Is it cheaper to shop in Japan than Philippines?
What is cheaper in Japan?
After spending about 2 weeks in Japan, I somehow got the chance to contemplate on what are cheaper and what are more expensive in Japan than in Philippines. In this blog post, I'll be sharing with you general observations regarding different category of spending such as food, shopping, transportation, and tech.
Food
One of the best Katsu Curry I tried - 100 Hours Curry!
Food
Restaurant prices are generally the same (or slightly more expensive) with those found here in the country. For example, Katsu Curry is at around ¥1,300, so that puts it at roughly ₱500 which is almost the price of Yabu or Coco Ichibanya here (after including service charge). Ramen prices are around ¥1,000, so that's at about ₱400, so again slightly similar to ours.
Konbini food are relatively pricier than the convenience stores here in our country, but that is in exchange of better variety and quality. You can buy semi-restaurant quality dishes in Konbini, whereas here you’ll get what you pay for. One onigiri is about ¥200, so that's estimated to ₱80.
Uobei (A Genki Sushi Company) - affordable sushi compared to Philippine prices
Clothes
In the case of Uniqlo, some of the prices you see here in the Philippines are what the prices are in Yen. For example, a shirt might be ₱390 here, but could be ¥390 there. So that means, you get to buy them at 55% off (given the conversion of 1 JPY = 0.45 PHP).
MUJI stores in Japan are more expensive in terms of selections especially for food-related products
For other brands, it’s great to explore outlet stores because you can get them at an extremely cheaper price. Take for example this Tommy Hilfiger jacket we're wearing in this photo. We got them for only about ₱2,000 each (even cheaper than the jacket I bought in Uniqlo).
Technology / Gadgets
Most tech items are cheaper in Japan compared here locally. Apple products are about 20-30% cheaper. The tax-free helps a lot because it gives you right off the bat a savings of 10%. The iPhone 15 (latest at the time of writing) was roughly around ₱55,000 there in Japan versus ₱80,000 to ₱90,000 here.
Smaller items may generally be at par such as mice, keyboards, headphones but this is only true when you compare the prices with Lazada. Otherwise, when you compare it to prices in physical stores here in the Philippines, smaller items are generally still cheaper.
These photos were taken in Yodobashi store, filled with lots of tech items not only just cameras
Transportation
Comparing toe-to-toe our buses/rails with theirs will make the fares in Japan look expensives. While we can ride the LRT and pay for only ₱15, minimum fares in the train lines of Japan are around ¥150 or about ₱60. So that is x4 of ours. However, when we consider the efficiency, it is overall still reasonable.
For someone who regularly use Grab in the Philippines, the train/bus system of Japan will allow me to save 20% given certain distances. Here if I take a Grab ride of 5km, I will have to pay roughly ₱300, whereas in Japan, I only have to shell out maybe ₱100 equivalent.
In a nutshell
On a Filipino tourist perspective, Japan prices are generally cheaper when it comes to literal shopping (e.g. clothes, gadgets). However, all else may be more expensive in exchange of better quality and/or efficiency.
Hopefully this blog post was able to shed some light as to the prices in Japan. By the way, if you are planning to visit Japan, you may want to check out my other article "How Much To Spend/Budget for Japan Trip (in Philippine Peso)"
