A Note About Trains: Living in Tokyo, Train Lines Are Everything
When I was first moving to Tokyo, I was sure I had to be on the Yamanote Line. I thought if I was anywhere else, it would end up being extremely inconvenient and there would be nothing to do around my station. I could not have been more wrong.
For one, the Yamanote line is actually quite slow and has no express train. For two, Tokyo is THE CITY. Every station has things to do. And just because you're on the Yamanote Line, doesn't mean your friends will want to hang out at that station. I actually recommend not living on the Yamanote Line, and in fact recommend even living outside of it, not inside. You will save a lot of money, find some of the best neighbourhood's and your home station will be less hectic.
So which train line should you live on? That depends, but I generally recommend being on a train line with either direct access to Shibuya or Shinjuku (or both!) and to try to beat an express station. And always check the actual train timing because sometimes somewhere may seem close, but if the trains don’t match up it can take you an hour to get 5 km’s versus 15 minutes to go 20 kms. It all depends where you want to go! So let’s get into it, starting with my recommendations of neighbourhood's depending on what major station you need to easily access, followed by an outline of each spot.
Every neighbourhood on this list I recommend so there's no bad choice, but all have different pro's and con's so read on!
Top Recommended Neighbourhood's For Direct Access To Main Stations
If you want direct access to Shibuya
- Sangenjaya
- Shimokitazawa
- Kichijoji
- Meidaimae
- Nakameguro
- Jiyugaoka
If you want direct access to Shinjuku
- Kichijoji
- Nishi Ogikubo
- Koenji
- Setagaya Daita
- Shimokitazawa
- Kyodo
- Hatagaya
- Meidaimae
If you want direct access to Tokyo Station
- Tawaramachi
- Yoyogi Uehara
- Shimokitazawa
- Kyodo
- Nippori
- Koenji
Tokyo Neighbourhood Overview's
Once you've narrowed down the station you most need access to it's time for the fun part, choosing what area you want to live! I've included a quick overview of each area as well as some core pro's and con's to get you started. So let's review!
And if you want to start looking at actual houses/apartments in each spot to geta feel for prices and what's available, I recommend downloading the app Canary (not sponsored, but Canary if you are reading this I am available 😅 ). You can also access the website here. It's in Japanese, but the interface is my favourite of real estate app's I've tried so far and for the website Google can auto translate it if you use Chrome.
Hatagaya
Starting off with a winner, Hatagaya is incredibly cute. It has great bakeries, a super fun wine bar, lots of great restaurants, and it’s incredibly convenient. This whole area of the Keio is all a great idea to consider (Sasazuka to Hatsudai) filled with trendy little spots but not yet over run. For those into Nightlife this is a great location because it’s pretty cheap to cab to either Shinjuku or Shibuya, and Roppongi isn’t that bad either, but it’s far enough away that you still come home to a quieter daily life. It's a bit pricey, but you can get to Shinjuku direct in 3 minutes by train, or even just walk in about 30 minutes!
Jiyugaoka
Jiyugaoka is an a cute little neighbourhood along the Meguro River (excellent for sakura season) just southwest of Shibuya. It’s very trendy (slightly pricey), known for stylish shops, cafes (sweets lover’s paradise), and restaurants, and has a cute little Europe kind of town which is fun to walk around and for taking photos. You can go direct to Shibuya Station in 9 minutes on the express or 13 minutes on the local.
Kichijoji
Kichijoji is one of my absolute favourite neighbourhood's. It has everything you could want, with the only downside of being kind of crowded, particularly on weekends. But with Inokashira Park, countless restaurants and cafe’s thrift shops, tiny little izakaya streets and more, it’s worth braving a bit of crowdedness around the station. It is also an incredibly convenient spot with direct trains to Shinjuku, Shibuya and Tokyo station 😱. It is a bit far out though, so if you plan to regularly miss your last train and cab home, Kichijoji isn’t the place for you. It takes 16 minutes to get to Shinjuku, 21 minutes to Shibuya and 29 minutes to Tokyo Station all with no transfers.
Koenji
Koenji is another favourite of mine (the Chuo line is full of absolute gems—this isn’t the last on the list). I feel like Koenji is Kichijoji’s little brother. Another famous spot for thrifting, Koenji is Tokyo grunge. Keonji also has great little izakaya's and bars under the train tracks, tucked away little cafe’s and a couple basement live houses. The only downside is the Chuo Express only stops here on weekdays, so on the Weekend it takes a little longer to get there (but not much). On the express you can get to Shinjuku in 7 minutes, or on the local in 10 minutes, and to Tokyo Station it takes 21 minutes on the express or else 26 minutes if you have to transfer to the express at Shinjuku.
Kyodo
Kyodo is a bit of a secretly convenient spot to live. It’s may not seem very exciting by itself, very family, residential vibes, but it has FANTASTIC restaurants, a lot of wine bars, it’s own brewery, the works. And it has 10 grocery stores—an adulting win in my opinion. It’s also home to some very famous temples such as the cat temple (I know this is technically Gotokuji, but it’s walking distant to Kyodo station as well). You can go direct to both Shinjuku and Tokyo station, taking 12 minutes and 24 minutes respectively.
Medaimae
Medaimae is another incredibly convenient spot to live. The actual neighbourhood is a bit of a mix, has come commercial buildings mixed with local shops. It’s a bit of a student area, and therefore has some cheaper options when it comes to food and drinks. It’s at the cross of the two Keio lines so you can go direct to both Shibuya and Shinjuku which is incredibly convenient and kind of rare. You can get to Shibuya in 7 minutes and also to Shinjuku in 7 minutes!
