Moving in · Updated October 2026
Electricity, gas and water when you move in or out in Japan
You can buy electricity from any company that sells in your area, and apply online before you move. For gas, ask whether the home has city gas or LP gas: city gas needs a technician visit with you or someone you name at home, and Tokyo Gas asks for about a week’s notice. Water is a separate account with your city, unless the landlord collects it.
Checklist for electricity and gas
The steps come from TEPCO, Tokyo Gas, Osaka Gas and Kansai Electric; other companies may differ.
Before you move
- Ask the landlord or agent whether the home has city gas or LP gas (propane), and which company. The landlord picks the LP gas company.
- Gas: book the opening visit. Tokyo Gas asks for about a week’s notice, earlier in March and April.
- Electricity: choose a company and apply online. TEPCO takes applications up to 31 days ahead, Kansai Electric about a month ahead. Octopus Energy needs at least 3 business days.
Move-in day
- Kansai Electric, if you did not apply ahead: switch the breakers on, check the power, then contact Kansai Electric with the customer number on the envelope near the breaker or meter.
- TEPCO: if you did not apply earlier, you can apply that day, but power can take 3 to 4 hours.
The gas visit
- Gas: you or someone you name must be home. Give Tokyo Gas their name and phone number in advance.
- The technician checks for leaks, tests ignition and explains safety rules. Osaka Gas says 15 to 20 minutes.
Moving out
- Tell each company your stop date. Kansai Electric asks for 4 or 5 days’ notice.
- Electricity: TEPCO cuts the power at noon on the stop date.
- Gas: Tokyo Gas needs you present only if the meter is behind a locked entrance.
- Water, final meter readings and bills: see canceling when you move out.
On this page
Choosing an electricity company in Japan
Since April 2016 you can buy electricity from any company that sells in your area, not only the regional one (Agency for Natural Resources and Energy). The power comes through the same lines either way, and the agency says quality and reliability are the same whichever company you choose (its FAQ).
For help in English, TEPCO and Kansai Electric have phone lines with an interpreter, and Octopus Energy answers email in English, though its sign-up form is in Japanese. We found no English help at Chubu Electric Power Miraiz or Looop Denki. Octopus Energy’s answers below come from its written reply to a mystery shopper.
TEPCO Energy Partner (東京電力エナジーパートナー)Electricity and gas, Tokyo area
- How to start at move-in
- Electricity: apply online up to 31 days ahead; on the day, power can take 3 to 4 hours. Gas: apply by the day before Provider page
- Help in other languages
- Interpreter line in English and 4 other languages: 0120-995-113, press 7 (Monday to Saturday, 9:00–17:00) Provider page
- How you pay
- Credit card, bank debit, paper bill (convenience store) or SMS Provider page
Published price
- Published price
- Plan B, 30A: ¥935.25 a month, then ¥29.80 to ¥40.49 per kWh, tax included; fuel and renewable charges extra Provider page
Kansai Electric Power (関西電力)Electricity, Kansai area
- How to start at move-in
- Apply online, from the next day up to about a month ahead. Its gas needs someone home Provider page
- Help in other languages
- Free interpreter line in 18 languages: 0800-777-8810 Provider page
- How you pay
- Credit card, bank debit, or a slip paid at a convenience store or in an app; some plans charge for the slip Provider page
Checking: Published price
Official siteChubu Electric Power Miraiz (中部電力ミライズ)Electricity, Chubu area (Nagoya)
- How to start at move-in
- Apply online at least 2 business days ahead if the home has a smart meter Provider page
- How you pay
- Bank debit or credit card online; a paper slip by phone Provider page
Checking: Help in other languages, Published price
Official siteOctopus Energy (オクトパスエナジー)Electricity, most of Japan
- How to start at move-in
- Apply at least 3 business days before you move in. No residence card needed Provider's reply to a mystery shopper, September 24, 2026
- Help in other languages
- Email in English; sign-up, bills and My Page in Japanese Provider page
- How you pay
- Japanese credit card suggested; a card from abroad may work but is not guaranteed Provider's reply to a mystery shopper, September 24, 2026
Checking: Published price
Official siteLooop Denki (Looopでんき)Electricity, most of Japan
- How you pay
- Credit card only Provider page
Checking: How to start at move-in, Help in other languages, Published price
Official siteGas: city gas or LP gas
Ask the landlord or agent which the home has. City gas comes from your area’s gas company, which sends a technician to open it, and you or someone you name must be home. With LP gas (propane), the landlord’s LP gas company opens it: see LP gas.
Tokyo Gas can open the supply the same afternoon if you request it online by 7:30 a.m., or the next morning if you request it by 6 p.m.
