Yamanote Line Average Rent Ranking by Station

Article updated: April 20, 2017

The Yamanote line is the loopline that delineates the center of Tokyo from the rest of the metropolis.

In general, property prices inside the Yamanote are higher because you are paying for location and convenience. The Yamanote crosses through nine of Tokyo’s twenty-three wards and includes some of the most high-traffic interchange stations in the city, including Shinjuku, Ikebukuro, Ueno, Tokyo, Shinagawa, and Shibuya.

This article ranks the Yamanote line’s twenty-nine stations by lowest average rent for 1R (one room) apartments that are at least 10 square meters in size and located within a 10-minute walk of the nearest (Yamanote line) station.

In general, the lowest average rent on the Yamanote line can be found on the northern stations. In fact, the top ten stations, in terms of lowest average rent, all lie between Takadanobaba and Suguidani. The average rent on these stations falls between 67,000yen and 81,000yen, but you can find apartments starting in the low-50,000 range.

Yurakucho has the highest average rent on the Yamanote line, at about 155,000yen and Komagome has the lowest, at 67,000yen.

Image credit: Real Estate Japan

 

Guesthouses

The links below will take you to all the properties available near the respective station, including listings for guesthouses and share houses, where you will have a private bedroom but shared public space (bathroom, kitchen, common room). The average rent at guesthouses can be hundreds of dollars lower than that for an apartment.

Guesthouses are a good option if you have just moved to Japan or are going to be here for the short term. With guesthouses, you often will not be charged key money or an agency fee, so your move-in costs will be a lot lower in addition to a lower monthly rent.

The average rent info below is for apartments only (and does not include guesthouses).

#1 Komagome Station

Toshima Ward
Average rent: 67,000yen

Image credit: iStock-1479603418-y-studio

The top prize for the lowest average rent on the Yamanote line goes to Komagome station, in Toshima ward. From the Meiji era, the Komagome area has been known for its fine gardens and green space. It is home to many schools and universities and has a quiet, residential feel. If you board a Yamanote line train at Komagome, the chimes you’ll hear will be to the tune of “Sakura, Sakura,” in honor of the Yoshino cherry blossom variety that originated there.

Listings for Komagome station start in the low-50,000yen range.

#2 Otsuka

Toshima ward
Average rent: 70,000yen

Listings for Otsuka station start in the low-50,000yen range.

#3 Tabata

Kita ward
Average rent: 70,000yen

Listings for Tabata station start in the low-50,000yen range.

#4 Nishi Nippori

Arakawa ward
Average rent: 71,000yen

In a previous post, we looked at the stations with the lowest average rent in Tokyo’s 23 wards. Many of these stations have direct access to Nishi Nippori, which is also on the JR Keihin-Tohoku line (which connects the cities of Saitama, Kawaguchi, Tokyo, Kawasaki, and Yokohama), the Chiyoda subway line, and the Nippori-Toneri Liner. In other words, Nishi Nippori is a major hub for getting to just about anywhere on the eastern side of Tokyo and for going north to Saitama or south to Yokohama.

Listings for Nishi Nippori start in the low-50,000yen range.

#5 Mejiro

Toshima ward
Average rent: 72,000yen

Listings for Mejiro start in the low-60,000yen range.

#6 Nippori

Arakawa ward
Average rent: 73,000yen

Like Nishi Nippori (#4 above) Nippori can be directly accessed from many of the stations with the lowest average rent in Tokyo’s 23 wards. Nippori is also on the JR Joban and Keihin-Tohoku lines, the Keisei main line, and the Nippori-Toneri Liner. From Nippori you can get on the Skyliner, which will take you to Narita Airport in about 36 minutes.

Listings for Nippori start in the low-60,000yen range.

