The short answer. The 7-day JR Pass costs 50,000 yen when you buy it on the official site. In 2026 it pays off only if you cover a lot of ground in a week.
Buy it if you will go as far as Hiroshima and Fukuoka (Hakata) and back to Tokyo within 7 days, or you plan several long Shinkansen rides on top of Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka.
Skip it if your trip is Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka (single tickets cost about 31,000 yen), Tokyo and Hiroshima, Tokyo and Kanazawa, or Tokyo only. Buy single Shinkansen tickets online instead, or a regional pass if your trip stays in one area.
The Japan Rail Pass used to be the first thing every visitor bought. Then in October 2023 JR raised the price sharply, to 50,000 yen for 7 days, and the old advice, "it pays for itself with one Tokyo to Kyoto round trip," stopped being true.
So we did the math again with 2026 fares from JR's own price sheets. Below are seven common trips, the single-ticket price for each, and whether the pass, a regional pass, or plain tickets come out cheapest. We read every price on official JR and Tokyo Metro pages on October 22, 2026. Fares change, so check the links at the bottom before you buy.
What the JR Pass costs in 2026
From the official JAPAN RAIL PASS site, price per person when you buy online:
| Pass | Ordinary car (adult) | Green Car (adult) |
|---|---|---|
| 7 days | 50,000 yen | 70,000 yen |
| 14 days | 80,000 yen | 110,000 yen |
| 21 days | 100,000 yen | 140,000 yen |
Children aged 6 to 11 pay half. Buying through a JR-designated travel agency outside Japan costs a little more: 53,000 yen for 7 days, 84,000 for 14 and 105,000 for 21 (ordinary car). Agencies charge you in your own currency at the day's exchange rate, so compare the yen price before you pay.
Only foreign visitors entering Japan as a "Temporary Visitor" (the sightseeing stamp in your passport) can use the pass.
What it covers, and the Nozomi catch
The pass covers almost every JR train, including the Shinkansen, plus the Tokyo Monorail to Haneda and the JR ferry to Miyajima. It does not cover any seat on the Nozomi and Mizuho, the fastest trains on the Tokyo to Osaka, Hiroshima and Fukuoka line. With the pass you ride the slower Hikari, Kodama and Sakura trains for free.
Pass holders can also buy a special Nozomi ticket that only pass holders can use. You pay it each time you board a Nozomi, one way:
| Nozomi ticket for pass holders | Price |
|---|---|
| Tokyo to Nagoya | 4,180 yen |
| Tokyo to Kyoto or Shin-Osaka | 4,960 yen |
| Tokyo to Hiroshima | 6,500 yen |
| Shin-Osaka to Hakata | 4,960 yen |
So a pass holder who wants the Nozomi for a Tokyo to Kyoto round trip pays 9,920 yen on top of the pass.
How we priced the single tickets
For each trip we added up what one adult pays for one-way reserved seats bought online in the regular season:
- Tokyo to Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima and Fukuoka: JR Central's smartEX price on a Nozomi. smartEX is JR Central's own booking site, and it works in English. See our smartEX booking guide.
- Tokyo to Kanazawa, Sendai and Aomori: JR East's Ekinetto e-ticket price, for tickets bought from March 14, 2026. JR East says its e-tickets are 200 yen cheaper per reserved seat than paper tickets. See our Ekinetto booking guide.
Prices change with the season. On smartEX, the quiet season takes 200 yen off each ride, and the peak season adds 200 yen (400 yen on the busiest days). Rides that run through from the Tokaido Shinkansen onto the Sanyo line, such as Tokyo to Hiroshima or Hakata, count double: 400 yen off in the quiet season, 400 yen more in the peak season and 800 yen more on the busiest days, per JR Central and JR West's smartEX price sheet. We checked every trip below at both ends: the busiest-day prices make Trip 2 closer, and quiet-season prices trim the JR Pass saving on Trip 6, but no verdict changes.
