Is Osaka Expensive?

Japan · East Asia · Currency: JPY

62.8
COLI Index
#38
of 182 Cities
29.0%
Total Deductions
$1,000
1BR Rent/mo

About Osaka

Osaka has a cost of living index of 62.8, making it a moderate cost city compared to New York (baseline = 100). It ranks #38 out of 182 cities tracked globally.

The local currency is JPY. A salary of $75,000 USD in New York would need to be approximately ¥7,296,244 in Osaka to maintain the same purchasing power.

The approximate effective income tax rate in Japan is 14% for a mid-range earner. Including social security and other mandatory deductions, the total deduction rate is approximately 29.0%.

Monthly Cost Breakdown in Osaka

Estimated monthly expense allocation for a mid-range earner living in Osaka. Housing costs are based on average one-bedroom rent in the city center ($1,000/month), with other categories adjusted for the local cost of living index.

Housing
30%
Food & Groceries
20%
Transportation
10%
Utilities
7%
Healthcare
6%
Other & Savings
27%

Estimates based on a mid-range salary adjusted for Osaka's COLI of 62.8 and Japan's total deduction rate of 29.0%. Individual expenses will vary.

Tax & Deductions Breakdown in Osaka

Estimated annual deductions for a mid-range salary of ¥7,296,244 in Osaka. This shows all mandatory payroll deductions as a local employee.

Income Tax
14%
Health + Pension + Employment
14.8%
Total Deductions: 29.0%
Est. Take-Home: ¥5,177,912/yr

Rates shown are for a local employee. Expat rates may differ — use the main converter for personalized calculations.

Salary Ranges by Job Title in Osaka (2026)

Estimated annual salaries in Osaka (JPY) adjusted for cost of living. These figures represent local purchasing-power-adjusted ranges based on global baseline data.

Job Title Entry Level Mid Level Senior Level
Doctor (General) ¥7,782,660 ¥17,510,986 ¥34,049,139
Surgeon ¥11,673,990 ¥27,239,311 ¥48,641,627
Dentist ¥6,809,828 ¥15,565,320 ¥29,184,976
Pharmacist ¥5,836,995 ¥12,160,407 ¥19,456,651
Nurse ¥2,918,498 ¥5,642,429 ¥9,728,325
Psychologist ¥4,377,746 ¥8,269,077 ¥14,592,488
Software Engineer ¥4,377,746 ¥8,269,077 ¥17,510,986
DevOps Engineer ¥4,864,163 ¥9,241,909 ¥17,024,569
Data Scientist ¥4,864,163 ¥9,241,909 ¥16,538,153
Mechanical Engineer ¥3,891,330 ¥7,588,094 ¥13,619,655
Civil Engineer ¥3,696,764 ¥7,004,394 ¥13,133,239
Electrical Engineer ¥4,085,897 ¥7,782,660 ¥14,106,072
Architect ¥3,696,764 ¥7,004,394 ¥12,646,823
UX Designer ¥3,891,330 ¥7,296,244 ¥13,619,655
Product Manager ¥5,350,579 ¥9,728,325 ¥18,483,818
Project Manager ¥4,377,746 ¥7,782,660 ¥14,592,488
Financial Analyst ¥4,085,897 ¥7,588,094 ¥14,106,072
Accountant ¥3,404,914 ¥6,031,562 ¥10,701,158
Business Analyst ¥4,085,897 ¥7,296,244 ¥13,619,655
Consultant ¥4,377,746 ¥8,755,493 ¥17,510,986
Investment Banker ¥7,782,660 ¥14,592,488 ¥34,049,139
Actuary ¥5,836,995 ¥10,701,158 ¥19,456,651
Lawyer ¥4,864,163 ¥9,728,325 ¥21,402,316
Paralegal ¥2,918,498 ¥5,058,729 ¥8,269,077
Marketing Manager ¥3,696,764 ¥7,004,394 ¥13,133,239
Sales Manager ¥3,891,330 ¥7,782,660 ¥15,565,320
Graphic Designer ¥2,918,498 ¥5,350,579 ¥9,728,325
Content Writer ¥2,432,081 ¥4,864,163 ¥8,755,493
HR Manager ¥3,696,764 ¥6,809,828 ¥12,646,823
Operations Manager ¥4,377,746 ¥7,977,227 ¥14,592,488
CEO / Executive ¥9,728,325 ¥21,402,316 ¥48,641,627
Teacher ¥2,432,081 ¥4,669,596 ¥8,269,077
Professor ¥4,864,163 ¥9,241,909 ¥17,510,986
Research Scientist ¥4,377,746 ¥8,269,077 ¥15,078,904
Pilot ¥4,864,163 ¥11,673,990 ¥24,320,813
Chef ¥2,432,081 ¥4,864,163 ¥9,728,325
Journalist ¥2,432,081 ¥5,058,729 ¥9,241,909

