Japan long relied on cash, but with credit cards and code payments on the rise, more than half of spending is now cashless. The ratios here are the yearly value-based statistics from Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
How far cashless has come
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry cashless payment ratio, domestic indicator (by value).
How people pay without cash
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, 2025 cashless spending by method.
Transport IC cards such as Suica and ICOCA count as e-money. They pay at convenience stores, station kiosks and vending machines, and how they work is set out in the IC card guide.
Withdrawing yen with an overseas card
- 28,000+ Seven Bank ATMs 7-Eleven, main airports
- ¥100,000 Per withdrawal chip-less cards: ¥30,000
- 12 Screen languages incl. English, Korean
Seven Bank guide for overseas-issued cards. Fees depend on the card brand and issuer.
A magnetic stripe card is read only from the black stripe on the back and has no IC chip. A card with a gold or silver chip on the front gets the ¥100,000 limit.
Seven Bank ATMs are also at New Chitose, Narita, Haneda, Chubu, Kansai, Fukuoka and Naha airports. A withdrawal can be charged in the home currency or in yen; with yen, the home-currency amount is set when the card bill arrives.
