$Who Earns What

How much does a childcare worker make in Japan?

Childcare Workers

Answer: The average childcare worker in Japan makes $28,509 (¥4.28M) a year (monthly pay × 12 plus bonus, 2025, Japan's Basic Survey on Wage Structure).

Average yearly pay of people doing this job in Japan
$28,509 (¥4.28M)

Monthly pay $1,905 × 12 + bonus $5,653. Average age 40.3; about 292,000 people work in this job. About the same as the Japan-wide average ($33,720).

Childcare worker pay in Japan (2025, averages by company size and sex)

Childcare worker pay in Japan (2025, averages by company size and sex) — Data: MHLW Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025
Company sizeEveryoneMenWomenAge
Any size$28,509$30,031$28,43740.3
Big company$29,497$30,093$29,46239.7
Mid-size$28,056$30,040$27,93138.6
Small company$28,569$29,995$28,52541.5

Why does pay differ?

In Japan, experience, location, employer size, and full- or part-time hours can all affect a childcare worker’s pay. Public facilities follow public-service pay rules, and nursery, hospital, or children’s residential-care jobs may have different pay and shift arrangements.

What if you were…

In Japan, age and company size matter most

Pick a company size, sex or age to see that group's average here.

How it changes with age

Tap an age to update the number above (Any company size, men and women combined)

How it changes with company size

Any size$28,509
Big company$29,497
Mid-size$28,056
Small company$28,569
Men$30,031
Women$28,437

What does a childcare worker do?

What's a typical day like?

At drop-off, a worker greets children and checks how they seem, then leads a park walk and helps at lunch. During naps, they watch breathing, face color, and posture; later come snacks, play, pickups, and daily notes.

How to get this job

In Japan, complete an approved two-to-four-year childcare course after high school, including placements; graduates qualify without an exam. Another route is to meet the entry rules, pass written and practical tests, then register.

Did you know?

In Japan, nursery teachers check sleeping children’s face color, breathing, and posture—and even the room’s temperature and humidity—to help keep them safe.

What about the US?

Nearly the same job
Childcare worker (average)
$28,509
US
Childcare worker (typical)
$34,980

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.

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Sources and data

Source: MHLW Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025 (regular workers, by occupation) (e-Stat). Yearly pay = monthly contractual cash earnings × 12 + annual bonus. Averages for regular workers at firms with 10+ employees. Public employees (teachers, police, firefighters) and company executives are not in this survey. e-stat.go.jp

Pages used for the text

Data: MHLW Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025 · 1 USD = 150 JPY