You’ve recently arrived in Japan, and you desperately crave the ease of communication the internet presents. You’ve spent the last several afternoons in cafes with Wi-Fi, and it will be two weeks until your home internet is installed. You need a phone, and a Japanese phone plan, but with so many options, it’s hard to parse the information and figure out what is the best company to sign a contract with.
Japanese phone companies can be confusing, unclear, and honestly, daunting to try to deal with as someone brand new to the country. Add a language barrier to everything, and it’s a recipe for headaches. Here, we’ve tried to do our best to present the information available as clearly as possible.
Special deals will come and go; packages that allow more discounts if bundled with home internet are available; some companies require extra proof of income for students; and the person you’re interacting with at the shop may have a very different idea of “required documents” than what is clearly laid out on their company’s website. All this to say that this is a basic guide for expectations when choosing a Japanese provider and a phone plan. Your experience may vary, but hopefully this will arm you to make the best decision.
*All information about each phone plan was pulled directly from the companies’ websites.
MNO or MVNO?
First off, Japanese mobile companies fall into two categories: MNO (Mobile Network Operators) and MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operators). MNO are your big three mobile companies: AU, Docomo, and Softbank. MVNO are companies the license the use of the MNO’s networks, and piggy back on them. This allows MVNO’s to save money by not having to build their own network, and often, have fewer brick and mortar shops, thereby offering lower rates to customers. I’ve taken two of the bigger MVNOs, Y! Mobile and UQ Mobile, and have presented their information alongside the MNO’s. There are many, many other MVNOs that you may want to look into.
When choosing between an MNO and an MVNO, some people will note speed drops for MVNOs, or that MVNO connections are weaker in crowded areas than on the same MNO network. Unfortunately, a lot of this information isn’t necessarily trustworthy. The difference that we’ll be focusing on here is that MVNOs are targeted for people that already have their own unlocked phones, are willing to purchase one from elsewhere (Amazon, used electronics store, Yahoo Auctions, etc.), or are willing to lease an older model phone from the MVNO. The newest iPhone Y! Mobile and UQ Mobile are offering directly is one from 3 years ago. In contrast, the MNOs have on offer the newest iPhone released several months ago.
To help make the differences between all five options a bit easier to understand at a glance and move on to picking out your Japanese phone plan, please refer to the decision chart below.
MNO (Mobile Network Operators)
AU
When signing up for a new contract, AU requires the following:
- Passport
- Residence Card
- Credit card or bank book
You can look for AU stores that have English-speaking staff using their Foreign Language Service Store Locator.
Docomo
When signing up for a new contract, Docomo requires the following:
- Passport
- Residence Card
- Bank book and seal
- Credit card or bank book
*Docomo has a list of other documents that may be used alternatively to a Residence Card, such as a My Number Card or Health Insurance Card with your bank book. Please use the link above if you do not have a Residence Card available at the time of registration.
Docomo does not officially have English-speaking staff in stores, but they offer a telephone translation service available at all shops. They offer English, Portuguese, Chinese and Spanish.
Softbank
When signing up for a new contract, Softbank requires the following:
- Passport
- Residence Card
- Credit card or bank book / bank card
Softbank has English-speaking staff at certain stores around and near Shibuya.
MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operators)
Y! Mobile
When signing up for a new contract, Y! Mobile requires the following:
- Residence Card
- Passport
- Credit card and bank book / bank card
Y! Mobile does not officially have English-speaking staff in stores, but they offer English support over the phone.
UQ Mobile
When signing up for a new contract, UQ Mobile requires the following:
- Email address
- Credit card (overseas cards may not be accepted)
- Residence Card OR Health Insurance Card plus a recent utility bill
*It doesn’t list it on the website, but a passport will probably be asked for during the registration process.
UQ Mobile does not officially have English-speaking staff in stores, but they offer English and Chinese support over the phone.
*1 These two plans have the speed capped at 500 kbps. According to Statista, the worldwide average mobile network speed for 2019 is 14.3 mbps (14,300 kbps).
*2 Y! Mobile does not currently offer a 17GB plan. Extra data can be purchased to reach 20GB per month, but Y! Mobile does not have that amount published.
What company is best for you? That all depends. But we hope this has helped make the decision a bit clearer. Good luck!
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Featured image by Arnel Hasanovic on Unsplash; Graphics by RW
