Yokohama and Kawasaki are neighboring ordinance-designated cities, but there is a sizable gap in annual income among households with two or more members.
- Yokohama: ¥9.552 million
- Kawasaki: ¥10.940 million
Kawasaki is ¥1.388 million higher, which works out to a simple monthly difference of about ¥116,000.
That gap cannot be explained simply by saying that Kawasaki is closer to Tokyo. Several factors overlap: households that commute to Tokyo and earn salaries at Tokyo levels, working-age dual-income households that have moved into areas such as Musashi-Kosugi, and employment in IT, R&D, and manufacturing within Kawasaki itself.
Yokohama, by contrast, is a huge city that includes very different types of neighborhoods, from high-income residential districts along Tokyu lines to large suburban housing areas.
The difference in the numbers does not imply that individual residents are better or worse off. It reflects differences in urban structure—who lives in each city and where a large share of those households work.
Kawasaki's average is lifted by Tokyo commuting, high-value industries within the city, and an influx of working-age dual-income households into areas such as Musashi-Kosugi. Yokohama averages together 18 wards with very different characteristics, which tends to dilute the influence of its higher-income districts.
Yokohama and Kawasaki annual household income by age
| Age of household head | Yokohama | Kawasaki | Difference (Kawasaki − Yokohama) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average | ¥9.552 million | ¥10.940 million | +¥1.388 million |
| 30–39 | Not published | ¥9.752 million | — |
| 40–49 | Not published | ¥12.763 million | — |
| 50–59 | ¥11.503 million | ¥13.290 million | +¥1.787 million |
| 60–69 | ¥11.198 million | ¥9.830 million | -¥1.368 million |
| 70–79 | ¥6.944 million | ¥8.449 million | +¥1.505 million |
Source: Statistics Bureau of Japan, National Survey of Family Income, Consumption and Wealth (2019), households with two or more members
The gap is larger in the 50s than in the overall average
Kawasaki exceeds Yokohama by ¥1.388 million in the overall average, but the gap widens to ¥1.787 million among households headed by people aged 50–59.
People in their 50s tend to have longer job tenure and higher shares of managers and specialist professionals. This suggests that the main reason Kawasaki's average is high is not simply a large number of older residents or asset-rich households, but a substantial concentration of high-income households that are still in the workforce.
So why does Kawasaki tend to attract and retain households like these?
The overall gap is ¥1.388 million, but it widens to ¥1.787 million among households headed by people aged 50–59. Kawasaki's strength appears to lie less in wealthy households in general and more in the depth of high-income households in their prime working years.
Reason 1: Many households earn in Tokyo and live in Kawasaki
This survey is a household-finance statistic based on place of residence.
Even if someone works in Marunouchi, Otemachi, Shibuya, Shinagawa, or elsewhere in Tokyo, the income is counted as Kawasaki household income if that person's household lives in Kawasaki.
Kawasaki borders Tokyo across the Tama River and includes areas with convenient access to central Tokyo via the Tokyu Toyoko and Meguro lines, the Odakyu Line, the JR Yokosuka Line, and other routes. Musashi-Kosugi, Shin-Yurigaoka, and Miyamaedaira are representative areas where Tokyo-level salaries combine with a home address in Kanagawa Prefecture.
Yokohama also has many Tokyo-commuter residential areas, including Tama-Plaza, Aobadai, and Hiyoshi. The citywide difference nevertheless emerges in part because areas close to Tokyo make up a larger share of Kawasaki, so their effect is easier to see in the city average.
Households that “earn in Tokyo and live in Kawasaki” show up clearly in the city's average. This is a feature that becomes visible precisely because the household statistics are residence-based.
Reason 2: Kawasaki also has high-value jobs within the city
Kawasaki is not only a bedroom community for Tokyo; it is also a place where people work.
Fujitsu has its head office in Nakahara Ward, Toshiba's Smart Community Center is on the west side of Kawasaki Station in Saiwai Ward, and JFE Steel's East Japan Works has its Keihin area in Kawasaki Ward. Manufacturing and logistics establishments are also concentrated along the waterfront.
In other words, Kawasaki's household income is supported by two groups:
“High-income households working in Tokyo” + “households working in IT, R&D, and manufacturing within Kawasaki.”
It is not simply a residential city with good transport access. The city itself also has specialist, technical, and relatively stable manufacturing employment. This dual structure helps support Kawasaki's high household income.
