[GoNative]

Living costs in Japan for me have been far less than they were in Australia. I do earn far less than what I did in Australia though (I paid more in tax in Aus that my gross earnings here!). Cost of living depends on where you are. A rural town in Hokkaido (like where I live) is very cheap. Tokyo or Osaka on the other hand are like any major cities in the world, pretty damned expensive. I was in a comfortable financial position when I came here though and was able to buy my house outright without any loans at all so not ever having to pay rent or a loan does make it easier to manage the budget.