Nakameguro
Nakameguro is really nice. A lot of the foreign tech workers live here, think software engineers, California vibes. There are a lot of really good restaurants and bars in this area, as well as the beautiful river walk that is the most famous spot in the city for sakura in the spring. It’s a really beautiful neighbourhood, but with that comes the cost (not a cheap area). You can walk to Shibuya from here in 25 minutes, or 4 minutes by train. You can also get to Shinjuku (well, Shinjuku-Sanchome which is a 6 minute walk away) in 11 minutes!
Nippori
Most of my recommendations for where to live in Tokyo are in the west. Generally, the west is where you want to be but if you have to live somewhere else, I have a couple options on this list for you. The first being Nippori! Nippori has a lot of old Tokyo charm. Yanaka Ginza shopping street is a lot of fun, there’s a lot of cat themed cafe’s in this area and also fabric street if you’re into sewing. It’s a different vibe than most other places on this list but is really convenient, my only option I included that’s on the Yamanote line. From here you can go direct to Tokyo station in 13 minutes, Shinjuku station in 23 minutes and Shibuya in 31 minutes.
Nishi Ogikubo
Nishi Ogikubo is a local spot to want to live. It’s a really cool little area with lots of little bars and restaurants spilling onto little back streets. It’s not that convenient because similarly to Koenji the express only stops here on the weekdays, but it’s farther away than Koenji. So you can get to Shinjuku direct in 13 minutes on express, or else 20 minutes on the weekends if you transfer in Kichijoji so you can take the express. Going the local the full way is over 20 minutes to the point Google Maps isn’t showing it as a viable option 😅
Sangenjaya
Sangenjaya is another of my favourite neighbourhood's in Tokyo. It has a nice park, great little alleys full of restaurants and bars, cafe’s, rooftops, markets and festivals. This area is trendy in the best way, and one of my top recommended places to live if you work in Shibuya being a direct train only 4 minutes away. It’s also the location Persona 5 takes place for any fellow video game fans out there! It's a bit of a pricey area but you can find some deals, and with how convenient and generally awesome it is, it's worth the price.
Shimokitazawa
Breaking my alphabetical order here because Shimokitazawa needs to be explained before Setagaya Daita. Shimokitazawa is a really fun neighbourhood. There’s always some kind of event or festival going on, and lots of outdoor markets and food trucks. There’s so many restaurants and cafe’s you could eat somewhere different every single day, and not just Japanese food but cuisine from all over the world. Shimokitazawa is known best for it’s thrift shops, which there are so many and a lot are really good. For some reason it’s on a lot of Tokyo hidden gems lists, but unfortunately I can assure you it is very far from hidden. This is essentially Shimokitazawa’s main downside, it’s always packed. Makes it fun to visit but with how crowded the streets always are it might be frustrating to actually live there. But it’s super convenient being on the express lines to both Shibuya and Shinjuku, taking 4 minutes to get to Shibuya or 8 minutes to Shinjuku. You can also go direct to Tokyo station in 18 minutes.
Setagaya Daita
If you want to live in Shimokitazawa but want to be a little farther from the crowds, I recommend Setagaya Daita (or Kyodo! Then you are still on the Express line for the Odakyu, but you are not really walking distance to Shimokitazawa anymore). Setagay Daita is a trendy little area that feels very similar to Nakameguro, but less busy. And if you want the convenience of the Express trains, it’s just one stop to Shimokitazawa, or you can just walk to that station instead! If you transfer to the express all times above to get anywhere are the same, just add the 5 minutes it’ll take you to make the one stop to Shimokitazawa then transfer.
Tawaramachi
My other option for if you can’t live in the west! Tawaramachi is my answer for people who want to live in Asakusa. Living right at Asakusa Station would be a nightmare. It is so busy you can barely move (I love Asakusa, but it’s true). So, the ideal situation for those who want to live surrounded by old Tokyo with all those shitamachi vibes (I see you, it’s wonderful and I’ve also considered living in Asakusa before), consider Tawaramachi. There are some cute cafe’s around here, can walk to Asakusa and the Sumida River, and you have really easy access to other big hubs like Ginza Station (15 minutes direct), Tokyo station (20 minutes direct), and even Shibuya Station (31 minutes direct).
Yoyogi Uehara
Save the best for last? Yoyogi Uehara has it all. Great restaurants and bars, parks, cute little shops, cafe’s, charming streets, festivals nearby, and convenience. Of course all of this comes with a price, but if price but was no object I would live here. Other options include Yoyogi Hachiman and Yoyogi Koen but Yoyogi Uehara is specifically the most convenient and as they are all in basically the same spot, I recommend it first. From Yoyogi Uehara you can train direct to Shinjuku in 5 minutes, to Tokyo Station in 22 minutes, or walk to Shibuya Station in 25 minutes, but you are in the ‘outskirts’ of Shibuya in only about 10.
And there you have it, my top recommendations for where to live in Tokyo! Whether you’re moving here for the first time or have lived here for years, I’d recommend the same places for the same reasons. Tokyo is full of awesome places to live, but for me, these are my top choices!
Thinking of moving to Tokyo? Be sure to also check out my Moving to Japan Guide to find out where to start! Or just travelling? Check out my top Tokyo itinerary blog (also provides some extra info on some of the neighbourhood's mentioned here!).
Wander on friends✨