Shopping in Japan: how to ask the price, get the right size, and claim tax-free
Shopping is where pointing gets you furthest, and also where a single sentence saves the most time. You can buy almost anything in Japan without speaking: pick it up, carry it to the till, watch the number on the display, pay. What pointing cannot do is get the next size up out of the stockroom, tell you whether the tag price already includes tax, or start the tax-free paperwork before the cashier has rung you through as an ordinary sale.
So this page covers the moments where words are load-bearing: asking the price, being approached while you browse, asking for a different size or colour, the fitting room, the tax-free counter, and the three questions fired at you at the till. Every staff line below is one you will genuinely hear, said the way they say it: polite, fast, and full of set phrases no textbook mentions. Hearing the question is the hard half; your answer is usually two words.
None of it has to be perfect. Open with sumimasen, let the staff see you trying, and they will meet you most of the way.
How do you ask how much something is in a Japanese shop?
The number is usually on the tag, so the useful skill is working out which number it is. Japanese price tags often carry two figures: a large one that is ็จๆ (before tax) with a smaller ็จ่พผ total underneath, or the reverse. If only one figure is printed, ask which kind it is.
Prices are fixed. Outside flea markets, second-hand shops and the big electronics chains, where a polite ask on an expensive item sometimes moves the number, haggling is not a move that exists here and will only produce a confused apology. If you cannot catch a spoken number, ask them to write it down; nobody minds turning the display towards you.
| What you want to say | Say it like this | Japanese |
|---|---|---|
| How much is this? Dropping the wa is normal in a shop; the full form is kore wa ikura desu ka. | Kore, ikura desu ka? | ใใใใใใใงใใ๏ผ |
| How much is that one over there? | Are wa ikura desu ka? | ใใใฏใใใใงใใ๏ผ |
| How much is that all together? | Zenbu de ikura desu ka? | ๅ จ้จใงใใใใงใใ๏ผ |
| Is that with tax? | Zeikomi desu ka? | ็จ่พผใฟใงใใ๏ผ |
| Could you write the number down for me? | Suuji o kaite moraemasu ka? | ๆฐๅญใๆธใใฆใใใใพใใ๏ผ |
What do you say when a shop assistant comes over while you are browsing?
Clothing and cosmetics staff will greet you and then hover, politely, near your shoulder. This is service rather than suspicion, but it is uncomfortable when you have no way to say you are only browsing. One sentence fixes it: they smile, step back, and do not take it personally.
The reverse also matters. In small shops and craft stalls, glance at the staff before you start picking things up. Many will invite you to handle the goods before you have to ask, and once they have, touching everything is fine.
| What you want to say | Say it like this | Japanese |
|---|---|---|
| Excuse me, could I have a look at this one? | Sumimasen, kore o misete moraemasu ka? | ใใฟใพใใใใใใ่ฆใใฆใใใใพใใ๏ผ |
| Is it okay to touch it? | Sawatte mo ii desu ka? | ่งฆใฃใฆใใใใงใใ๏ผ |
| I will come back later. The polite way to leave without buying. | Mata kimasu. | ใพใๆฅใพใใ |
How do you ask for a different size or colour in Japan?
Sizing here runs a notch smaller than Europe or the US, and the cut is narrower through the shoulders and the hips, so the label you wear at home is usually one step below the label you need in a Japanese shop. Shoes are labelled in centimetres, and a lot of women's clothing uses ๅท (gou) numbers, where 9ๅท sits around a Western small-to-medium. Anything marked ใใชใผใตใคใบ is one-size, which in practice means one Japanese size.