#7 Sugamo

Toshima ward
Average rent: 75,000yen

Sugamo has a reputation among Tokyo locals as “Shibuya for older folks” because of its old-time covered shopping street (shotengai) and plentiful discount shops and eateries, but JR Sugamo Station is also home to an Atre-brand shopping mall that has a branches of Seijo Ishii (high-end supermarket) and MUJI. It is also an easy walk from JR Sugamo Station to Sugamo Station on the Mita Subway line. More and more young people are discovering the charms, affordability, and convenience of this neighborhood.

Image credit: iStock-1158857719-winhorse

Listings for Sugamo start in the mid-50,000yen range.

#8 Takadanobaba

Shinjuku ward
Average rent: 76,000yen

Listings for Takadanobaba start in the mid-50,000yen range.

#9 Uguisudani

Taito ward
Average rent: 78,000yen

Listings for Uguisudani start in the mid-50,000yen range.

#10 Ikebukuro

Toshima ward
Average rent: 81,000yen

Listings for Ikebukuro start in the high-40,000yen range.

#11 Shin Okubo

Shinjuku ward
Average rent: 82,000yen

Listings for Shin Okubo start in the mid-50,000yen range.

#12 Okachimachi

Taito ward
Average rent: 88,000yen

Listings for Okachimachi start in the high-60,000yen range

#13 Tokyo

Chiyoda ward
Average rent: 90,000yen

Listings for Tokyo start in the mid-70,000yen range.

#14 Akihabara

Chiyoda ward
Average rent: 93,000yen

Listings for Akihabara start in the high-60,000yen range.

#15 Ueno

Taito ward
Average rent: 93,000yen

Listings for Ueno start in the mid-50,000yen range.

#16 Shinjuku

Shinjuku ward
Average rent: 95,000yen

Listings for Shinjuku start in the mid-60,000yen range.

If you like the convenience of Shinjuku, but do not like to pay Shinjuku-level rent, please see our article on the top stations (with 30-minute or less direct access to Shinjuku) by lowest rent.

#17 Osaki

Shinagawa ward
Average rent: 96,000yen

Listings for Osaki start in the mid-60,000yen range.

#18 Kanda

Chiyoda ward
Average rent: 100,000yen

Listings for Kanda start in the low-80,000yen range.

#19 Gotanda

Shinagawa ward
Average rent: 102,000yen

Listings for Gotanda start in the high-50,000yen range.

#20 Tamachi

Minato ward
Average rent: 104,000yen

Listings for Tamachi start in the low-60,000yen range.

#21 Meguro

Shinagawa ward
Average rent: 110,000yen

Listings for Shinagawa start in the high-50,000yen range.

Image credit: Nayalan Moodley

Meguro is often voted by locals as one of the best places to live in Tokyo.

See our complete guide to Meguro here: Meguro Area Guide

#22 Yoyogi

Shibuya ward
Average rent: 111,000yen

Listings for Yoyogi start in the mid-70,000yen range.

#23 Hamamatsucho

Minato ward
Average rent: 113,000yen

Listings for Hamamatsucho start in the low-70,000yen range.

#24 Ebisu

Shibuya ward
Average rent: 117,000yen

Listings for Ebisu start in the low-70,000yen range.

Image credit: iStock-1144946332-coward_lion

In this year’s survey, Ebisu was voted by locals as the best place to live in the greater Tokyo area.

More details, please see: Best Places to Live in Tokyo: 2016

#25 Shinbashi

Minato ward
Average rent: 120,000yen

Listings for Shinbashi start in the low-70,000yen range.

#26 Harajuku

Shibuya ward
Average rent: 122,000yen

Listings for Harajuku start in the high-80,000yen range.

#27 Shinagawa

Minato ward
Average rent: 123,000yen

Listings for Shinagawa start in the low-70,000yen range.

#28 Shibuya

Shibuya ward
Averager rent: 125,000yen

Listings for Shibuya start in the low-70,000yen range.

#29 Yurakucho

Chiyoda ward
Average rent: 155,000yen

Listings for Yurakucho start in the mid-150,000yen range.

Data Source: SUUMO

You may also be interested in: Top Ten Lowest Rents in Tokyo’s 23 Wards

Article updated April 22, 2016

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