First Apartment Setup Costs in Japan (Beyond Move-In)

Your move-in fees get you the keys, but turning an empty Japanese apartment into a livable home takes another round of setup costs most renters don't budget for.

The apartment is empty. Now the second bill arrives.

Most guides to renting in Japan stop at the move-in fees — deposit (敷金 shikikin), key money (礼金 reikin), agency fees, and the first month's rent. Once that's paid, you get the keys to a space that is, quite literally, empty. No fridge, no washing machine, often no light fixtures, and no internet connection. Before you can sleep there comfortably, you'll need to set up utilities, get online, and furnish the place from scratch. This is the part of the budget that catches a lot of foreign residents off guard, so here's what to expect and roughly what it costs.

Utilities: getting the lifelines (ライフライン) turned on

In Japanese, electricity, gas, and water are collectively called ライフライン (raifurain, "lifelines"). Setting them up is usually simple, but each has its own quirks.

Electricity (電気 denki) and water (水道 suido)

These two are the easiest. In most cases you can start service with a phone call, a postcard left in the mailbox by the previous tenant's utility company, or an online form — no technician visit required. Setup itself is typically free. The catch isn't the setup, it's the first bill: expect your first electricity bill to be prorated and possibly higher than average if you're running an air conditioner or heater while getting settled. To estimate your monthly electricity cost by region, and to check whether switching providers would save you money, see our sister site Electricity Cost Japan.

Gas (ガス gas) — the one that needs an appointment

Gas is the exception. Because gas lines involve a safety check, someone from the gas company must physically come to your apartment to turn it on — this is called 開栓 (kaisen, "opening the valve"). You'll need to schedule an appointment and be home for it, which usually takes 15–30 minutes. Book this as early as possible after signing your lease, since slots can fill up, especially during the March–April moving season.

Also check whether your building uses city gas (都市ガス toshi gas) or propane (プロパン puropan). Propane is common in older or more rural buildings and typically costs noticeably more per unit than city gas — sometimes close to double. It's worth asking your agent which type your unit has before you sign, since it affects your ongoing monthly costs.

Timing tip: Call to arrange gas and electricity before your move-in date, not after. Gas especially can take several days to schedule an appointment for, and you don't want to be without hot water or a stove in your first week.

Getting online: internet and mobile

Connectivity is often the most delayed part of setup, so plan for a gap.

Home fiber internet (光回線 hikari kaisen)

Fiber-optic home internet (usually just called 光, hikari) is the standard for fast, unlimited home internet in Japan, but it is not instant. Between application, apartment wiring checks, and installation scheduling, it commonly takes two to four weeks from application to a working connection — longer during busy relocation seasons. On top of the wait, expect an installation fee and sometimes an equipment rental fee on your first bill.

Pocket wifi and home routers as a stopgap

Because fiber takes so long, many new residents bridge the gap with a pocket wifi device or a SIM-based home router. These can usually be delivered or activated within days rather than weeks, and require no wiring or landlord approval, which makes them useful both for the first few weeks and for shorter-term stays where installing fiber doesn't make sense.

For a full breakdown of your options and their true 24-month cost — fiber, home router, or budget SIM — see the internet setup guide at Internet Cost Japan.

Mobile SIM

Don't forget your phone plan. If you're arriving from overseas, a local SIM or eSIM lets you handle everything else on this list — utility sign-ups, delivery tracking, apartment portal apps — without relying on airport wifi or a foreign roaming plan.

Furniture and appliances: the big four, plus what's missing

Unlike many Western rentals, Japanese apartments almost never come furnished, and unfurnished usually means more than you'd expect. Budget for these essentials first:

Two items surprise almost every new arrival because they seem like they should be included and aren't:

To keep costs down, secondhand options are common and generally well accepted: recycle shops (リサイクルショップ risaikuru shoppu) sell used appliances and furniture at a fraction of retail price, often with a short warranty. Departing residents also hold "sayonara sales" when they leave Japan, offering an entire apartment's worth of furniture at once. Apps like Jimoty (ジモティー) and Mercari are also widely used for picking up individual pieces locally, sometimes for free if you can collect them yourself.

Rough budget: starting from a completely empty apartment

These are estimates for a single person furnishing modestly, not luxury figures. Actual costs vary by region, condition of items (new vs. secondhand), and how minimal you're willing to go.

Altogether, a bare-bones setup on secondhand goods might run around ¥60,000–100,000, while a fully new, comfortable setup can reach ¥200,000 or more. Either way, this is money you'll spend in addition to the move-in costs already covered in why moving in Japan costs roughly five times the rent.

Reducing the total

If the upfront costs of both move-in and setup feel steep, it's worth looking at ways to lower each side separately. Some listings skip key money and deposits entirely — see our breakdown of no-key-money, no-deposit apartments. For move-in fees you can't avoid, many are more flexible than they first appear; our guide to negotiating initial fees in Japan covers what's usually negotiable. And if you're still working out what your total costs might look like before you sign anything, our move-in cost calculator can give you a fuller picture based on your specific rent and location. For other common questions renters run into, check the FAQ.

One small setup cost you can usually skip: bottled water. Japan's tap water is safe to drink, so a kettle (example: T-fal Justine Lock 1.2L, Check on Amazon.co.jp) and (optionally) a cheap filter jug (example: Brita 1.15L, Check on Amazon.co.jp) cover most households — our sister site explains whether Japanese tap water is safe and has a tap-vs-bottled-vs-server cost calculator if you're weighing a water server.

Estimate your own move-in cost →

Keep reading

Move-in cost calculator · Why it costs 5× rent · Key money (礼金) · Guarantor companies · No-deposit apartments · Tokyo vs Osaka · Negotiating fees · Setup costs · FAQ