Trip 1: Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka (the classic first trip)
| Leg | Single ticket |
|---|---|
| Tokyo to Kyoto | 13,970 yen |
| Kyoto to Shin-Osaka (Shinkansen) | 2,880 yen |
| Shin-Osaka to Tokyo | 14,520 yen |
| Total | 31,370 yen |
Verdict: skip the pass. Single tickets cost 18,630 yen less than the 7-day pass, and you get the faster Nozomi. Many travelers take a regular JR train between Kyoto and Osaka instead, with no Shinkansen express charge, which makes the gap even wider.
If you know your dates early, smartEX's EX Hayatoku 21 fare (book 21 days or more ahead) brings Tokyo to Kyoto down to 12,430 yen and Shin-Osaka to Tokyo to 12,980 yen.
Trip 2: Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima
| Leg | Single ticket |
|---|---|
| Tokyo to Kyoto | 13,970 yen |
| Kyoto to Shin-Osaka | 2,880 yen |
| Shin-Osaka to Hiroshima | 10,750 yen |
| Hiroshima to Tokyo | 19,560 yen |
| Total | 47,160 yen |
Verdict: close, but singles still win by 2,840 yen. The pass also covers the JR ferry to Miyajima and local JR trains in each city, so if you ride a lot of those, the gap shrinks. If you want the Nozomi on the long legs, the pass gets much worse: you would pay 4,960 yen and 6,500 yen extra for the two Tokyo legs.
Trip 3: Tokyo to Hiroshima and back
| Leg | Single ticket |
|---|---|
| Tokyo to Hiroshima | 19,560 yen |
| Hiroshima to Tokyo | 19,560 yen |
| Total | 39,120 yen |
Verdict: skip the pass. Singles cost 10,880 yen less.
Trip 4: Tokyo to Kanazawa and back
| Leg | Single ticket |
|---|---|
| Tokyo to Kanazawa (Hokuriku Shinkansen) | 14,400 yen |
| Kanazawa to Tokyo | 14,400 yen |
| Total | 28,800 yen |
Verdict: skip the pass. Singles cost 21,200 yen less than the JR Pass.
The Hokuriku Arch Pass (35,000 yen for 7 days, JR East and JR West lines, but not the Tokaido Shinkansen) does not pay off for a plain round trip either. It makes sense for a loop: Tokyo to Kanazawa, on to Kyoto and Osaka, and back through Kanazawa or Nagano. JR East's own example, Narita Airport to Kanazawa, Kanazawa to Nagano and Nagano back to Narita, costs about 38,000 yen in single tickets.
Trip 5: Tokyo, Sendai and Aomori (northern Japan)
| Leg | Single ticket |
|---|---|
| Tokyo to Sendai | 11,430 yen |
| Sendai to Shin-Aomori | 11,440 yen |
| Shin-Aomori to Tokyo | 17,910 yen |
| Total | 40,780 yen |
Verdict: buy the JR East Pass, not the JR Pass. The JR EAST PASS costs 35,000 yen for 5 days (50,000 yen for 10), saving 5,780 yen here. It also covers Nagano, Niigata and the Tokyo Monorail. The nationwide pass would cost 9,220 yen more than singles.
Trip 6: Tokyo to Fukuoka and back, with Kyoto and Hiroshima
| Leg | Single ticket |
|---|---|
| Tokyo to Kyoto | 13,970 yen |
| Kyoto to Hiroshima | 11,740 yen |
| Hiroshima to Hakata (Fukuoka) | 9,430 yen |
| Hakata to Tokyo | 23,610 yen |
| Total | 58,750 yen |
Verdict: buy the JR Pass. In a week, the pass saves 8,750 yen, and every extra ride (a day trip to Nara, the Miyajima ferry, the airport train) adds to that. The trade-off is speed: without the Nozomi ticket you ride Hikari, Kodama and Sakura trains, so the long trip back to Tokyo takes longer.
This is the kind of trip the pass is made for: long distances, many stops, in 7 days.
