Looking for some heads-down study time for your favorite foreign language? We’ve put together the most comprehensive list of Japanese language schools in Japan – all of which have a track that can qualify for a student visa in Japan. Some even provide extra services such as airport pick-up, room and board options, and even part-time job placement.

*All prices were accurate at the time of publication, but please consult directly with the school for the most up-to-date fees, tuition, room and board options, etc.

Jump to: Chubu | Chugoku | Hokkaido | Kanto | Kinki / Kansai | Kyushu / Okinawa | Shikoku | Tohoku | FAQs

Chubu  

Human Academy Japanese Language School 
Location: Nagoya
Tuition: ¥1,100,000/1 year 3 months + ¥27,500 registration fee

ISI International Study Institute Nagano
Location: Nagano
Tuition: ¥620,000/year + ¥214,000 in fees

Nagoya International Academy
Location: Nagoya, Meito
Tuition: ¥630,000/year + ¥169,000 in fees

Nagoya International School of Japanese Language
Location: Nagoya
Tuition: ¥1,217,500/yr to ¥1,366,000 for both tuition and fees

SPC Nagoya
Location: Nagoya
Tuition: ¥973,000/year including fees

Subaru Language Schools
Location: Gifu, Ogaki + Motosu
Tuition:  ¥1,080,000/1 year 6 months + ¥70,000 in fees

UNITAS Kofu
Location: Yamanashi, Kofu
Tuition: ¥550,000/year + ¥190,000 in fees

Yamasa
Location: Aichi, Okazaki 
Tuition: ¥750,000/year + unlisted fees

Chugoku  

Anabuki College Group
Location: Fukuyama City, Hiroshima
Tuition: ¥705,000/year + ¥90,000 in fees

Hiroshima Academy Japanese Language School
Location: Hiroshima
Tuition: ¥500,000/year + ¥160,000 in fees

Hiroshima YMCA
Location: Hiroshima
Tuition: ¥620,000/year + ¥162,000 in fees

HLA Japanese Language School
Location: Hiroshima
Tuition: ¥1,020,000/1.5 years

Mihara International Language Academy
Location: Hiroshima, Mihara
Tuition: ¥520,000/year + ¥160,000 in fees

Okayama Institute of Languages
Location: Okayama, Kita
Tuition: ¥630,000/year + ¥208,000 in fees

Sakura International Academy
Location: Yamaguchi, Shimonoseki
Tuition: ¥650,000/year + ¥385,000 in fees (including dormitory)

Hokkaido  

Hokkaido Japanese Language Academy
Location: Hokkaido, Sapporo
Tuition: ¥660,000/year + ¥184,000 in fees

IAY International Academy Japanese Language School
Location: Hokkaido, Sapporo
Tuition: ¥770,000/year + ¥181,000 in fees

Japan International Language Academy J-ILA
Location: Hokkaido, Hakodate
Tuition: ¥990,000/1 year 6 months + ¥133,000 in fees

Meiji Academy
Location: Hokkaido, Sapporo
Tuition: ¥920,000/year

Sapporo Language Center
Location: Hokkaido, Sapporo
Tuition: ¥783,000/1 year 3 months + ¥124,000 in fees

Yu Language Academy Sapporo
Location: Sapporo, Chuo
Tuition: ¥700,000/year + ¥200,000 in fees

Kanto  

Akamonkai
Location: Tokyo, Arakawa
Tuition:  ¥720,000/year + ¥125,000 in fees

ALA Academy of Language Arts
Location: Tokyo, Iidabashi
Tuition: ¥662,000/year + 107,000 in fees

ARC Tokyo Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Bunkyo + Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥768,000/12 months + ¥100,000 in fees

Atys Japanese Language Academy Utsunomiya Campus
Location: Utsunomiya-shi, Tochigi
Tuition: ¥770,000 for 1.5 year course, ¥880,000 for 2-year course + ~¥900,000+ in fees

Coto Japanese Institute
Location: Kokubunji, Tokyo
Tuition: ¥748,000 + ¥252,000 in fees

Evergreen Language School
Location: Tokyo, Meguro
Tuition: ¥660,000/year + ¥116,000 in fees

KCP International Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Shinkuku
Tuition: $9,000/year (courses only) + $20,100 dorm OR $21,100 homestay

Funabashi Japanese Language Academy
Location: Chiba, Funabashi
Tuition: ¥600,000/year + ¥199,000 in fees

Futaba College of Foreign Languages
Location: Chiba
Tuition: ¥660,000/year + ¥106,000 in fees

Human Academy Japanese Language School 
Location: Tokyo, Takadanobaba + Yokohama
Tuition: ¥1,100,000/1 year 3 months + ¥27,500 registration fee

Intercultural Institute of Japan
Location: Tokyo, Akihabara
Tuition: ¥792,000/year + ¥197,000 in fees

ISI Career and Language Academy, Takadanobaba
Location: Tokyo, Shibuya + Takadanobaba
Tuition: ¥750,000/year +  ¥234,000 in fees

