How much does a building cleaner make in Japan?

In Japan, pay can differ with experience and skill certificates, the employer’s size and type, the building, and the region. Full-time or short-hour schedules, early or night shifts, and specialist jobs such as glass or floor cleaning can also make a difference.

What's a typical day like?

At a school, office, or shop, a cleaner checks the work plan, sweeps or vacuums floors, wipes surfaces, and empties and sorts bins. They revisit toilets to clean and refill paper, then may wash windows or wax floors before putting tools away.

In Japan, no special school or license is required: people usually apply to a building-cleaning company and learn tools, detergents, and safe methods on the job. Later, they can take the national Building Cleaning Skills Test; Grade 3 is open even to people without experience.

Cleaners may check a busy restroom several times in one day and top up toilet paper—not just clean it once.

Japan's figure is the average and the US figure is the median. Prices and exchange rates matter too, so it's a rough comparison.