Tokyo Gas (東京ガス)Gas and electricity, Tokyo area
- How to start at move-in
- Gas: someone must be home for the technician. Apply about a week ahead Provider page
- Help in other languages
- English guide pages; the forms are in Japanese Provider page
- How you pay
- Credit card, bank debit, SMS barcode at a convenience store, or paper bill (¥270 a month). No debit or prepaid cards Provider page
Checking: Published price
Official siteOsaka Gas (大阪ガス)Gas and electricity, Kansai area
- How to start at move-in
- Gas: someone must be home for a 15 to 20 minute safety check Provider page
- How you pay
- Bank debit, credit card, or a slip paid at a convenience store Provider page
Checking: Help in other languages, Published price
Official siteToho Gas (東邦ガス)Gas, Nagoya area
- How to start at move-in
- Gas: someone must be home when it is opened Provider page
Checking: Help in other languages, How you pay, Published price
Official siteYour area’s electricity and gas companies
Every area has a regional electricity company and city gas companies. Outside the largest city, the city gas company is often a different one; the landlord can tell you which.
| Area | Electricity | City gas |
|---|---|---|
| Hokkaido | Hokkaido Electric | Hokkaido Gas (Sapporo) |
| TohokuAomori, Iwate, Akita, Miyagi, Yamagata, Fukushima, Niigata | Tohoku Electric | Sendai City Gas (Sendai) |
| Tokyo areaTokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Yamanashi, eastern Shizuoka | TEPCO | Tokyo Gas (Tokyo) |
| ChubuAichi, Nagano, most of Gifu and Mie, western Shizuoka | Chubu Electric Power Miraiz | Toho Gas (Nagoya) |
| HokurikuToyama, Ishikawa, northern Fukui | Hokuriku Electric | Kanazawa Energy (Kanazawa) |
| KansaiOsaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, Nara, Shiga, Wakayama, southern Fukui | Kansai Electric | Osaka Gas (Osaka) |
| ChugokuHiroshima, Okayama, Yamaguchi, Tottori, Shimane | Chugoku Electric | Hiroshima Gas (Hiroshima) |
| ShikokuTokushima, Kochi, Kagawa, Ehime | Shikoku Electric | Shikoku Gas |
| KyushuFukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Oita, Kumamoto, Miyazaki, Kagoshima | Kyushu Electric | Saibu Gas (Fukuoka) |
| Okinawa | Okinawa Electric | Okinawa Gas (Naha) |
Each link opens the company’s own move-in page, in Japanese. Areas from TEPCO’s area map. Octopus Energy and Looop Denki sell electricity in most areas too: see choosing a company.
Water: who to tell when you move in
Ask the landlord or agent first. In an apartment you may pay the water charge to the landlord and never apply to the city (Kyoto City’s English page says so). If you pay the city, you apply to its waterworks bureau a few days before you move in.
In Tokyo: Apply to Tokyo Waterworks (東京都水道局) 3 to 4 days before the move, in the Tokyo Water App or by phone to its customer center (its FAQ, in Japanese). The app has an English mode, but the English mode only starts or cancels a contract, and starting one needs no customer number (its English page).
In Kyoto: The city takes applications on its website, which is in Japanese only, and its English page also lists phone, fax and a service office window. Water is billed every other month, and the meter is read every two months (Kyoto City’s page).
Another city. Search its name with 水道 使用開始 (start water use) to find the bureau’s page.
If no water comes out after you applied, the valve before the meter may be closed. Tokyo Waterworks says to turn it fully counterclockwise (its FAQ); call its customer center if you cannot find the valve.
Paying without a Japanese credit card
TEPCO takes a paper bill you pay at a convenience store, or SMS, on any plan. Kansai Electric and Osaka Gas send a payment slip you can pay at a convenience store. Tokyo Gas sends an SMS barcode you pay at a convenience store, or a paper bill for ¥270 a month; it does not take debit or prepaid cards. Looop Denki takes credit cards only. Octopus Energy suggests a Japanese credit card and says one issued abroad works for some customers but is not guaranteed.
Bank debit needs a Japanese bank account. If you do not have one yet, see which banks open an account for a new arrival.
How much electricity and gas cost a month
A single-person household aged 34 or under spent ¥4,569 a month on electricity and ¥2,323 on gas on average in 2025 (Statistics Bureau household survey). The cost of living calculator uses the same survey.
TEPCO’s rate rises with use: Plan B, 30A: ¥935.25 a month, then ¥29.80 to ¥40.49 per kWh, tax included; fuel and renewable charges extra (TEPCO rate table). The renewable energy levy is ¥4.18 per kWh on bills from the May 2026 to the April 2027 meter reading (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry). The other companies’ prices are marked “Checking” until we read them from their own pages.
