Working in Japan: The Minimum Wage Is Prefectural
Cross-agency · employment
Quick answer
Japan sets its minimum wage by prefecture, not nationally. Under the FY2025 revision it runs from ¥1,023 to ¥1,226 an hour, with a national weighted average of ¥1,121. Tokyo is highest at ¥1,226. Each prefecture has its own effective date, spread from October 2025 to March 2026.
Every figure on this page is from Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan's own published documents.
Last verified 1 source, listed below
Regional Minimum Wages Nationwide List, FY20251. PHGuides is independent and not affiliated with any agency.
Japan does not have one minimum wage. It has 47, one per prefecture, and the difference between the highest and the lowest is ¥203 an hour. The prefecture written into your contract is therefore part of your pay.
The national picture
From the FY2025 revision published by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
| Hourly | |
|---|---|
| National weighted average | ¥1,121 |
| Previous weighted average | ¥1,055 |
| Increase | ¥66, or 6.3% |
| Highest prefecture | ¥1,226 |
| Lowest prefecture | ¥1,023 |
The prefectures people actually go to
| Prefecture | Hourly | Previous | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo | ¥1,226 | ¥1,163 | 3 October 2025 |
| Kanagawa | ¥1,225 | ¥1,162 | 4 October 2025 |
| Osaka | ¥1,177 | ¥1,114 | 16 October 2025 |
| Saitama | ¥1,141 | ¥1,078 | 1 November 2025 |
| Chiba | ¥1,140 | ¥1,076 | 3 October 2025 |
| Aichi | ¥1,140 | ¥1,077 | 18 October 2025 |
| Hyogo | ¥1,116 | ¥1,052 | 4 October 2025 |
| Shizuoka | ¥1,097 | ¥1,034 | 1 November 2025 |
| Hokkaido | ¥1,075 | ¥1,010 | 4 October 2025 |
| Fukuoka | ¥1,057 | ¥992 | 16 November 2025 |
| Okinawa | ¥1,023 | ¥952 | 1 December 2025 |
Tokyo against Okinawa is ¥203 an hour. Over a 40-hour week that is ¥8,120 before tax. That multiplication is arithmetic on the published rates, not a figure MHLW prints.
The effective dates are staggered
This is the part that catches people out. A revision is not applied on one day across the country.
| Example | Effective |
|---|---|
| Tochigi | 1 October 2025 |
| Tokyo, Chiba, Nagano | 3 October 2025 |
| Gunma | 1 March 2026 |
| Fukushima, Tokushima, Kumamoto, Oita | 1 January 2026 |
| Akita | 31 March 2026 |
So the same revision reached Tochigi in October 2025 and Akita on 31 March 2026, nearly 6 months apart. A contract signed in between is governed by whichever rate was actually in force in that prefecture on that date.
Who gained most
The largest increases went to the lower-paying prefectures, which narrows the gap slightly.
| Prefecture | Rise | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Kumamoto | ¥82 | 8.6% |
| Oita | ¥81 | 8.5% |
| Akita | ¥80 | 8.4% |
| Tokyo | ¥63 | 5.4% |
| Kanagawa | ¥63 | 5.4% |
Tokyo rose the least in percentage terms while remaining the highest in absolute terms.
What this is not
The regional minimum wage is a legal floor for an hour of work. It is not an average wage, not a factory salary and not take-home pay. MHLW publishes the floor; it does not publish what a Filipino worker earns in a given plant, so this page states no such figure.
This page also does not describe how the minimum wage interacts with the Technical Intern Training Program or Specified Skilled Worker status, both of which are governed by their own rules, nor with deductions for accommodation and utilities.
The Philippine side
Japan is one of the destinations where DMW states that, for workers bound for Japan, Germany and Taiwan, all applicable fees are collected.
The OEC guide carries those fees, including USD 25 for OWWA and ₱600.00 for Pag-IBIG, the recruitment agencies guide covers checking that an agency is licensed, and the deployment bans and placement fees guide covers when a placement fee may not lawfully be charged.
Japan’s visas and residence statuses are the Japanese government’s to decide and are not reproduced here. The work visa requirements guide explains that split.
Related
The caregiver salary in Japan guide covers what a care worker is actually paid there, at 338,200 yen a month, the PEOS guide covers the free seminar to take before applying, the OEC guide covers the exit certificate, and the working in Taiwan guide covers the other large East Asian destination and its single national wage floor.
Frequently asked questions
- How much is the minimum wage in Japan?
- There is no single national figure. Japan sets a regional minimum wage for each of its 47 prefectures. Under the FY2025 revision the national weighted average is ¥1,121 an hour, with individual prefectures running from ¥1,023 to ¥1,226.
- Which prefecture pays the most?
- Tokyo, at ¥1,226 an hour, followed closely by Kanagawa at ¥1,225 and Osaka at ¥1,177. The lowest rate is ¥1,023, which applies in Kochi, Miyazaki and Okinawa.
- How big is the gap between prefectures?
- ¥203 an hour between the highest and the lowest. Over a 40-hour week that is a difference of ¥8,120 before tax, which is why the prefecture named in a contract matters as much as the job title.
- When did the rates take effect?
- Each prefecture has its own effective date. Under the FY2025 revision they were spread from early October 2025 through to 31 March 2026, so two prefectures could be on different rules on the same day.
- How much did the rates rise?
- The national weighted average rose from ¥1,055 to ¥1,121, an increase of ¥66 an hour or 6.3%. Individual prefectures rose by between ¥63 and ¥82, with the largest percentage rises in the lower-paying prefectures.
- Is that what a factory worker earns?
- No. It is the legal floor for an hour of work in that prefecture, not an average wage and not take-home pay. MHLW does not publish a single figure for what a Filipino factory worker earns in Japan, so none is stated here.
- Does it apply to foreign workers?
- The regional minimum wage attaches to the workplace rather than to the worker's nationality. This page does not describe how it interacts with the Technical Intern Training Program or Specified Skilled Worker status, which are governed separately.
- What does the Philippine side charge?
- For workers bound for Japan, Germany and Taiwan, DMW states that all applicable fees are collected. The government-to-government processing fee for Japan-bound placements, OWWA membership at USD 25 and Pag-IBIG at ₱600.00 are covered in the OEC guide.