What Foreigners find “expensive” in Japan

photo by Jackson’s Orchard

Food, various goods, fashion – Japan is paradise for shopping addicts. But it seems like some prices in Japan sound like a rip-off to foreign visitors. To Japanese, it might seem like a normal price, but foreigners find it very expensive. But what exactly are the things that seem like a rip-off to foreigners?

Fruits

Rather than a food you eat every day, to most Japanese fruits are a special and nice dessert or associated with sweets. In other countries, fruits are bought by the kilo or a whole box, so naturally foreigners are shocked when seeing the price of one single apple. Especially melons and cherries are surprisingly high priced. But on the other hand, fruits in Japan are fresh and delicious, making up for the hight price.

Beer

If you are from a country where beer is rather cheap, such as Canada or the US, you might find beer in Japan very expensive. But if you compare it with other countries, beer in Japan is actually not that expensive. In Greenland or Norway, one glass of beer goes by 1200 yen, and the cheapest beer in the world is sold for 50 yen. In Japan, one glass costs around 500 yen, so it is actually quite a normal price. By the way, the most popular Japanese beer among foreigners is Asahi Super Dry.

Japanese Beef

Foreigners from countries with a large farming industry like the US or Australia are surprised by the price beef is sold for in supermarkets. Especially Japanese beef such as Kobe or Hida beef is very expensive – but it excellent quality is without question. To produce high-quality meat, farmers go out of their way to make the cows feel relaxed: putting on stress-relieving music, sometimes feeding them beer, or brushing them with shochu to make their skin glossier. If you are wondering why it is so expensive, just try it once and you will know!

Electricity, Gas, Gasoline

Japan is a country with close to no natural resources. The necessary fuel to produce thermal power, gas or gasoline has to be imported. So if you are from a country rich with underground resources, you will find electricity and gas bills in Japan very expensive. But on the other hand, you can drink water from the tap here – so if you are from a country where you have to buy drinkable mineral water each day, you might be surprised at the quality of tap water in Japan.

Taxi Fees

If you compare it with other countries, taxi fees in Japan are rather expensive. According to Trip Advisor, the distance you can go for a 1000 yen in Japan is 2,9 kilometers – second worst in the world. On the other hand, according to a high quality ranking by hotels.com, number 1 is London, number 2 New York, and number 3 Tokyo. In Japan, you will not get ripped off by the taxi driver, and they will get you home safely even when you are drunk.

Fast Food

In many countries, fast food such as hamburgers or pizza are considered as “snacks”. In Japan, it is more like a full-fledged meal. Many foreigners feel like fast food portions are rather small. On the other hand, there are many cases where the quality of the meat and bread is quite high.

Rent

The city with the highest rent in the world per square meter is Singapore, followed by London, New York, Hong Kong, and Tokyo on rank five. Even compared globally, rent in Tokyo is very expensive – it usually takes one third of your salary. Just thinking about it makes you sad.

Summary

Many foreigners find apples in Japan very expensive. But if you think about it, an apple in a different country and an apple in Japan are entirely different things. The taste and freshness is excellent – some wealthy people in Hong Kong or Saudi Arabia even have Japanese fruits delivered by plane. To sum it up, if a product is cheap or expensive depends on the value and quality. Expensive or cheap? Take a look at the quality and decide!