Salary ranges are estimates adjusted by Osaka's COLI (62.8) relative to the New York baseline (100). Actual salaries depend on experience, company, and industry.

How Much Do You Need to Earn in Osaka?

Understanding your take-home pay is critical when evaluating a move to Osaka. With total deductions of approximately 29.0% (income tax + social security) in Japan and average one-bedroom rent of $1,000/month, here is what a mid-range salary looks like:

¥7,296,244
Gross Annual (Mid-Range)
¥431,694
Monthly Take-Home

After taxes, a mid-range earner in Osaka takes home approximately ¥431,694 per month. With housing consuming roughly 30% of after-tax income, careful budgeting is essential in this moderate cost city. Your purchasing power in Osaka is 159% of what it would be in New York for the same nominal salary.

Neighborhoods in Osaka

20 neighborhoods tracked with cost multipliers relative to the city average. This neighborhood-level data helps you understand exactly how costs vary within Osaka.

NeighborhoodMultipliervs City Avg
Kita (Umeda) 1.22x +22%
Chuo (Namba) 1.18x +18%
Shinsaibashi 1.15x +15%
Fukushima 1.10x +10%
Tennoji 1.08x +8%
Nishi 1.05x +5%
Shinmachi 1.02x +2%
Abeno 1.02x +2%
Miyakojima 0.92x -8%
Toyonaka 0.90x -10%
Sumiyoshi 0.88x -12%
Minoh 0.85x -15%
Yodogawa 0.85x -15%
Higashiyodogawa 0.82x -18%
Ibaraki 0.82x -18%
Tsurumi 0.80x -20%
Ikuno 0.78x -22%
Joto 0.78x -22%
Sakai 0.75x -25%
Nishinari 0.68x -32%

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Salary Comparison: Osaka vs Other Cities

To maintain the same standard of living as $75,000 USD in Osaka, here's what you'd need in other cities:

City COLI Equivalent Salary Difference
New York 100 $119,427 +37%
London 87.5 £78,689 +28%
Singapore 87.7 S$136,442 +28%
Dubai 72.4 AED 313,240 +13%
Berlin 51.2 €51,846 -18%
Tokyo 77.3 ¥14,300,774 +19%
Sydney 74.5 A$126,425 +16%
Toronto 62.3 C$100,735 -1%

Compare Osaka With Other Cities

See detailed side-by-side comparisons of salaries, rent, taxes, and neighborhoods.