Kawasaki is more than a bedroom community. Local employment at companies such as Fujitsu, Toshiba, and JFE Steel also supports household income.
Reason 3: In-migration to Musashi-Kosugi changed the average
Redevelopment and high-rise condominium construction around Musashi-Kosugi Station have brought in dual-income households in their 30s and 40s who commute to central Tokyo.
The key point is how an area's average income can rise.
It does not require every existing resident's salary to suddenly increase. If more high-income residents move in, the city or ward average itself rises. Musashi-Kosugi is a typical example of how redevelopment and a change in resident composition can move the statistics.
Kawasaki's ¥10.940 million figure is not “the salary of a typical Kawasaki resident.” It is an average strongly influenced by areas where working-age dual-income households are concentrated.
With the redevelopment of Musashi-Kosugi, it was not that every existing resident suddenly earned more; the key point is that more high-income newcomers moved in, changing the average itself.
Yokohama averages together “many different Yokohamas”
Yokohama also has many high-income households and high-value employment.
Aoba, Tsuzuki, and Kohoku wards contain large residential areas along Tokyu lines, while Minato Mirai in Nishi Ward is home to major corporate bases including Nissan Motor's Global Headquarters.
Even so, Yokohama's average is lower than Kawasaki's partly because Yokohama is geographically large and has a much larger population.
Yokohama Station and Minato Mirai, neighborhoods along Tokyu lines, Tsurumi near the Keihin industrial zone, and suburban residential districts in the city's southwest all differ in residents' ages, occupations, commuting destinations, and household composition.
For that reason, the ¥9.552 million figure is better understood not as “the standard income of a Yokohama resident,” but as an average that combines 18 wards with very different characteristics.
What the reversal in the 60s means
Kawasaki is ¥1.787 million higher among households headed by people aged 50–59, but Yokohama is ¥1.368 million higher among those aged 60–69.
This reversal is consistent with the interpretation that Kawasaki's high income is especially supported by working-age households. Even households that had earned high salaries in Tokyo or in Kawasaki's IT and manufacturing industries may see income decline in their 60s through retirement or post-retirement reemployment, reducing Kawasaki's advantage.
At the same time, the figures for people in their 60s alone do not allow us to conclude that Yokohama households receive more asset income or have a higher rate of continued employment. Age-specific municipal samples are limited, and differences in household size and income sources also matter.
The important point is that Kawasaki is not uniformly wealthier at every age. Its high average appears to be driven particularly strongly by households in their prime working years.
Summary: Kawasaki is a city where working households earn more; Yokohama is a huge city with diverse living areas
Annual income for households with two or more members is ¥9.552 million in Yokohama and ¥10.940 million in Kawasaki, putting Kawasaki ¥1.388 million higher.
Three main factors help explain Kawasaki's higher average:
- Many households commute to Tokyo and earn salaries at Tokyo levels
- Kawasaki itself has employment in IT, R&D, and manufacturing, including companies such as Fujitsu, Toshiba, and JFE Steel
- High-income dual-income households have moved into areas such as Musashi-Kosugi, changing the composition of residents
Yokohama, meanwhile, combines Tokyo-commuter districts in Aoba, Tsuzuki, and Kohoku, business districts such as Minato Mirai, and broad suburban residential areas in a single citywide average.
So the conclusion is not simply that “Kawasaki residents are richer.”
Kawasaki is a city where working-age households earn through both Tokyo commuting and local industry. Yokohama has high-income districts too, but its average is smoothed by the wide range of age groups, income levels, and living areas across the city. The roughly ¥1.39 million gap reflects these differences in how the two cities are structured.
📊 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)
- Survey overview: Statistics Bureau of Japan, 2019 National Survey of Family Income, Consumption and Wealth
- Indicator: Annual income per household with two or more members, by age group of household head
- Areas and year: Yokohama and Kawasaki, 2019
- Independent calculation: Published values converted to units of ¥10,000 and the difference between the two cities calculated
- Data retrieved: June 6, 2026
- Notes: Figures for Yokohama households headed by people aged 30–39 and 40–49 are not published. The regional and industry explanations in the article are interpretations based on the supplied regional materials and publicly available information, rather than figures directly observable in the statistical table. Average values do not represent the income of individual households.
The table values have been independently organized from the statistical data above.