Stock is the other constraint: many shops keep a single item of each size on the floor, so a no is usually a genuine no rather than a brush-off. Colour words worth having: ้ป kuro (black), ็ฝ shiro (white), ็ดบ kon (navy), ่ตค aka (red).
| What you want to say | Say it like this | Japanese |
|---|---|---|
| Do you have this one size up? | Mou hitotsu ookii saizu wa arimasu ka? | ใใไธใคๅคงใใใตใคใบใฏใใใพใใ๏ผ |
| Do you have this in a different colour? | Kore no iro-chigai wa arimasu ka? | ใใใฎ่ฒ้ใใฏใใใพใใ๏ผ |
| Do you have it in black? | Kuro wa arimasu ka? | ้ปใฏใใใพใใ๏ผ |
| Do you have these in 25 centimetres? Shoe sizes in Japan are centimetres. | Nijuugo-senchi wa arimasu ka? | 25ใปใณใใฏใใใพใใ๏ผ |
| This is a bit tight on me. | Kore, sukoshi kitsui desu. | ใใใๅฐใใใคใใงใใ |
| It fits just right. | Choudo ii desu. | ใกใใใฉใใใงใใ |
Can you try clothes on in Japan, and what do you say?
Yes, and it is expected. Trying three things on and buying none of them is normal, and nobody will make you feel bad about it. Two house rules: shoes come off before you step up into the cubicle, and for anything that goes over your head you may be handed a ใใงใคในใซใใผ (feisu kabaa), a light gauze hood that keeps make-up off the collar. Both are routine and both apply to everyone.
Staff usually count the items on your arm on the way in and give you a numbered tag, so the first thing you hear at the curtain is often a question about how many you are carrying.
| What you want to say | Say it like this | Japanese |
|---|---|---|
| Can I try this on? | Shichaku shite mo ii desu ka? | ่ฉฆ็ใใฆใใใใงใใ๏ผ |
| This one as well, please. Said as you hand over a second item at the fitting room. | Kore mo issho ni onegai shimasu. | ใใใไธ็ทใซใ้กใใใพใใ |
| Where is the mirror? | Kagami wa doko desu ka? | ้กใฏใฉใใงใใ๏ผ |
| Sorry, I will leave it for today. The clean way to hand things back and go. | Sumimasen, kyou wa yamete okimasu. | ใใฟใพใใใไปๆฅใฏใใใฆใใใพใใ |
What do you actually need for tax-free shopping in Japan?
Tax-free, written ๅ ็จ and said menzei, means the consumption tax comes off because you are a temporary visitor. Three things are reliably true: you need your physical passport in your hand, not a photo and not a photocopy; you need to spend a minimum amount at that one shop on the same day, and the counter will tell you what it is; and it has to be done on the day, in the shop where you bought the things. At a shop that handles it at its own till, that means saying the word before the payment goes through. At a department store it means taking the receipt to their tax-free counter before you leave the building. Once you are out of the door with an ordinary receipt, it is gone.
Everything else varies. A department store ๅ ็จ counter keeps its own hours and generally stops taking receipts before the shop itself shuts, so do not leave it until the last minute. Consumables, meaning food, cosmetics and medicine, get sealed into a bag you are not meant to open until you have left the country. Japan has also been moving the scheme towards a refund collected at the airport on departure, so ask what applies today rather than trusting a threshold you read online, this page included.
| What you want to say | Say it like this | Japanese |
|---|---|---|
| Can I do tax-free on this? Say it while they are still scanning. | Menzei wa dekimasu ka? | ๅ ็จใฏใงใใพใใ๏ผ |
| Where is the tax-free counter? | Menzei kauntaa wa doko desu ka? | ๅ ็จใซใฆใณใฟใผใฏใฉใใงใใ๏ผ |
| What is the minimum spend for tax-free? | Ikura kara menzei ni narimasu ka? | ใใใใใๅ ็จใซใชใใพใใ๏ผ |
| Do I need my passport? | Pasupooto wa hitsuyou desu ka? | ใในใใผใใฏๅฟ ่ฆใงใใ๏ผ |
| Am I allowed to open this bag? | Kono fukuro wa akete mo ii desu ka? | ใใฎ่ขใฏ้ใใฆใใใใงใใ๏ผ |
What will the cashier ask you at checkout?
Checkout is a script, and a short one. Learn the shape of three questions and you are covered even if you catch a single word of each: is that everything, one payment or instalments, and is it a gift. The instalment question catches everyone out, because Japanese cards can split a purchase across months and the question gets asked as a matter of routine. The answer you want is ikkatsu, all in one go.