Osaka vs Abu Dhabi Osaka vs Amsterdam Osaka vs Athens Osaka vs Atlanta Osaka vs Auckland Osaka vs Austin Osaka vs Bali (Denpasar) Osaka vs Bangalore Osaka vs Bangkok Osaka vs Barcelona Osaka vs Beijing Osaka vs Berlin Osaka vs Bogotá Osaka vs Boston Osaka vs Brussels Osaka vs Bucharest Osaka vs Budapest Osaka vs Buenos Aires Osaka vs Cairo Osaka vs Cancún Osaka vs Cape Town Osaka vs Casablanca Osaka vs Charlotte Osaka vs Chennai Osaka vs Chiang Mai Osaka vs Chicago Osaka vs Copenhagen Osaka vs Dallas Osaka vs Delhi Osaka vs Denver Osaka vs Doha Osaka vs Dubai Osaka vs Dublin Osaka vs Edinburgh Osaka vs Fukuoka Osaka vs Geneva Osaka vs Guangzhou Osaka vs Hanoi Osaka vs Helsinki Osaka vs Ho Chi Minh City Osaka vs Hong Kong Osaka vs Houston Osaka vs Istanbul Osaka vs Jakarta Osaka vs Krakow Osaka vs Kuala Lumpur Osaka vs Lagos Osaka vs Las Vegas Osaka vs Lima Osaka vs Lisbon Osaka vs London Osaka vs Los Angeles Osaka vs Luxembourg City Osaka vs Madrid Osaka vs Manila Osaka vs Marrakech Osaka vs Medellín Osaka vs Melbourne Osaka vs Mexico City Osaka vs Miami Osaka vs Milan Osaka vs Minneapolis Osaka vs Montevideo Osaka vs Montreal Osaka vs Mumbai Osaka vs Munich Osaka vs Málaga Osaka vs Nairobi Osaka vs Nashville Osaka vs New York Osaka vs Nice Osaka vs Oslo Osaka vs Panama City Osaka vs Paris Osaka vs Perth Osaka vs Philadelphia Osaka vs Phnom Penh Osaka vs Phoenix Osaka vs Phuket Osaka vs Playa del Carmen Osaka vs Portland Osaka vs Porto Osaka vs Prague Osaka vs Raleigh Osaka vs Riga Osaka vs Riyadh Osaka vs Rome Osaka vs San Diego Osaka vs San Francisco Osaka vs San José (CR) Osaka vs Santiago Osaka vs Seattle Osaka vs Seoul Osaka vs Shanghai Osaka vs Shenzhen Osaka vs Singapore Osaka vs Split Osaka vs Stockholm Osaka vs Sydney Osaka vs São Paulo Osaka vs Taipei Osaka vs Tallinn Osaka vs Tampa Osaka vs Tel Aviv Osaka vs Tokyo Osaka vs Toronto Osaka vs Valencia Osaka vs Vancouver Osaka vs Vienna Osaka vs Warsaw Osaka vs Washington DC Osaka vs Zurich

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the cost of living index for Osaka?

The cost of living index (COLI) for Osaka is 62.8, which ranks #38 out of 182 cities globally. New York is the baseline at 100.

How much salary do I need in Osaka to match $75,000 in New York?

To maintain the same purchasing power as $75,000 USD in New York, you would need approximately ¥7,296,244 in Osaka.

What is the average rent in Osaka?

The average monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city center of Osaka is approximately $1,000 USD.

What are the total payroll deductions in Japan?

The approximate effective income tax rate for a mid-range earner in Japan is approximately 14%. Including social security and other mandatory contributions, total deductions are approximately 29.0%.

What are the cheapest neighborhoods in Osaka?

The most affordable neighborhoods include Joto, Sakai, Nishinari.

What are the most expensive areas in Osaka?

The most expensive neighborhoods are Kita (Umeda), Chuo (Namba), Shinsaibashi.

Data Sources & Methodology

Our cost of living index (COLI) uses New York City as the baseline (COLI = 100). Indices are derived from multiple sources including Numbeo, Expatistan, and national statistics agencies. Exchange rates are sourced from the European Central Bank.

Tax rates represent approximate effective rates for mid-range earners based on OECD Taxing Wages data and do not constitute tax advice. Neighborhood cost multipliers are estimated from local rental indices and property data. Salary ranges are modeled by adjusting global baseline figures by each city's COLI.

Last updated: 2026-02-25. Data is refreshed periodically and may not reflect very recent changes. All figures are estimates for informational purposes only.

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