Average land price in Japan 2015-2024

In 2024, the average land price in Japan amounted to around 217.1 thousand Japanese yen per square meter. The average land price is based on land price surveys conducted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism and prefectural governments in January and July each year.

Japan’s geography

The Japanese archipelago consists of the five main islands of Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, Shikoku, and Okinawa in addition to thousands of smaller islands. Together, they cover a surface area of around 378 thousand square kilometers. Three-quarters of the country’s land area is covered by mountains. Forestland and farmland constitute about 78 percent of its landmass, while developed land accounts for five percent. The population of 124 million is concentrated in major cities like Tokyo, which is home to over nine million inhabitants.

Urban-rural divide and land prices

Owing to an overconcentration of economic activity in Tokyo and other major cities like Osaka and Nagoya, more than half of the population is located in three metropolitan areas. Tokyo and its surrounding prefectures that comprise the Tokyo metropolitan area attract many people from other parts of the country each year, often young individuals seeking jobs or starting university. In contrast, rural regions are confronted with depopulation and economic stagnation. Japan’s urban-rural divide is also reflected in land prices. Tokyo has by far the most expensive land prices. In terms of land price growth, the cities of Sapporo, Sendai, Hiroshima, and Fukuoka have outpaced the Greater Tokyo Area in the past decade.