What a meal costs in Japan

A chain meal in Japan costs about $1 to $9 (¥100 to ¥1,420). Conveyor sushi starts at $1 (¥100) a plate, a Sukiya gyudon is $3 (¥480), a Yayoiken set meal is $6 to $9 (¥890 to ¥1,420) and an Ichiran ramen is $6 to $8 (¥980 to ¥1,180). Several chains repriced in 2026. The Japan Tourism Agency puts food at 21.9% of visitor spending; no per-day food figure or omakase price was found.

Dollar figures use about ¥155 to US$1 and are rounded; you pay in yen, so check the rate.

What do chain meals cost?

Chain prices run from $1 (¥100) to $9 (¥1,420) a dish. This table lists what each chain’s own page shows.

Status shows how well a figure is sourced. High means JNTO or the chain’s own page. Medium means the chain’s page was seen only through a search summary, or the page is old.

Prices are tax included and for eating in, unless noted. Sukiya says prices may differ by store, and Ichiran’s pages do not state the tax status. No izakaya average, government or prefecture meal price survey, set-meal price beyond Yayoiken or tourist pricing at markets was found.

Before you go Read the chain’s own menu page for your branch. Prices differ by store, and the 2026 moves below are recent.

How did chain prices change in 2026?

Prices moved in both directions, and the rounded dollar figures often hide the change, so read the yen.

Sukiya’s $3 (¥450) price dated from a cut in Sep 2025. Torikizoku published a price revision notice dated 10 Sep 2026; the details were not read.

How much is a gyudon?

A regular Sukiya gyudon is $3 (¥480) from 8 Jul 2026. The mini size is $3 (¥420) and the large is $4 (¥680). Prices may differ by store.

What is in a set meal?

A set meal, or teishoku, comes as rice, soup and sides. JNTO’s etiquette guide gives the layout: rice front left, sides behind, soup front right.

Yayoiken, a set meal chain, publishes these prices. Its ginger-pork set was $6 (¥890) in Apr 2026, up from $6 (¥860) in Jan 2026, and its chicken nanban set is $6 (¥990). The oyster-fry set, new from 2 Oct 2026, is $7 (¥1,120) for 4 and $9 (¥1,420) for 6. All Yayoiken prices are tax included. The oyster-fry set for 6 costs about three times a regular Sukiya gyudon.

What does sushi cost?

JNTO says conveyor sushi plates start at $1 (¥100) and the plate colour sets the price. At Sushiro, lean tuna rose to $1 (¥150) while salmon, squid and shrimp stay from $1 (¥120). At Kura, the lowest plate fell to $1 (¥110).

At the other end, no omakase price was found: JNTO’s sushi guide gives no yen figure, and it says bookings are a must and a same-day walk-in is hard. For how conveyor and counter sushi work, see Ordering food in Japan.

How much is a bowl of ramen?

An Ichiran classic tonkotsu ramen is $6 (¥980) at one branch, $7 (¥1,080) at another and $8 (¥1,180) at Shibuya and Shinbashi. Extra noodles are $1 (¥210) and rice is $2 (¥300). Some Ichiran pages are old and the tax status is not stated, so treat the range as last known and check your branch. You pay at a ticket machine in many ramen shops; the steps are in the ordering guide.

What does a convenience store meal cost?

A full convenience store meal costs about $3 to $5 (¥400 to ¥700), per secondary travel guides. The same guides put a 7-Eleven hand-rolled onigiri at about $1 (¥182 to ¥215) in early 2026, an egg sandwich at about $2 (¥250 to ¥300) and fried chicken at $1 to $2 (¥180 to ¥300). No official price list was found, so treat these figures as medium confidence and a guide to scale.

How much do visitors spend on food?

Food and drink is 21.9% of visitor spending. In the Japan Tourism Agency’s 2025 survey it ranks third, behind lodging at 36.6% and shopping at 27.0%.

Per visitor, the general figure is about $325 (¥50,000) per trip. One breakdown in the agency’s annual report shows $290 (¥44,989). The two use different definitions, so treat them as two estimates. Neither is daily spend, and a per-day food figure was not found. The agency’s preliminary 2025 figure for total spend per visitor is $1,480 (¥229,000), so food at about $325 (¥50,000) is roughly a fifth of the total.

To verify The agency’s two per-visitor figures use different definitions. Do not turn either into a daily budget.

Why does the same dish have two prices?

Tax changes the price. Eating in carries 10% consumption tax, alcohol is always 10%, and takeout food is 8%, per the National Tax Agency’s reduced-rate tables (medium confidence). Menus show tax-included prices. A Yoshinoya release of 28 Oct 2026 lists a new bowl at $4 (¥590) before tax and $4 (¥649) eat-in with tax included, so the menu price you read is the one you pay. Tax and payment rules are in Tipping and paying in Japan.

Where next?

The Food hub lists every food page, and the Food guide covers dishes by region. For ordering, see Ordering food in Japan. For tipping and tax, see Tipping and paying in Japan.