LP gas in Japan: the landlord picks the company
In a rented apartment with LP gas (propane), you in effect cannot change the LP gas company after moving in. Since July 2, 2024, a prospective tenant can ask the LP gas company for its prices, and it must answer (Hokkaido prefecture summary of the national rule). Ask before you sign the lease if gas cost matters to you.
More on why LP gas bills are high and what the 2024 and 2025 rules changed: LP gas in a rented apartment.
Electricity in Japan: 100V, 50Hz or 60Hz
Japan is 100V. East of the Fuji River in Shizuoka and Itoigawa in Niigata it is 50Hz, including Tokyo; west of that line it is 60Hz, including Osaka and Nagoya (Kansai Electric). Check the label on an appliance from home before you plug it in.
Canceling electricity, gas and water when you move out
Tell each company your last day before you leave. The notice ranges from the day before (TEPCO’s gas) to about a week (Tokyo Gas), and Tokyo Waterworks asks for 3 to 4 days.
| Company | Tell it | Last meter reading and bill |
|---|---|---|
| TEPCO | Electricity: before your last day of use, and it cuts the power at noon that day. Gas: by the day before (English FAQ). | Not stated on the pages we read. |
| Kansai Electric | 4 or 5 days before you move, with your name, the date you leave and your customer number (English guide). | Not stated on the pages we read. |
| Tokyo Gas (東京ガス) | About a week ahead, with your customer number (English page). | You can use gas until a technician closes the meter, and you need to be there only if the meter is behind a locked entrance. Among the details to give is how you will settle the usage charges (Japanese page). |
| Osaka Gas (大阪ガス) | Online, by phone or by fax (Japanese page). | It reads the meter on the stop date and settles the gas bill. A bank debit takes about 15 days, or you can give your new address and it mails a payment slip. |
| Tokyo Waterworks (東京都水道局) | 3 to 4 days before the move, in the Tokyo Water App or by phone. | Without a stop notice the basic charge continues even if you use no water (Japanese page). |
Switch off the main breaker before you leave (Tokyo Gas’s English page).
For the rest of your first weeks, see what to do after moving into a home in Japan.
Electricity and gas FAQ
Can I choose my electricity company in Japan?
Yes. Since April 1, 2016 every household can choose its electricity company and plan. The power uses the same lines whichever company you choose.
Which electricity companies in Japan have English support?
TEPCO (Tokyo area) and Kansai Electric have phone lines with an interpreter, and Octopus Energy answers email in English. Their sign-up forms are in Japanese.
What voltage is electricity in Japan?
Japan uses 100V. The frequency is 50Hz in the east and 60Hz in the west, split at the Fuji River in Shizuoka and Itoigawa in Niigata, so Tokyo is 50Hz and Osaka is 60Hz.
Can someone else be there when the gas is turned on?
Yes. Tokyo Gas lets someone represent you at the technician’s visit if you give it their name and phone number in advance.
How far ahead should I apply for gas?
Tokyo Gas recommends about a week ahead, and earlier in March and April. Its earliest opening is the same afternoon for an online request made by 7:30 a.m.
Can I change my LP gas company in a rented apartment?
In practice no: in a rented apartment the landlord picks the LP gas company, and you in effect cannot change it after moving in. Since July 2, 2024 you can ask the LP gas company for its prices before you sign, and it must answer.
What do I do about electricity and gas when I move out?
Tell each company your stop date. TEPCO cuts the power at noon that day, and Kansai Electric asks for 4 or 5 days’ notice. Tokyo Gas needs you present only if the meter is behind a locked entrance.
How do I start water service when I move into a home in Japan?
Ask the landlord first: in some apartments you pay the water charge to the landlord and apply to no one. Otherwise apply to your city’s waterworks bureau. In Tokyo that means 3 to 4 days before the move, in the Tokyo Water App or by phone. The water section has the details.
Who pays the last electricity and gas bill when I move out?
You do. Osaka Gas reads the meter on the stop date and settles the gas bill then, and Tokyo Gas lists how you will settle the usage charges among the details to give when you stop. We found no final-bill rule for TEPCO or Kansai Electric. The move-out section covers each company.
Does Tokyo Gas have English support?
Tokyo Gas has English pages on moving, payment and plans, but the forms they link to are in Japanese. For electricity in the Tokyo area, TEPCO has a phone line with an interpreter in English.
Source
Read from each company’s own page.
Every fact on this page is quoted from the company’s own page, from Octopus Energy’s written reply to a mystery shopper, or from a government source, with the date it was read. No electricity or gas company pays us anything. Last reviewed October 3, 2026. How this site is checked.