Trip 7: Based in Osaka, with a trip to Hiroshima
| Leg | Single ticket |
|---|---|
| Shin-Osaka to Hiroshima | 10,750 yen |
| Hiroshima to Shin-Osaka | 10,750 yen |
| Total | 21,500 yen |
Verdict: buy the Kansai-Hiroshima Area Pass. JR West's pass costs 17,000 yen for 5 days. It saves 4,500 yen on the Shinkansen alone and also covers JR West local trains in the pass area, the Haruka airport express and the Miyajima ferry. It does not cover the Tokaido Shinkansen to Tokyo, so it fits a trip that flies into Kansai Airport.
A Tokyo-only stay
Verdict: never buy the JR Pass. The pass covers the JR Yamanote Line but not Tokyo's subways, and much of central Tokyo is easier by subway. Use a Suica (see our guide to Suica for tourists), or the Tokyo Subway Ticket: unlimited Tokyo Metro and Toei subway rides for 1,000 yen (24 hours), 1,500 yen (48 hours) or 2,000 yen (72 hours).
All seven trips at a glance
| Trip | Single tickets | Best choice | You save |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka | 31,370 yen | Single tickets | 18,630 yen vs JR Pass |
| + Hiroshima | 47,160 yen | Single tickets (close) | 2,840 yen vs JR Pass |
| Tokyo and Hiroshima | 39,120 yen | Single tickets | 10,880 yen vs JR Pass |
| Tokyo and Kanazawa | 28,800 yen | Single tickets | 6,200 yen vs Hokuriku Arch Pass |
| Tokyo, Sendai, Aomori | 40,780 yen | JR East Pass, 5 days | 5,780 yen vs singles |
| Tokyo to Fukuoka loop | 58,750 yen | JR Pass, 7 days | 8,750 yen vs singles |
| Osaka and Hiroshima | 21,500 yen | Kansai-Hiroshima Pass | 4,500 yen vs singles |
What about the Green Car pass?
The 7-day Green pass costs 70,000 yen, 20,000 yen more than the ordinary one. It only makes sense if you ride as much as Trip 6 and would book Green Car seats anyway.
What about 14 and 21 days?
The 14-day pass (80,000 yen) works out to 40,000 yen a week. It wins only if both weeks include long rides like Trip 6. If you spend one week in Tokyo and one week traveling, buy a 7-day pass and start it on the first day of the long trips, or skip it and buy singles.
Japanese words you'll see on tickets
| Japanese | Reading | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 乗車券 | じょうしゃけん | jōshaken | basic fare ticket |
| 特急券 | とっきゅうけん | tokkyūken | express ticket (the Shinkansen part) |
| 指定席 | していせき | shiteiseki | reserved seat |
| 自由席 | じゆうせき | jiyūseki | non-reserved seat |
| 片道 / 往復 | かたみち / おうふく | katamichi / ōfuku | one way / round trip |
| のぞみ | のぞみ | Nozomi | the fastest Tokaido Shinkansen ("hope") |
| ひかり | ひかり | Hikari | the JR Pass's train to Kyoto ("light") |
| みどりの窓口 | みどりのまどぐち | midori no madoguchi | JR ticket office |
One useful sentence
At the ticket office, to book a seat on your pass:
ジャパンレールパスで指定席をお願いします。
Japan rēru pasu de shiteiseki o onegai shimasu.
"A reserved seat with my Japan Rail Pass, please."
Before you go
Booking the Shinkansen yourself? Our Ekinetto guide covers JR East's lines to Kanazawa, Sendai and Aomori, and our smartEX guide covers Tokyo to Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima. JR East is also building a faster booking app; read about JRE GO. For the station itself, our Japanese travel phrases have kana and romaji for every phrase.
Sources, all checked on October 22, 2026: JR Pass prices, scope of validity, Nozomi tickets and eligibility; JR Central's smartEX price sheet (the sheet says its prices are as of April 1, 2025; still current when we read it on October 22, 2026); JR East's Ekinetto price sheets for the Hokuriku and Tohoku Shinkansen and its e-ticket page; the JR EAST PASS, Hokuriku Arch Pass and Kansai-Hiroshima Area Pass pages; and Tokyo Metro's Tokyo Subway Ticket page.