Japan route cost planner

Compare the cost of your Japan route

Enter your cities.

  • Route order
  • Estimated transport cost
  • JR Pass price comparison
  • Potential savings
These are estimates, not live fares or ticket inventory. Check official prices before paying.
Before you book Compare the same cities in a different order

Use this after choosing your cities and before fixing every hotel and long-distance ticket.

Trip input

Your planned route

Choose the route in the order you currently plan to travel.

Your comparison

Enter the cities in the order you plan to visit

Then compare the entered order with another order using the same stops.

After the route comparison

Get buying and boarding steps for your route

The cost result compares your entered route versus another order using the same cities. A route buying and boarding checklist is a leg-by-leg plan for the ticket, official booking service, seat reservation, what to use at the gate, what to keep and any remaining local ticket.

  1. Step 1Confirm the exact stations and ticket or pass.
  2. Step 2Use the official service for that train and operator.
  3. Step 3Follow the reservation’s QR, linked IC card or paper-ticket instructions.

What the supported route can confirm

Route2 Shinkansen legs: Tokyo Station → Kyoto Station → Shin-Osaka Station. A return to Tokyo adds a third leg.
JR Pass windowThe cost planner accepts 7 days, 14 days or 21 days for the nationwide JR Pass comparison.
TicketIndividual Tokaido Shinkansen tickets. A pass needs its own coverage and reservation check.
BookingSmartEX for this supported individual-ticket route.
Booking timeSmartEX accepts reservations 24 hours a day except during maintenance. Standard reservations may be accepted from 1 year before departure until 4 minutes before scheduled departure. Oversized baggage seats are excluded from 1-year advance reservations and may be reserved from 1 month before departure.
At the gateUse the reservation’s QR ticket, assigned IC card or collected paper tickets. An IC card balance alone does not pay for the reservation.
Large baggageA 160–250 cm bag needs a reserved seat with an oversized baggage area.

For another route, station or pass, confirm each operator and ticket product before buying. The tool will stop instead of assigning unverified booking or gate steps.

Rules reviewed 2026-08-22. Check Shinkansen ticket parts · Check SmartEX booking times · Check SmartEX boarding · Check baggage rules

After the route total

Check the ticket that matches your trip

JR Pass Worth ItCompare long-distance JR legs against the pass.Calculate -> Narita transferPick NEX or Skyliner for your hotel area.Compare -> Tokyo subway ticketCheck local subway-heavy days.Check -> Hakone FreepassSee whether the classic loop justifies the pass.Run the math ->