ISI Language College – Tokyo Ikebukuro
Location: Tokyo, Ikebukuro
Tuition:  ¥708,000/year +  ¥234,000 in fees

ISI Language School Shinjuku
Location: Tokyo, Shinjuku
Tuition:  ¥740,000/year + ¥254,000 in fees

Japan Tokyo International School
Location: Tokyo, Nishi-Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥666,000/year + ¥169,000 in fees

JCLI Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Tokyo
Tuition: ¥660,000/1 year 3 months + ¥178,000 in fees

JSL Nippon Academy Tokyo
Location: Tokyo, Asakusabashi
Tuition: ¥900,000/1.5 years + ¥280,000 in fees

Japan International Institute of Cybernetics Japanese language department (NKK)
Location: Chiba, Matsudo
Tuition: ¥600,000/year + ¥199,000 in fees

KAI Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Shin-Okubo
Tuition: ¥960,000/year + ¥112,000 in fees

Linguage Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥726,000 + ¥132,000 or more in fees

Meros Language School
Location: Tokyo, Ikebukuro
Tuition:  ¥668,000/year + ¥160,000 in fees

Nichibei Kaiwa Gakuin, Japanese Language Institute (JLI)
Location: Tokyo, Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥219,000/term (3 months) + ¥74,000+ in fees

Shinwa Foreign Language Academy
Location: Tokyo, Takadanobaba
Tuition: ¥660,000/year + ¥165,000 in fees

Sendagaya Japanese Institute
Location: Tokyo, Komagome + Takadanobaba
Tuition: ¥740,000/year + ¥156,000 in fees

Shinjuku Gyoen Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥660.000/year + ¥158,000 in fees

Shibuya Gaigo Gakuin
Location: Tokyo, Takadanobaba
Tuition: ¥720,000/year + ¥94,000 in fees

Shibuya LALL Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Shibuya
Tuition: ¥775,000/1 year 3 months + ¥173,000 in fees

SNG Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute
Location: Tokyo, Takadanobaba
Tuition: ¥840,000/year + ¥150,000 in fees

TCJ
Location: Tokyo, Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥770,000/year + ¥120,000 in fees

TOYO Language School
Location: Tokyo, Edogawa
Tuition: ¥612,000/year + ¥204,000 in fees

Tokyo Cocoro Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Itabashi
Tuition: ¥648,000/year + ¥142,000 in fees

Tokyo International Japanese School
Location: Tokyo, Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥750,000/year + ¥80,000 in fees

Tokyo Language Academy (Tokyo Adachi Japanese Language School)
Location: Tokyo, Iidabashi
Tuition:  ¥777,000/year + ¥153,000 in fees

Tokyo YMCA Nihongo Gakuin
Location: Tokyo, Koto-ku
Tuition: ¥690,000/year + ¥90,000+/year in fees

UNITAS Tokyo
Location: Tokyo, Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥620,000/year + ¥180,000 in fees

Yono Gakuin Japanese Language School
Location: Saitama, Omiya
Tuition: ¥1,086,000/1.5 years + ¥143,000 in fees

Yokohama Design College (YDC)
Location: Yokohama, Nishi Ward
Tuition: ¥650,000/year + ¥245,000 in fees

Yokohama International Education Academy
Location: Yokohama, Nishi Ward
Tuition: ¥760,000/year + ¥100,000 in fees

Yoshida Institute Japanese Language School
Location: Tokyo, Shinjuku
Tuition: ¥660,000/year + ¥49,000 in fees

Yu Language Academy Tokyo
Location: Tokyo, Shin-Okubo
Tuition: ¥700,000/year + ¥200,000 in fees

Kinki / Kansai

ARC Academy Kyoto
Location: Kyoto, Kyoto
Tuition: ¥768,000/12 months + ¥100,000 in fees

Communica Institute
Location: Kobe, Kobe
Tuition: ¥800,000/year + ¥205,000 in fees 

Daiwa Academy
Location: Osaka, Sakai
Tuition: ¥945,000/1.5 years + ¥181,000 in fees

ECC Kokusai Language School
Location: Osaka, Kita
Tuition: ¥820,000/year + ¥107,000 in fees

EHLE Institute Japanese Language School
Location: Osaka, Namba
Tuition: ¥760,000/year + ¥201,000 in fees

First Study Japanese Language School
Location: Osaka + Izumiotsu
Tuition: ¥684,000/year + ¥272,000 in fees

Human Academy Japanese Language School
Location: Osaka + Kobe
Tuition: ¥1,100,000/1 year 3 months + ¥27,500 registration fee

Intercultural Language Academy
Location: Kobe
Tuition: ¥860,000/1 year 3 months + ¥239,000 in fees

ISI Language School Kyoto
Location: Kyoto, Nakagyo
Tuition:  ¥708,000/year + ¥234,000 in fees

ISI Language School Osaka
Location: Osaka
Tuition:  ¥708,000/year + ¥234,000 in fees

