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is it bad that I immediately knew the Indian guy was a software engineer before he said anything?

Jesus christ, that dog's living the high life on that dude's salary. And only 9-5 as well. In Japan. Inconceivable.

The guy with the dog is really living it up, and living it well. Congrats to you on your efforts, your success, and here's hoping any of us know a glimpse of that!

More in-depth than most other videos of this style. Great work

Brutal honesty from them all and I really appreciate that~ Great interviews from everyone selected with different backgrounds, job types, and cultural views to result in their defined experiences. Especially valued the honest discussion of the low pay-grades and salaries, sad but true, and the positive moments of the interviews were encouraging too. Thanks, Asian Boss!

@21:05 I agree with him here, for many people, me included, working in Japan is far to be the best option, but outside of work, it's one of the best countries to live in.

I really enjoyed the section with Mike. He's really passionate and fully takes advantage of living in Japan.

Thanks to everyone part taking in this interview for their honesty. Giving us a real look into the diversity of the current picture of japan.

I definitely like how honest they are and how they highlighted the bad and good parts

The guy who begs his wife to not move back, Is a whole another vibe!!

love these interviews

Good topic. And interviewees are very open to share. Thumbs up!

Everyone had amazing advice. Kudos to them!

Love this. Everyone around the world can benefit of such videos...

Thank you for making this video. You asked the perfect questions and I found this to be very helpful.

I have lived in JP for 30 years so I find these responses very interesting. The young grad from Cali was spot on with his observations.

Wow thanks for this video. So informative!!!

this was really insightful, really nice people I appreciate their honesty

Great content, thanks Asian Boss!

The Colombian girl was right. Here in Spain, even if it's in Europe, our salaries are miserable. I'm an IT Systems & Networks administrator with 15 years of experience and I'd be lucky to get more than €30k before taxes. And we've got 37% of taxes for that salary! But blue-collar jobs get about €18k so it must be a living hell for them, since just housing will take away €11k (60% of your income) from those €18k. Furthermore, there's a *huge* ageism trend over here. If you're older than 40, nobody will hire you.

Super useful! Please do series like this on other expat hubs like Seoul, Bangkok, Saigon, Bali, Singapore, Hong Kong, etc.

I wasn't expecting a positive video about Japan coming from Asian Boss. I am pleasantly surprised 👏👍.

what i really like also about japan is that not everything is expensive there are so many ways and option to spend to cheap things but the quality is also good

As a long-time resident of Tokyo, there are some things here you have to take into account when you talk about wages and income. First, many of these people, in addition to their income, have their transportation and some of the cost of their housing subsidized, which is not common in other countries. Second, Japan has not been hit by the wave of inflation which has overwhelmed places like America and Europe, so things like food are less expensive. For example, a combo meal at a Tokyo McDonald's now costs about half or less than what you would pay for the same meal in most of America. Third, basic housing is significantly cheaper in Japan than in America or Europe. You can rent a studio apartment in pretty much any part of Tokyo for a fraction of what a similar place would cost in NYC, San Francisco, London, or other places. Lastly, things like healthcare are cheaper in Japan than other developed countries. Japan is an economical place, as being "economical" is basically getting the most bang for your buck. Companies pay as little as they can to get work done, workers do only as much as they need to to earn their pay, businesses charge as much as the can get away with to customers, and customers spend as little as they can to get what they need, factories provide the minimum amount of quality for the highest price they can get away with, while consumers try to get the best quality for the lowest price. This constant struggle toward opposite ends provides a reasonable stable balance in which people may not always get what they want, but they at least get what they need. And it works pretty well as the playing field in Japan has a universal set of rules and expectations, and cheating is not part of the culture.

Super useful as I plan my own move. Loved the range of experiences!

This was a great variety of people who really make quite a big variety of wages and ranges. That is great. The guy who talked about his experience from the Silicon Valley and San Francisco is absolutely correct on those ranges and numbers. I think there needs to be a lot more conversation on this. Because a lot of people are struggling in a variety of aspects that there could be an increase of quality life aspects to help reduce how much your expenses are. Like he said around 350+ is more what you need to be considered comfortable enough. Like around that 11:50 mark. Like he said you can't really argue your position and it's loyalty and connection not just skills per se.

Wow ! Loved it !

Thank you asian boss this was interesting

Best video in a while

Worked as a customer support specialist on Airbnb for a company in Osaka when I was 26 and got paid 220k JPY monthly. I got less working as an English teacher full time when I was 23 making only 210k. After the Airbnb job, I did part time teaching since the pay was better and earned about 350k a month while working less hours. Then at 28, I made about 350-450k a month assisting foreigners with house rentals as a part-timer. I was definitely able to live life happily working part time rather than full time. So yes, in USD, it may seem like very little, but if you know the cost of living here, making 400k is above average

I travel to Japan frequently, and I've always found it cheap compared to Canada where I'm living. In Canada, the absolute cheapest meal I can get in a restaurant (fast food, with a coupon), is at least 1100jpy. In Japan you can get a better, more nutritious meal at yoshinoya or a family restaurant for half of that. Hotels are also so much cheaper and better than they are here... and transportation as well.

