Each column shows the number of specified monetary units needed in each of the countries listed to buy the same representative basket of consumer goods and services. In each case the representative basket costs a hundred units in the country whose currency is specified.

thechanger

hibby wrote: »

You won't replicate your Irish lifestyle here - your choices will be shaped by Japan's prices and practicalities.

Definitely and a point I should have made. When comparing costs, we can't live the same lifestyle or eat the same foods as we did at home, we have to compare the price for a local's habits and way of life.

JapanZone

It is a bit of a myth, still widely believed, that coming to Japan has to cost you an arm and a leg. There is a big difference between the cost of "living" in Japan as opposed to the cost of "staying" in Japan, but of course that's true anywhere. Once you know your way around, buy your food at supermarkets rather than eat out, have a bike to get around, learn the difference between beer and happoshu, the cost of living goes way down and you can live as cheaply here as in most developed countries. I'd say the main difference in the cost of living between Tokyo and the rest is accommodation. Anecdotally, I'd say rents are about 30-40% higher there than here in Nagoya, Japan's 4th largest city.

Travel is still one thing that's relatively expensive unless you get very creative and are flexible (ie. don't have kids!). Economic conditions have forced many hotel/inn operators to become more competitive so there are lots of bargains to be found, but you need to navigate the various websites in Japanese.

Over the years it's a been a bit weird to watch prices in Ireland and elsewhere skyrocket while they've stayed largely static here for 20+ years. Exchange rates have counterbalanced that to a large extent but these days Japan feels relatively inexpensive.