Two-or-more-person households in Tokyo's 23 wards have average annual income of about ¥10.54 million. Yet the published figure is about ¥6.84 million for households in their 30s and about ¥13.33 million for those in their 70s. This surprising pattern—higher annual household income among older households than among working-age households—needs to be read carefully in light of non-wage income, inequality within the 23 wards, and sampling variability.
Annual income of two-or-more-person households in Tokyo's 23 wards by age of household head (2019)
| Age of household head | Annual income (¥1,000) | Approx. ¥ million |
|---|---|---|
| Average, all ages | 10,538 | About ¥10.54m |
| 30–39 | 6,839 | About ¥6.84m |
| 40–49 | 7,581 | About ¥7.58m |
| 50–59 | 9,309 | About ¥9.31m |
| 60–69 | 12,736 | About ¥12.74m |
| 70–79 | 13,329 | About ¥13.33m |
Income rises from the 30s through the 50s, then jumps further in the 60s and 70s
Annual income is ¥6.839 million for ages 30–39, ¥7.581 million for 40–49, and ¥9.309 million for 50–59. It then rises to ¥12.736 million for ages 60–69 and ¥13.329 million for 70–79, exceeding the published figures for working-age households.
This reversal does not mean that "everyone in their 70s in Tokyo earns ¥13 million." Annual household income can include pensions, business income, dividends, retirement payments, and other sources, and city-by-age survey estimates can be influenced by a small number of high-income households.
Older-household figures average together wealthy central-city households and the full diversity of the 23 wards
Minato, Chiyoda, Shibuya, and Bunkyo contain many corporate managers, professionals, business owners, and asset-holding households, while places such as Adachi, Katsushika, and Sumida have different household structures. Income dispersion is extremely wide across Tokyo's 23 wards, and averages are particularly susceptible to being pulled upward by high-income households.
Older households may also receive dividends, rental income, retirement payments, or other income associated with assets accumulated over many years. The age table should therefore not be read as a salary curve. It is better understood as a table in which household income sources shift from wages toward pensions and assets as households age.
How to read these figures
These statistics cover annual income for two-or-more-person households. Single-person households are excluded. Annual income may include business income, pensions, dividends, retirement payments, and other sources in addition to wages, so the data do not directly represent working-age salaries or disposable income alone.
The especially high figures for households in their 60s and 70s should not be interpreted as meaning that older households are uniformly wealthy. They are aggregate results that include differences in household composition and sources of income.
Summary: The high income of older households in Tokyo cannot be explained by salaries alone
The high published figures for households in their 60s and 70s in Tokyo's 23 wards include pensions, assets, business income, one-off receipts, and sampling effects. They should not be used as a direct comparison of working-age salaries, and the difference between an average and a typical household needs to be kept in mind.
- Overall average: about ¥10.54 million
- 30s: about ¥6.84 million; 50s: about ¥9.31 million
- 60s: about ¥12.74 million; 70s: about ¥13.33 million
- Older-household figures require particular caution because of non-wage income and sampling effects
Source: Statistics Bureau of Japan, National Survey of Family Income, Consumption and Wealth (2019)
📊 Analysis notes
- Statistics used: Statistics Bureau of Japan, National Survey of Family Income, Consumption and Wealth (Household Income) (Table ID: 0003426439, view on e-Stat)
- Indicator: Annual income of two-or-more-person households by age group of household head
- Area: Tokyo's 23 wards
- Year: 2019
- Data retrieved: June 6, 2026
- Notes: The article primarily organizes published statistics. Interpretation also involves factors outside the table, including household composition and one-off income, so directly observable figures should be distinguished from interpretation.
Figures in charts and tables were independently compiled and visualized from the statistical data above.