A few signs worth spotting while you shop:
- ็จ่พผ (zeikomi) is tax included; ็จๆ (zeinuki) and ๆฌไฝไพกๆ ผ are the price before tax
- ๅ ็จ (menzei) is tax-free, and it appears on the shop door as well as at the till
- ่ฉฆ็ๅฎค (shichakushitsu) is the fitting room
- ่ฟๅไธๅฏ (henpin fuka) means no returns, and it is common on sale racks
- ๅฃฒใๅใ (urikire) is sold out
- ใไธไบบๆงไธ็น้ใ (o-hitorisama itten kagiri) means one per customer
What else is in PlaneHopper for this
Everything above is free to read and use. The full course adds 3 more scenarios for these situations โ each with the complete phrase set, every reply you might hear, and a 10-second roleplay that makes you produce the line under time pressure instead of just reading it.
๐๏ธ How much? Buying things
The whole buying run at full speed, from pointing at the thing you want to getting through the cash-or-card question without freezing.
- Kore wa ikura desu ka? ใใใฏใใใใงใใ๏ผ
How much is this? - Kore o kudasai. ใใใใใ ใใใ
I'll take this one, please.
+9 more phrases, replies and a timed roleplay in PlaneHopper.
๐ Sizes, colours, trying on
The fitting-room round trip, from asking to try something on to having the right size handed to you through the curtain.
- Sumimasen... ใใฟใพใใโฆ
Excuse me... (opener before you ask anything) - Motto ookii saizu wa arimasu ka? ใใฃใจๅคงใใใตใคใบใฏใใใพใใ๏ผ
Do you have a bigger size?
+10 more phrases, replies and a timed roleplay in PlaneHopper.
๐ฒ Complimenting & asking about something
What to say when something out on the street stops you and you want to ask the owner about it before you photograph it.
- Suteki desu ne! ็ด ๆตใงใใญ๏ผ
That's lovely! - Kakkoii desu ne! ใใฃใใใใงใใญ๏ผ
That's so cool!
+9 more phrases, replies and a timed roleplay in PlaneHopper.
A Japanese shop is a forgiving room. The staff are trained, the script barely varies, and almost every question aimed at you has a correct answer two or three words long. Get those words out and you have had a real conversation, however wobbly it felt from the inside. One last habit worth copying: when there is a small tray on the counter, notes and coins go into it rather than into the cashier's hand, and your change arrives back in it. A card is usually different: you will be pointed at the terminal and asked to insert or tap it yourself.
Frequently asked questions
How do you ask how much something is in Japanese?
Kore wa ikura desu ka, meaning this is how much. Point at the item as you say it and you will be understood anywhere. If the spoken answer goes past you, say suuji o kaite moraemasu ka and they will write the number down or turn the till display towards you.
Do shop staff in Japan speak English?
Department stores, big electronics chains and tourist-facing shops usually have someone who does, and the till displays the total in numerals regardless. Small independent shops often do not. Opening in Japanese and then asking eigo ga hanasemasu ka is the order that lands well.
What do you need for tax-free shopping in Japan?
Your physical passport, a minimum spend at that single shop on the same day, and the presence of mind to sort it out before you leave the building: at the till in most shops, at a separate tax-free counter in a department store. The threshold and the mechanism have both been changing, so read the shop's own tax-free sign or ask at the counter rather than assuming a figure you saw online.
Is it rude to try clothes on in Japan and not buy anything?
Not at all. Hand the items back with both hands, say sumimasen, kyou wa yamete okimasu, and thank them. Staff are trained for it and no one expects every fitting room visit to end in a sale.
Can you return something you bought in Japan?
Sometimes, and less often than you would expect at home. Keep the receipt, go back to the same branch quickly, and be prepared for an exchange rather than a refund. Anything from a rack marked ่ฟๅไธๅฏ is final.
Are Japanese clothing sizes smaller than European or American ones?
Generally yes, by roughly one size, with a narrower cut through the shoulders and hips. Shoes are sized in centimetres, and LL is what you would call XL. Asking for one size up as your default saves a trip back to the rail.