Very informative

Asia boss deliver as always, thank you!

That was the first shock for me after moving to Japan - I expected to see cheap seafood and fruits. How naive I used to be...

People keep commenting about the food prices but it's more than that. It's the other aspects of life in Japan that makes people stay. A great healthcare system, orderly infrastructure, low crime, clean country, and polite and respectful people, just to mention a few.

the best thing about working in japan is that the more you gain experience and skills the more you earn and dont forget also the benefits such as commute allowance, and yearly they increase your wages, so if i will compare it to my home country which is philippines, The gap is just too big

Crazy to rent in Tokyo with many of those salaries. Thank you for the second section!

i loved the people in the interview that were so passionate, respectfull and gratefull for japan! In this day and age so many people are influenced by social media, these rich influencers, their lavish lifestyle, filters and wealth to the extend that plastic surgery is like a new shirt and what not but there is so much more beyond that. I though the interview was very inspiring :)

I work as a skilled tradesman in the Midwest region of the United States. My base pay is double what these people are making in Japan. I did not expect the wages to be so low over there.

Visited Japan recently (it was amazing) and even from a short trip I realised the working culture isn't great but like the guys said, OOF - out of office hours and waking up living in Japan may compensate the 9-5. I'm unhappy with where I live now and I definitely choose living in a space where my OOF hrs is better. Thank you for this video, also gave me insights on how much I should earn working in Japan!

Live in Japan for almost 30 years, I would also say Japan is not an easy country to make money as a foreigners, but life can be very fun and enjoyable outside of workplace. So, make your money somewhere else or online and have amazing life in Japan.

Americans living in Japan 🙂 Indians living in Japan 😇 Americans living in US 😎 Indians living in US 🗿

Well balanced selection of foreigners! They gave a pretty good actual picture of how much a foreigner can earn and potential pitfalls/tips.

I moved to Tokyo from Fort Walton Beach Florida. Cost of living is now 50% less than my life in Florida and I travel more, go out more, shop more, eat out more.

Bruh, I keep hearing Celine Dion singing at the back. Why is that??? LMAO

With that salary, the ALT is definitely a JET. If you're an ALT for a dispatch company 230k a month is the absolute highest pay you'll get.

I'm in IT data engineering, and still my compensation range in Japan is less than half the US equivalent. If you want even a chance at comparable standard of living, be an entrepreneur.

i would love to live in Japan, but my Salary as Composite Specialist would be just 1/4 and holydays would probably go down from 5 week to a few days.

Please do an episode in China. I have lived in the US and China and from my experience and this video it seems like: US: high salary, high living cost China: high salary (international jobs only, the average salary is very low), low living cost Japan: low salary, low living cost

I love Mike! What passionate guy!

You always have to be wary of someone who gives their income in ranges unless they are in sales. You also have to be wary of someone who dresses their dog in Gucci.

The Gucci dogs harness…so adorable ☺️

Poor nurses in Japan, they don't make that much. In my country Greenland, arctic: They get about 5.700 dollars before taxes.

I agree, I only went to Osaka and I thought it was cheaper than Los Angeles regarding meals and transportation. It was awesome. Felt like I found a deal.

Very informative.

5:07 Exactly my thoughts. It's safe, quiet mostly, cleaner than anywhere in the world (sorry Singapore), people are nice and respectful.

As someone who’s been living and working in Japan I totally agree to 18:38 and 20:57. Japan is a great country but ONLY for tourism. It’s not a great place if you are planning to have a family. The work ethic and culture in Japan is TOO stressful and you can still feel the discrimination(it’s subtle because japanese people are so good at doing 建前 - public facade) not only within the workplace but even outside work. so I would rather also explore other options if I were given an opportunity. Which I’m currently doing, searching working outside japan 💪

the last guy is awesome! amazing attitude towards life!

If you work for a Western company, even in Japan, where prices are low, safety and living infrastructure is well developed, you will be able to live stress-free and financially comfortable as long as you live in a foreign community where you do not interact with Japanese people.

I earn like less than 4M a year as a fresh graduate, in Tokyo. It's not a lot, but it's decent. I don't have to do overtime, there's no any kind of pressure, getting along well with my coworkers, and I have few tasks (which isn't great for my career in the long run though).

Love the humorous American and the one recommend to do your own research before going to Japan. Really learned a lot from your insights.

Great video! People need to realize there was a bit of a range of jobs vs experience, vs expectations of working in Japan represented here, but all in all a great insight into lesser skilled jobs/work and life in Japan! (Except the ¥20M+ guy!)

i worked in Japan for 3 years or so and God am i glad to be working in my own country where im drawing almost 3 times the amount i used to earn while i was in Japan. They pay by seniority not merits you can graduate from a top university like stanford or yale and they will still pay you ~2k salary in Japan.

Mike cracks me up. I agree with everything he said but man now I feel old!

I like Mike's energy. He's living his dream, and he's happy. That's rare. Best of luck to you, Mike, and the rest of the interviewees....Thanks again, Asian Boss!

What a great video! Vey informative and gives you different perspectives. Thank you 😊

the suiss guy is the best one in this interview , looks smart , value life , wise .... money can not buy class absoluetly true !

