Home
Back

Dear visitor, if you know the answer to this question, please post it. Thank you!

Note that this thread has not been updated in a long time, and its content might not be up-to-date anymore.

Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/12 09:05
Out of 23 wards in Tokyo where is the best to live? I'm a middle/middleupper class and want to create a startup in tokyo after finishing my masters degree (which i will take next year) and hopefully have a family there in the long term. Out of 23 wards prefer in calm neighborhood with various options of restaurant and school. Thanks in advance. (Note: preferably the business and living in the same ward, it doesnt have to be shibuya, shinjuku, minato, chuo, and chiyoda)
by AJ15  

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/12 17:21
First this is my personal opinion, if you want to start a business than you should start doing research on the location which you think is best for your business, and also you have to have a firm plan including investment. After that as you mentioned you can have your living in the same ward as you have your business.
by justmyday rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/12 20:26
Each of Tokyo's wards is big enough that there are any different kinds of communities within them. It's not like every part of Minato Ward or Shinjuku Ward has the same vibe, so you'd be better off looking at the wards' individual neighborhoods.
by . . . . (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/13 01:09
Today in Tokyo, a "ku" is translated as "city" rather than a "ward". Some ku provide things like subsidy and facilities that other ku don't, so it all depends on what kind of support you need. Meanwhile, locals typically tend to choose depending on the train line rather than the ku, because train lines is the thing that tend to create culture. In any case, every ku is beautiful in its own way.
by Uco rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/13 08:30
What is the business you are wanting to set up. That might influence where you establish it.
With a built up area containing 37 million, you are correct, you don't need to restrict your self to places like Shinjuku/Shibuya/Minato.
Also, you realise there are 39 other cities in Tokyo prefecture so limiting yourself to the 23 ward area is possibly an unnecessary restriction. Plus, you could look at other places like Omiya in Saitama, Chiba, and cities in Kanagawa like Yokohama (which is actually Japan's largest city as a single municipality) or Kawasaki.
Personally, I probably wouldn't live in the area bounded by the 23 wards. I consider it sometimes, but I prefer the area I am in due to the friendly people I meet. I don't get that in the central city.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/13 18:15
Thanks for all the answer.

The startup that we try to build is ecommerce, thats why we try to set in those 23 wards. However, outside of the 23 wards, probably interest in Yokohama considering the rent there, train lines, etc. But in those 23 wards, so far we consider Toshima (low rent compare to the surroundings, many company set there, train lines, etc) but we also try to set in city or wards with high population concentration. Try to look at Setagaya but not sure, even interest in Nerima and Suginami. But not sure as well, thoughts? Any ideas are all welcome
by AJ15 rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/13 20:36
Why 23-ku if it's ecommerce?
by .. (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/13 23:06
Setagaya, even more so than the rest of Tokyo, is over-populated, with public services struggling to cope. Only a fool would voluntarily move there (though evidently there are plenty of those).
by ... (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/14 00:19
Thanks for the heads up, any wards or city you would recommend then?
by AJ15 rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/14 02:42
If your business is online you don't need to be in the centre of everything.

If I were running an ecommerce startup I would be looking for an office (or warehouse if you're selling physical goods) location in the cheapest possible part of Tokyo (or Chiba, Saitama, Kanagawa, etc.). I would probably begin my search far, far out in the suburbs to the west of the city. I most certainly would not be trying to establish my business in 23-ku unless I had a really good reason to. Remember that all you really need for your business is an internet connection.
by LIZ (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/14 07:19
So based on this thread it is more preferable on greater tokyo area. Well Yokohama does makes sense since it is big, more laid back, having close to shipping port also helps. Any specific area you can recommend?
by AJ15 rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/14 09:14
Given how efficient the shipping around Tokyo is, you really don't need to be close to something like Yokohama port. When I get international shipments sent to me they arrive via Narita Airport it still only takes part of a day to get to my place in west Tokyo, and that's around 100km from Narita in a straight line.
I would also echo the comments about location - you don't need to be in the centre of the city for something like eCommerce. While I do have a physical office in Shinjuku, I only use it about once a year - for an online business you really do not need to be centrally located.
As for the comments about population density, perhaps you should do some research into what Tokyo and greater Tokyo is actually like given you are looking for somewhere nice to live as well. Given it is a sprawling metro area, even places well away from the centre have high densities. My local city is 7430 persons per km² as there are not as many high-rise apartment blocks which makes for a nicer environment than something like Shinjuku (around 47,000 people per sq km). Also, you can get a nicer place to live - for a comparable size I could easily pay double to live closer to the 23-ward area, but I simply don't need that expense. Some people talk about inside vs outside the Yamamote Line - gets pretty expensive.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/14 16:45
AJ15,

Again, it totally depends on what kind of business you are trying to do, and what kind of preferences you have as an individual. Maybe being near a port does help you, but we don't know if your profession requires you to regularly go check your container vessels or whether you're serving seamen. And there are several ports in Yokohama (as well as Kawasaki or Tokyo or Chiba) depending on the type of vessel, and each neighborhood is different. The following popularity list is just for reference.
https://suumo.jp/edit/sumi_machi/
by Uco rate this post as useful

Re: Best ward to live in Tokyo? 2019/11/15 09:09
want to create a startup in tokyo after finishing my masters degree (which i will take next year)
I assume you have looked at what is required to do a start-up, both in terms of creating the business and what immigration will require. You cannot just turn up and create a business - there are steps to follow and some are quite difficult. If you are a fresh grad then your being able to demonstrate experience starting/running a business to Immigration will be quite light.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

reply to this thread