Need to do laundry in Japan? Coin laundries, ryokan washers and where to buy clean clothes tonight

Search a map app for "coin laundry" or コインランドリー. WASH House, a chain with an English version of its website, gives these rough prices: a 7 kg washer costs 300–500 yen, a 12 kg washer 400–700 yen and a 22 kg washer 700–1,000 yen. Its 14 kg dryers run 7–10 minutes per 100 yen, and the 25 kg ones 5–8 minutes. A wash takes about 30–40 minutes in the 7 kg machine and about 31 minutes in the larger ones, and a combined wash-and-dry takes about 60 minutes. The chain points out that prices vary by store and by time of day.

You don't need to bring detergent to these chains. WASH House says detergent and softener are added automatically, and Baluko Laundry Place says its washers and washer-dryers add the right amount for you, with a button to skip the softener. The routine is much the same everywhere: check the drum for anything the last person left, load your clothes, close the door, choose a course and pay. Baluko notes that its machines don't give change, so use the change machine in the shop; some branches also take app or prepaid-card payments. WASH House warns against putting rubber items in its dryers, because they can melt.

Two more tips from the chains. Don't put a small load in a big drum: WASH House says the clothes can bunch up during the spin and stop the machine. And come back on time, because your laundry may be taken out when the next customer needs the machine. For a mixed load of a few days' clothes, a combined wash-and-dry is simplest; Baluko puts it at about an hour, against about 30 minutes for a wash alone.

Business hotels are the safest bet. Toyoko Inn, for example, lists coin laundry among its hotel facilities: washers and dryers that guests can use freely, for a fee. Check the page for the hotel you're staying at, since facilities differ from property to property.

Ryokan vary much more. In our directory, a 2026 guest at Iya Onsen Hotel Kazurabashi in the Iya Valley mentions free washing machines and dryers. At Ryokan Ohnuma in Higashi-Naruko Onsen, guests on self-catering tōji stays share kitchens and a free washing machine in the Tōji-kan building. Ryokan Sakaya in Nozawa Onsen also runs Sakaya Hanare JONNOBI, three-bedroom apartments with a full kitchen and a washer-dryer.

Other inns have few machines or none. At Awara Onsen Grandia Housen the women's changing room has just two washer-dryers and there's no coin laundry. Shunran no Yado Sakaeya in Shibu Onsen has no coin laundry (or vending machines) inside. If your inn has no machines, ask at the front desk where the nearest coin laundry is, and whether the inn can arrange laundry for you. We found no official prices for inn laundry services to quote, so ask what it costs first.

For a few pairs of socks and some underwear, the sink or the bathtub will do. 100-yen shops sell simple kit for this. Daiso's online store lists a clothesline about 5 m long with adjustable hooks at 110 yen including tax. It also sells a 3-litre wash bag for travel and emergencies (550 yen): you shake a T-shirt in it with water and a little detergent, then open a valve to drain it. Its "travelling laundry net" range starts at 110 yen.

Drying is the hard part, and traditional inn rooms weren't designed for it. Ask at the front desk where you may hang washing before you string a line across the room, and keep wet clothes off the tatami and the inn's furniture. Some rooms have very little space: an April 2026 couple at Okamotoya Ryokan in Beppu found nowhere to hang clothes in a renovated room. Rolling items in a towel to squeeze out the water, and washing in the evening, gives them the whole night to dry.

If things are still damp in the morning, finish them in a coin-laundry dryer. At WASH House, 100 yen buys 7–10 minutes in a 14 kg machine.

FamilyMart has its own clothing line, Convenience Wear, sold across Japan. Its catalogue lists line socks at 429 yen including tax, boxer shorts and briefs at 880 yen, inner T-shirts at 1,298 yen and outer T-shirts at 1,498 yen. There are also sweatpants at 2,990 yen if you need something to wear while everything else is in the wash. FamilyMart says some items aren't sold in every region or store.

Lawson sells a selection of MUJI products. MUJI's Lawson page lists Lawson-only socks with a pile-knit sole at 430 yen and a 100% cotton crew-neck T-shirt at 1,290 yen, along with innerwear and more socks, though not every store or region carries them. 7-Eleven's Seven Premium range lists tights and stockings nationwide. Its household shelf also has laundry detergent: an 850 g box of powder at 396 yen and a 900 g bottle of liquid at 467.50 yen. That's far more than a traveller needs, but handy if you're renting an apartment or find a washer that doesn't add detergent itself.

Sizes are limited (MUJI's Lawson socks come in 23–25 cm and 25–27 cm, for example), so treat the konbini as a fix for a night or two.

If you need more than one night's worth, a clothing chain gives you more choice and a full range of sizes. Fast Retailing counted 782 Uniqlo stores in Japan on 31 August 2026. Its low-price brand GU had 481 stores on the same date, and most of GU's sales are in Japan. Check the store's opening hours before you go.

For the cheapest option, Japan's national tourism organisation (JNTO) says 100-yen shops sell almost anything you might need, socks included. Items cost 100 yen plus tax, and the biggest chains are Daiso, Seria, Watts and Can Do. Daiso's online store lists men's short socks at 110 yen including tax, and most of its boxer briefs at 330 yen (some boxer trunks are 110 yen).

If your ryokan is in a small onsen village, do this shopping in town on the way. At some inns in our directory the nearest shop is a long drive away (see below).

Amazon.co.jp's next-day delivery arrives roughly between 7:00 and 22:30, though some places, such as remote islands, aren't covered by expedited shipping. Items shipped by Amazon.co.jp can also go to Amazon Pickup points: collect them within 4 days at a Lawson, FamilyMart or MiniStop counter, or within 3 days at a FamiLocker or a Yamato PUDO locker.

Rakuten Ichiba offers konbini pickup at FamilyMart, Lawson and MiniStop, with 2–3 days to collect after the parcel arrives. It isn't available for parcels over 100 cm or 10 kg, for date- or time-specified delivery, or for cash on delivery. To have a parcel sent to your inn instead, ask first: Yamato Transport says hotels and ryokan can receive parcels if they are willing to accept them, and some limit where and when you can collect. Our guide to delivery to your ryokan explains how to address the parcel and when it should arrive.

At remote inns, plan ahead rather than order late. Yachi Onsen in the Hakkōda mountains has no mobile signal and no shop for miles. From Ao no Za on Lake Shikotsu the nearest convenience store is about 30 minutes by car, and Yuwaku Onsen, home to Kokarian, has no convenience store in the village. Pack enough for the stay, or have a parcel sent to the inn before you arrive.

Underwear and T-shirts that dry overnight on a hanger make sink washing realistic. FamilyMart, for example, says the Paircool fabric in its Convenience Wear innerwear dries quickly after washing.

Compression bags and a laundry net keep clean and worn clothes apart in your case, and a short clothesline and a few single-use detergent packs weigh almost nothing. At a ryokan you'll usually wear the inn's yukata in the evening and to sleep in, which saves a set of clothes each night; our ryokan packing list covers what inns provide, and the exceptions.

On a trip of more than a week, plan laundry stops: a business hotel with coin washers every few nights, or an hour-long wash-and-dry at a chain launderette, keeps your bag light. Sending your suitcase ahead between inns helps too; see our guide to delivery to your ryokan.