Japan International Language Academy J-ILA
Location: Kyoto
Tuition:  ¥660,000/year + ¥146,000 in fees

Japanese International School
Location: Osaka
Tuition: ¥700,000/year + ¥100,000 in fees

Kansai College
Location: Osaka
Tuition: ¥696,000/year  + ¥64,000 in fees

Kyoto Minsai Japanese Language School
Location: Kyoto (multiple locations)
Tuition: ¥750,000/year + ¥232,000 in fees

Loop International Japanese Language School
Location: Osaka
Tuition: ¥760,000 per year + ¥50,000 in fees

Nihongo Center Japanese Language School
Location: Kyoto
Tuition: ¥726,000/year + ¥165,000 in fees

Kyushu / Okinawa  

Aiwa Language Institute
Location: Fukuoka
Tuition: ¥566,000/year + ¥290,000 in fees

Fukuoka Foreign Language College
Location: Fukuoka
Tuition: ¥650,000/year + ¥184,000 in fees

Genki Japanese and Culture School
Location: Fukuoka, Hakata
Tuition: ¥1,120,000/year (registration fee included) + ¥20,000 in fees

Human Academy Japanese Language School
Location: Fukuoka
Tuition: ¥1,100,000/1 year 3 months + ¥27,500 registration fee

ICLC
Location: Okinawa, Naha
Tuition: ¥780,000/year + ¥117,000 in fees

Japan International Language Academy J-ILA
Location: Fukuoka
Tuition:  ¥660,000/year + ¥113,000 in fees

Kurume Seminar Specialized Training College
Location: Fukuoka
Tuition: ¥640,000/year + ¥190,000 in fees

Kyushu Foreign Language Academy (KFLA)
Location: Fukuoka
Tuition: ¥803,000/year + ¥193,000 in dormitory costs

Shikoku

Anabuki College Group
Location: Takamatsu City, Kagawa or Tokushima City, Tokushima
Tuition: ¥705,000/year + ¥90,000 in fees

Future Design Japanese Language School
Location: Sakaide City, Kagawa
Tuition: ¥620,000/yr+

Kawahara Electronic Business College Japanese Language Department
Location: Matsuyama, Ehime
Tuition: ¥600,000/year + ¥100,000 in fees

Ryoma Gakuen, Happinesu Foreign Language School
Location: Kochi City
Tuition: ¥840,000/1.5 years + ¥250,000 in fees

Tohoku  

Fukushima Japanese School
Location: Fukushima
Tuition: ¥841,000/1 year 6 months + ¥168,000 in fees

International Academy Language School
Location: Miyagi, Sendai
Tuition: ¥999,000/1 year 6 months + ¥206,000 in fees

Sendai International School of Japanese
Location: Miyagi, Sendai
Tuition: ¥576,000/year + ¥140,000 in fees

Sendai Language School
Location: Miyagi, Sendai
Tuition: ¥675,000/1 year 3 months + ¥140,000 in fees

Japanese Language School FAQs

🔴 Who can I talk to for language school placement advice and application support?

KOKO JAPAN supports placement into language schools across Japan, including application support, housing, visa guidance, and more. Reach out here for free support from one of their advisors.

🔴 What are the admissions requirements for Japanese language school?

Commonly, schools will require that you have completed high school. Recently, schools may also require that you have already passed the JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test) at levels N5 or N4, which are the lowest levels. This proves you have a baseline understanding of the phonetic character sets, plus basic grammar and kanji.

🔴 How much does it cost to go to language school in Japan?

It costs between about ¥700,000 and ¥1M Japanese yen per year in tuition and fees to attend language school in Japan. This does not include living expenses such as rent, food, transportation and entertainment.

🔴 What is the cheapest Japanese language school with visa sponsorship?

The cheapest Japanese language school that can be used for a student visa is Future Design Japanese Language School in Kagawa, Shikoku. The one year course starts at ¥620,000. After other fees, the total comes to ¥648,000 per year. Shikoku is also one of the cheapest places in Japan to live, so you can anticipate low rent as well.

The next cheapest Japanese language school is Hiroshima Academy Japanese Language School. Tuition and fees there comes to ¥660,000 per year. The school advises that living expenses in their area will be an additional ¥70,000 per month, bringing the estimated annual expenses to ¥1,500,000 per year.

🔴 How can I learn Japanese cheaply?

The cheapest way to learn Japanese is to start out by taking advantage of free online resources. There are free programs like Duolingo and AnkiWeb, and a lot of great resources on YouTube, such as Miku Real Japanese. If you are starting from zero, start with the Hiragana and Katakana guides on Tofugu. Tae Kim has an impressively comprehensive and free Japanese language blog and text. After that, why not try connecting with native Japanese speakers on free apps like Hello Talk.

Wanting to move to Japan but not sure where to start?

Japan Remotely Academy has all the resources you need to make your move, and live well in your new home country. Land on the right foot with location planning advice, financial planning resources, job search resources, recruiter insights, and more.

Read also 👉 How to Move to Japan: A Realistic Guide