ML engineer salary

ML engineer salary in Tokyo

Percentile salary data for ml engineer roles in Tokyo, JP, by seniority. Senior-level figures include total compensation where regionally applicable. Figures are shown in USD by default, with the local JPY amount alongside; use the currency switcher to change the display.

Tokyo carries a cost-of-living index of 79 on the Numbeo and Mercer blended scale where New York City equals 100, a moderate cost of living that is below New York City. The figures below are nominal pay in JPY; read them alongside that index when comparing Tokyo with other markets.

Median pay by seniority

Currency

Junior

$48,240 (local: ¥7,200,000)

Base p50

Mid

$74,236 (local: ¥11,080,000)

Base p50

Senior

$107,669 (local: ¥16,070,000)

Base p50

Staff

$296,810 (local: ¥44,300,000)

Total comp p50

Distribution

Percentile distribution

10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, and 90th percentile by seniority, shown in the local currency (JPY). The detailed table below defaults to USD.

25th to 75th percentileMedian10th to 90th percentile

Detailed figures

Seniority	10th	25th	Median	75th	90th	Comp	Sample
junior	$31,356	$39,597	$48,240	$60,300	$74,839	Base	320
mid	$48,240	$60,903	$74,236	$92,795	$115,106	Base	480
senior	$69,948	$88,306	$107,669	$134,603	$166,897	Base	220
staff	$213,730	$255,270	$296,810	$400,727	$534,258	Total comp	Not reported

Source: Levels.fyi 2025 + US BLS OES May 2024 (SOC 15-1299.09) (2025) https://www.levels.fyi/t/software-engineer/focus/ml-ai, cost-of-living index 79 (NYC=100)

How pay grows with seniority

Each step compares the median (50th percentile) of one tier with the next, using the figures in the table above for ml engineer roles in Tokyo.

Moving from senior to staff, the median rises roughly 176% in Tokyo.
Across the full ladder, the highest tier median is about 6.2x the entry tier for ml engineer roles here, before negotiation and individual level calibration.

Take-home

After-tax pay and per-month take-home

Headline salaries are gross. What lands in your account after income tax and mandatory contributions is what actually pays the rent, so here is the estimated split on the Tokyo senior median.

Gross / year

¥16,070,000

Senior median (50th pct)

Take-home / year

¥8,443,800

53% of gross

Take-home / month

¥703,650

from ¥1,339,167 gross

Effective rate

47%

tax + contributions

On a senior median of ¥16,070,000 in Tokyo, an estimated ¥7,626,200 goes to income tax and mandatory contributions, leaving roughly ¥8,443,800 take-home, or about 53% of gross.

That deduction breaks down as roughly ¥3,608,700 in income tax, ¥2,410,500 in social contributions, and ¥1,607,000 in local inhabitant tax (~10%) at this income level in Japan.

In monthly terms that is about ¥703,650 net from ¥1,339,167 gross a month, the figure that actually lands in a ml engineer's account before pension or benefit elections.

Affordability

Is this a good salary in Tokyo?

"Good" depends on what the city costs. Type your own figure below to see the estimated take-home and how far it goes against Tokyo's single-person cost of living, or read the verdict on the senior median first.

Your gross salary in Tokyo (JPY)

Enter an annual gross figure to see the estimated take-home and how it compares with Tokyo's single-person cost of living. Estimate based on Japan NTA 2025 + local inhabitant tax + social insurance.

Take-home / year

¥8,443,800

53% of gross

Take-home / month

¥703,650

from ¥1,339,167 gross

Est. monthly living cost

¥672,090

incl. ~¥495,224 rent

Left over / month

¥31,560

4% of take-home

tight in Tokyo

On ¥16,070,000 gross, your estimated take-home leaves little room above typical single-person living costs once rent and essentials are covered at this city's cost base. Rent is about 70% of monthly take-home here.

Reference estimate for a single filer with no dependants, using published 2025/2026 statutory bands and a cost-of-living index where New York City equals 100. It is not tax advice or a personalised calculation. Real take-home and living costs vary with filing status, pension elections, allowances, and where exactly you live.

Against Tokyo's single-person cost base, a senior ml engineer on this median is tight: the estimated take-home of ¥703,650 a month leaves little room above typical single-person living costs once rent and essentials are covered at this city's cost base.

Typical single-person monthly costs in Tokyo, including roughly ¥495,224 for a one-bedroom rental, come to about ¥672,090, which would leave around ¥31,560 discretionary each month at the median.

Rent works out at about 70% of monthly take-home here, against the conventional 30% guideline often used as a reference point.

The verdict is descriptive, not advice: it compares one number against a modelled cost base. Living costs and tax both vary with circumstances this page cannot see.

What drives the range

Why the same job title in Tokyo can span the spread shown above. These are descriptions of the data, not guidance on what to ask for.

Base versus total compensation: Senior and staff figures here are reported as total compensation, so they fold in bonus and equity rather than base salary alone. The mid and junior rows are base only, which is part of why the step up between mid and senior looks larger than the raw seniority multiplier.
Cost of living: Tokyo carries a cost-of-living index of 79 on a scale where New York City is 100. Local pay levels track local market rates and tech employer presence, not the cost-of-living index directly, so a lower index does not translate one-for-one into lower real pay.
Role premium: ML engineer pay is anchored to occupation-specific medians from the underlying labour statistics, then adjusted for the local tech market. Specialisation, scarcity of the skill set, and the mix of employers hiring for it in Tokyo all feed the published range.

The Tokyo market

Tokyo's tech market runs on two parallel tracks. Traditional Japanese enterprises and system integrators hire in volume under conventional corporate terms, while a smaller international segment, foreign firms, fintech, and English-first startups, pays materially better and interviews in a Western style. For overseas candidates the second track is the realistic entry point, since it rarely requires Japanese fluency. Loops there mix coding rounds with a strong culture-fit emphasis. Japan's engineer visa is comparatively easy for employers to sponsor, and the highly-skilled points system can accelerate residency. Nominal pay trails other developed markets, but Tokyo is cheaper to live in than its reputation suggests, with modest rents outside the prime wards and excellent transport, so the real-terms position is stronger than the exchange-rate view.

Cost-of-living-adjusted pay

Tokyo has a cost of living about 21% lower than New York City. Because the two report in different currencies, compare the percentile tables directly rather than the headline numbers.

Real-terms figures divide the nominal median by the city cost-of-living index (New York City = 100). They are a rough purchasing-power comparison, not a take-home or after-tax calculation.

Methodology and sources

The mid-level median anchors to occupation medians from the sources below, then scales by the documented seniority multipliers (junior 0.65x, mid 1.00x, senior 1.45x, staff 2.05x) and the local tech-pay level for Tokyo. The 10th, 25th, 75th, and 90th percentiles are fitted from the median using the cross-sectional dispersion that the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports for software occupations. Cost-of-living indices blend Numbeo 2025 and Mercer 2025.

Primary source for this slice: Levels.fyi 2025 + US BLS OES May 2024 (SOC 15-1299.09) (2025). https://www.levels.fyi/t/software-engineer/focus/ml-ai

Reference data only. Reported medians describe a market; individual pay varies by employer, level calibration, and negotiation. Nothing here is financial advice.

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