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Country profile

American nationals in Japan

Total residents (2025)
69,787
Total Population of the US: ~340 million
Growth (past 10 years)
+33.5%
52,271 in 2015 → 69,787 in 2025

Top visa types (2025)

Permanent resident
20,810
Spouse of Japanese
14,118
Engineer / Humanities
9,100
Instructor
5,981
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The Average American Migrant

Male profile

The average American male in Japan is a permanent resident in his late thirties, living in Tokyo.

Modal age35–39
Top visaPermanent resident (31.4%)
2nd visaSpouse of Japanese (23.1%)
Population46,974 (67.3%)
Female profile

The average American female in Japan is a permanent resident in her early thirties, living in Tokyo.

Modal age30–34
Top visaPermanent resident (26.7%)
2nd visaSpouse of Japanese (14.3%)
Population22,764 (32.6%)

Population over time

Total American residents

Annual figures, 1964–2025 — hover the line for details
020,00040,00060,00080,00019641970198019902000201020202025
0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2024
Permanent resident Engineer / Humanities Spouse of Japanese Instructor Student Others

Visa Types

What do these visa types mean? →

Status of residence (2025)

Current snapshot
0 10,000 20,000 30,000 Permanent resident Permanent resident: 20,810 20,810 Spouse of Japanese Spouse of Japanese: 14,118 14,118 Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services: 9,100 9,100 Instructor Instructor: 5,981 5,981 Family stay / Dependent Family stay / Dependent: 5,237 5,237 Student Student: 5,231 5,231 Long-term resident Long-term resident: 1,856 1,856 Religion Religion: 1,761 1,761 High-skilled professional High-skilled professional: 1,010 1,010 Special Permanent resident Special Permanent resident: 884 884 Professor Professor: 745 745 Business manager Business manager: 728 728
0 10,000 20,000 30,000 Permanent resident Permanent resident 2015: 15,970 Permanent resident 2025: 20,810 15,970 20,810 (2025) Spouse of Japanese Spouse of Japanese 2015: 8,856 Spouse of Japanese 2025: 14,118 8,856 14,118 (2025) Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services 2015: 7,661 Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services 2025: 9,100 7,661 9,100 (2025) Instructor Instructor 2015: 5,567 Instructor 2025: 5,981 5,567 5,981 (2025) Family stay / Dependent Family stay / Dependent 2015: 3,812 Family stay / Dependent 2025: 5,237 3,812 5,237 (2025) Student Student 2015: 2,723 Student 2025: 5,231 2,723 5,231 (2025) Long-term resident Long-term resident 2015: 1,155 Long-term resident 2025: 1,856 1,155 1,856 (2025) Religion Religion 2015: 1,696 Religion 2025: 1,761 1,696 1,761 (2025) High-skilled professional High-skilled professional 2015: 78 High-skilled professional 2025: 1,010 78 1,010 (2025) Special Permanent resident Special Permanent resident 2015: 782 Special Permanent resident 2025: 884 782 884 (2025)
Where the US is heavier than rest of world Where the US is lighter (or absent) Permanent resident American: 29.8% 29.8% Rest of world: 22.8% 22.8% Spouse of Japanese American: 20.2% 20.2% Rest of world: 3.4% 3.4% Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services American: 13.0% 13.0% Rest of world: 11.5% 11.5% Instructor American: 8.6% 8.6% Rest of world: 0.2% 0.2% Religion American: 2.5% 2.5% Rest of world: 0.1% 0.1% High-skilled professional American: 1.4% 1.4% Rest of world: 0.8% 0.8% Professor American: 1.1% 1.1% Rest of world: 0.2% 0.2% Entertainer American: 0.6% 0.6% Rest of world: 0.1% 0.1% Intra-company transferee American: 0.5% 0.5% Rest of world: 0.5% 0.5% Cultural activities American: 0.3% 0.3% Rest of world: 0.1% 0.1% Specified Skilled Worker American: 0.0% 0.0% Rest of world: 9.6% 9.6% Special Permanent resident American: 1.3% 1.3% Rest of world: 6.6% 6.6% Student American: 7.5% 7.5% Rest of world: 11.3% 11.3% Long-term resident American: 2.7% 2.7% Rest of world: 5.5% 5.5% Designated activities American: 0.7% 0.7% Rest of world: 3.1% 3.1% Skilled labour American: 0.1% 0.1% Rest of world: 1.3% 1.3% Family stay / Dependent American: 7.5% 7.5% Rest of world: 8.6% 8.6% Spouse of PR American: 0.8% 0.8% Rest of world: 1.4% 1.4%

Demographics

Age distribution

All American residents — five-year age brackets, December 2025
0 2,500 5,000 7,500 10,000 0–4: 1,557 1,557 0–4 5–9: 1,834 1,834 5–9 10–14: 1,539 1,539 10–14 15–19: 2,086 2,086 15–19 20–24: 5,063 5,063 20–24 25–29: 6,979 6,979 25–29 30–34: 8,172 8,172 30–34 35–39: 7,687 7,687 35–39 40–44: 6,764 6,764 40–44 45–49: 5,097 5,097 45–49 50–54: 4,412 4,412 50–54 55–59: 4,776 4,776 55–59 60–64: 4,281 4,281 60–64 65–69: 3,429 3,429 65–69 70–74: 2,598 2,598 70–74 75–79: 1,808 1,808 75–79 80+: 1,656 1,656 80+
MALE 男性 FEMALE 女性 0–4 803 754 5–9 952 882 10–14 795 744 15–19 1,160 926 20–24 2,773 2,290 25–29 4,073 2,906 30–34 5,260 2,912 35–39 5,459 2,228 40–44 5,201 1,563 45–49 4,020 1,077 50–54 3,437 975 55–59 3,672 1,104 60–64 3,146 1,135 65–69 2,385 1,044 70–74 1,799 799 75–79 1,184 624 80+ 855 801