2:04 OMG that doggy 😍

Compared with other developed countries, Our wages look lower than them but prices in Japan are much lower than them. For example A Coca cola we can buy for 1 USD anywhere in Japan is 3 to 4 times more expensive. The prices of food in restaurants are enormous. I was almost fainted to see the prices when I visited there,

The best interview in AB

I love how you guys didn’t randomly cut them off mid sentence.

You are lucky to make above ¥300,000/mth. These wages they speak of are really specific to STEM.

The guy from Zürich looks like the grown-up Harry Potter

Was the titanic music on purpose or was that actually playing in the background because that timing was gold 💀😭

I work in the energy sector and I am make around 2000 dollars after taxes. I think I am in the average salary range of Japan, but probably higher than the current wages in Italy

Well, this was humbling. I recently got a job offer in Tokyo of 5.5M (half what I earn in the UK) and thought it was far too low.

Japan has a special place in my heart as well. Thinking of moving back.

you didn't even need to ask the guy with the dog wearing gucci, it was already obvious he's ballin lol

Great video🎉

There really is less variation in what most people make when compared to the west. For example, I have a group of Japanese friends who went to high school together. We attend a reunion once a year or so and everyone has a job in a different field. Yet all of them make the same 220000-320000 monthly salary. Anecdotally it seems that all employees make roughly the same amount and only business owners are making anything substantial. But Japan really is quite affordable in my opinion. I live right in the middle of Tokyo in an area that is considered expensive but it's still a third of what I'd pay in Australia. I agree with the dude who said he doesn't understand why people say Tokyo is expensive. The reality is that if you are good with money, you can have a fairly large percentage of your income left over per month. But keep in mind that with the work hours, you're not going to have much time to generate money outside of work making it difficult to become truly wealthy. But, I can remember in Australia where the rent would go up 20% every contract to be 'in line with the market', then you had your car and fuel which were necessary. Bills started to eat more and more into your 100k a year salary. Here I make half of that but I never have to worry about the landlord jacking up my rent or the cost of fuel. I can have a decent night out for 20-30 bucks. I will happily take a pay cut to keep living here.

It’s sad how Japan as a developed market has lower annual salaries than some developing markets … it is also worrying as it means talent will be hard to come by at these levels as mobility for good talent is high.

Very true. Very very true. Love it. I’ve worked for 13 years now in Japan, and I’ve been on both ends, high end and entry. Taxes are quite high once you go up as expected, but very manageable. And for expenses…. It depends, since if you have a child and want English language etc, it sure costs a lot more

Teaching at an Eikaiwa in the 90's, my base salary was ￥250,000 per month but, no bonuses, no health insurance and no rent subsidies. Golden Week, Obon and New Years were very stressful with no income.

Congratulations to all foreigners 👍work hard in🇯🇵 keep it up guys🇯🇵

Mike has fantastic energy hahah

Doing construction in the UK I made £42,000 last year , it’s was hard work and long hours. I was tempted to try the building game in Japan next year after I attend a language and vocational school but I can’t see the wages being anywhere near what I make already.

Wow, the income situation in Japan looks pretty grim. Working there would really be a labor of love.

Hey, I know that guy from Zurich! He's always helping me to get back to Tokyo, good guy!

Been waiting for such a video and wish I could give me opinion as well. I was born in India, lived in Dubai for 8 years and now in Japan for 4 years. I was making good money in Dubai. Plus no income tax and health insurance and other benefits paid by the company so I was getting to pocket my full salary. But I wouldn't go back to Dubai just because it's a materialistic country with no nature, poor air and the heat. I might be making less in Japan but mentally I've never been this happy in my life.

It’s all about purchasing power parity. I’m definitely making much less by choosing to move from Canada to Japan, but it is so much worth it

I'm dying here in Brooklyn. Rent is beyond insane. What would be a small apartment anywhere else is over $3800/month. Needless to say, I'm leaving. I can't afford to do anything except eat and pay bills. Food here is stupid expensive, I can't afford to go out.

I am extremely surprised anyone can live on a low salary in Japan. Always thought food, rent. Etc. were very expensive.

I thought Japan was expensive. I spent a lot when I visited there. When I ate out at restaurants, the meals costs about the same here in the US.

Just recently changed jobs from 5.6m yearly to 9.5m there are good opportunities like this but it is extremely rare. Then even tho with 9.5m yen I still can’t rent a high rise since the rents for high rises in the 6 区‘s in Tokyo are about 200k per month

21:12 amen to that!

My father, who has been all over the world thanks to the Air Force, said to go visit the country you are considering working in. Experience the country like a local not just as a tourist. Then if you can see yourself immersed in that country and that culture, then go for it. But like everyone said: DO YOUR RESEARCH first! Visit an embassy if you can, and get more insight from people who are from that country.

I think I will survive in Japan with my US social security income alone with some excesses. My type of place to retire in the future.

19:15 this guy really needs his own UKposts channel!!

ok. me making 120k a year working from home in Poland doesnt sound so bad now. I wish the salaries where more visiable around the world.