I’ve read this sub and have seen so many similar comparisons but thought my background may be slightly different than others.

I am a Japanese native and have been in Tokyo for the last 10 years, but also lived in other parts of Asia and the US throughout my childhood.

I find Tokyo depressing, stagnant, lacking diversity and nature, questionable work life balance and isolated from the world.

I get paid well as I work in fintech and not for a Japanese company, so I know I am better off than others here but would like to move out soon.

My options are New York or London through my current job. I would definitely need to negotiate my salary but what would be a better option given the following;

I’m planning to move with my partner who is in IT and a small black Shiba dog. We do not plan to have children. I don’t see this as a permanent move though things may change.

Things that I would prioritise -vacation days -parks, any green areas -ease of travelling -dog friendlyness -ease of getting a masters -ease of job hunting if necessary -diversity in food, including groceries

Things I’m concerned about -safety -rent -weather -making friends -cleanliness -work culture

I’m well aware of what is said about the two cities but I want to know how bad is it “actually”.

  • PKFPL@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    You have already received a lot of good and honest opinions here so I will not repeat that but personally I think I would not pick NY/London over Tokyo.

    The good stuff that could be on offer in both of those cities doesn’t outweigh things that only Tokyo can offer. It’s a compromise.

    I will only add a couple of things that really stand out to me:

    1. Both NY/London have nice areas to live in that are expensive. Check what would be in your budget. It’s not worth moving if you end up living in rougher parts of any city. To me this is visible especially in London where you can walk down the street and you will experience a completely different standard and safety of the area.

    2. To echo and highlight a very important point made here: the food scene in London is tragic. Coming from Tokyo you will be surprised how bad it is here. It’s either Michelin star restaurants or nothing at all if you really value food and service. Dining out feels mostly like a waste of time and money here.

    3. Parks and dogs: London has a problem now with aggressive breeds of dogs and their owners. You can meet them anywhere and most often people who own these dogs don’t really know how to handle them.

    Yes, London wins in terms of green space within the city but in my opinion it’s much easier to get outside from Tokyo and experience nature and smaller towns.

    If you think that London parks are there for you to enjoy the weekend and tourist crowd will quickly prove you otherwise. London parks are a tourist attraction and rarely a place for a leisure walk with your dog. Unless it’s weekdays.

    1. Salaries are much lower in London and it is fairly easy to arrive at the limit of what could be offered. There is a point where you feel quite limited by lack of opportunity. Not the same story in NY.

    2. In London you don’t feel you get what you pay for in terms of taxes. Health, transport, safety - these leave a lot to be desired in comparison to Tokyo.

    3. To truly enjoy London you usually have to do it on weekdays. People tend to take days off just to go to restaurants they wanted to book for ages or do some actual shopping.

    Since a lot of the entertainment/hospitality business is very central you end up in very crowded and noisy space. Both NY and Tokyo are more spread out in that sense. Local boroughs have got lots to offer whereas in London it often feels dead when you leave zone 1/2.

    When it comes to this part - Tokyo is the best.

    1. Right now London feels a bit stagnant and directionless. After Brexit and Covid many things have changed here for the worse. I don’t feel it gives enough opportunity and quality of leisure to outweigh high cost of living. The standard just feels lower in comparison to NY and Tokyo and the future - uncertain. If you have great career prospects it’s a place you migrate from not to as of now.

    I understand your perspective and your frustration with Tokyo but personally I would pick what it offers over NY and London. Especially London will feel boring and stagnant.

    • blatchcorn@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      1 year ago

      I live in London and have visited Tokyo and New York. I agree with most of this post. If I was going to emigrate to a new city, it needs to be worth the hassle and opportunity cost. London is at best an equal or worse city than Tokyo, so it’s far off the desired standard that would be worth migrating to from Tokyo.

      I would +1 the comments about nature. The public parks are too busy. The green neighborhood spaces people talk about are for private communities (people who bought houses 20+ years ago).

      If nature was my concern, I’d prefer to live in Tokyo where you can bullet train to stunning hikes and even go skiing