Gender split

December 2025
Male: 46,974 (67.3%) Female: 22,764 (32.6%) 69,787 total
Male
46,974 (67.3%)
Female
22,764 (32.6%)

The American community leans male (67%) — decades of men arriving for defence-linked work, tech, finance and English teaching. Many put down roots: Permanent Resident is the single largest visa, and Spouse of Japanese ranks second.

Permanent resident: 6,080 (26.7%) Spouse of Japanese: 3,256 (14.3%) Family stay / Dependent: 2,940 (12.9%) Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services: 2,897 (12.7%) Instructor: 2,641 (11.6%) Student: 1,887 (8.3%) Long-term resident: 701 (3.1%) Religion: 648 (2.8%) Special Permanent resident: 508 (2.2%) Professor: 222 (1.0%) Spouse of PR: 184 (0.8%) Designated activities: 180 (0.8%) High-skilled professional: 176 (0.8%) Other: 444 (2.0%) Total female 22,764
22,764 female American residents — by status of residence
Permanent resident6,080
Spouse of Japanese3,256
Family stay / Dependent2,940
Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services2,897
Instructor2,641
Student1,887
Long-term resident701
Religion648
Special Permanent resident508
Professor222
Spouse of PR184
Designated activities180
High-skilled professional176
Other444
Permanent resident: 14,729 (31.4%) Spouse of Japanese: 10,861 (23.1%) Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services: 6,197 (13.2%) Student: 3,325 (7.1%) Instructor: 3,324 (7.1%) Family stay / Dependent: 2,294 (4.9%) Long-term resident: 1,153 (2.5%) Religion: 1,113 (2.4%) High-skilled professional: 834 (1.8%) Business manager: 606 (1.3%) Professor: 523 (1.1%) Special Permanent resident: 376 (0.8%) Spouse of PR: 352 (0.7%) Other: 1,287 (2.7%) Total male 46,974
46,974 male American residents — by status of residence
Permanent resident14,729
Spouse of Japanese10,861
Engineer / Humanities / Int'l services6,197
Student3,325
Instructor3,324
Family stay / Dependent2,294
Long-term resident1,153
Religion1,113
High-skilled professional834
Business manager606
Professor523
Special Permanent resident376
Spouse of PR352
Other1,287
0 20,000 40,000 60,000 2010 2015 2020 2025 Female 22,764 Male 46,974

Where they live (2025)

By region — heat map

Hover or tap a region to see its breakdown.
Hokkaido Hokkaido 723 723 Tohoku Tohoku 518 518 Kanto Kanto 2,621 2,621 Chubu Chubu 1,926 1,926 Kansai Kansai 3,189 3,189 Chugoku Chugoku 487 487 Shikoku Shikoku 245 245 Kyushu Kyushu 1,158 1,158
Fewer
More
Selected region
Kanto
11,830
57.6% of Japan total
Top Visa Categories
Prefectures
Tokyo
7,596
Kanagawa
1,948
Chiba
1,018
Saitama
763
Ibaraki
231
Tochigi
138
Gunma
136

Highest and Lowest Prefectures

2025 Resident Counts
Top 10
Tokyo
Kanto
33.9%
Kanagawa
Kanto
10.5%
Osaka
Kansai
6.1%
Okinawa
Okinawa
4.4%
Chiba
Kanto
4.0%
Hyogo
Kansai
4.0%
Aichi
Chubu
3.7%
Saitama
Kanto
3.4%
Kyoto
Kansai
3.1%
Fukuoka
Kyushu
2.8%
Bottom 10
Tottori
Chugoku
0.1%
Saga
Kyushu
0.2%
Shimane
Chugoku
0.3%
Tokushima
Shikoku
0.3%
Kochi
Shikoku
0.3%
Fukui
Chubu
0.3%
Yamagata
Tohoku
0.3%
Akita
Tohoku
0.3%
Kagawa
Shikoku
0.3%
Wakayama
Kansai
0.3%

Prefecture Growth, 2015 to 2025

Absolute change in American residents over the past decade
Fastest growth
Yamagata
Tohoku
+66%
Kyoto
Kansai
+62%
Hokkaido
Hokkaido
+55%
Nagano
Chubu
+51%
Yamaguchi
Chugoku
+51%
Slowest growth
Tochigi
Kanto
-4%
Aichi
Chubu
+4%
Akita
Tohoku
+5%
Fukushima
Tohoku
+7%
Nagasaki
Kyushu
+9%
0 10,000 20,000 30,000 2010 2015 2020 2025 Tokyo Kanagawa Osaka Okinawa Chiba Hyogo Aichi Saitama

Fun Fact

Americans are Japan's largest Western community — nearly 70,000 strong. Uniquely, Okinawa ranks #4 among their prefectures, reflecting eight decades of deep ties to the island.
Interested to know more about migration numbers in Japan?
Explore Overview →Immigration statistics for the whole of Japan — 4.13 million foreign residentsAll Nationalities/Regions →This page is one of 67 — explore every major community in Japan
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