Need a power adapter in Japan? Plug won't fit or adapter forgotten: where to get one today

Plug shape. Japan's national tourism organisation (JNTO) says Japanese outlets use Type A plugs, and that visitors from overseas may need a plug adapter. Apple's description of the plug used in Japan and North America is flat, parallel blades. If your plug has round pins, angled blades or three rectangular prongs, it won't fit without an adapter. Some North American plugs have a third, round earth (ground) pin; Japanese manufacturers sell adapters that turn a three-pin Type A plug into a two-pin one for Japanese sockets, which tells you how common two-pin outlets are.

Voltage. JNTO says the voltage throughout Japan is 100 V AC, at 50 Hz in eastern Japan and 60 Hz in western Japan (including Nagoya, Kyoto and Osaka). Look at the small print on your charger or appliance, usually on the plug block or the label near the cable. If the input reads something like 100–240 V, 50/60 Hz, it's dual voltage: Apple, for example, says its USB power adapters are designed for 100–240 V AC at 50–60 Hz. JNTO says dual-voltage hair dryers, travel irons and shavers should work anywhere in Japan. Then all you need is the right plug shape. If the label shows a single voltage such as 220–240 V, read the next section before you plug it in.

A plug adapter only lets the plug fit. It passes Japan's 100 V straight through. JNTO treats conversion plugs and transformers as separate things: dual-voltage appliances work anywhere in Japan, while other appliances need a transformer to convert the voltage.

Heating appliances are where this goes wrong. Panasonic, writing about taking a hair dryer abroad, warns that using an appliance on a voltage it wasn't designed for risks short circuits, damage and worse, and that a hair dryer draws a lot of power (many Japanese models are around 1,200 W), so a transformer has to be rated for that wattage or it may not work, may break the appliance, or may leak current. The same reasoning applies the other way round when you bring a single-voltage 220–240 V dryer or straightener to Japan.

The simpler fix is often not to use your own. Many ryokan and hotels have dryers in the room, in the bath changing rooms or on loan from the front desk (see the ryokan section below). If you want your own for the trip, look for a model whose label states dual voltage (for example 100–120 V and 200–240 V), and check that label rather than the box.

JNTO says conversion plugs and transformers are relatively easy to find in urban areas, in electronics districts such as Tokyo's Akihabara and Osaka's Nipponbashi, and at major home-appliance retailers such as Yodobashi Camera and Bic Camera. Look for adapters sold for using foreign plugs in Japan: one Japanese manufacturer, for example, sells a three-pin to two-pin Type A adapter aimed at visitors from the United States and Canada, with flags and multilingual text on the packaging, and marked for use in Japan only.

If you've only just landed, try the airport. A camera and electronics shop on the 4th floor of Narita Airport Terminal 2 says it sells travel adapters for use in Japan, and suggests bringing your actual charger so staff can match the plug, because Type C, Type B and SE plugs can look similar. At Narita Terminal 2, a Laox shop also lists power conversion plugs, but it's on the 3rd floor of the satellite, after the security check for international departures, so it's more use on the way home.

Be careful at 100-yen shops and anywhere selling travel goods for Japanese travellers. Daiso's official online store, for example, lists its multi-type plug adapter as an adapter for using Japanese plugs abroad, which is the opposite direction. Check the packaging: it should take your plug shape in and have flat two-pin Type A blades coming out.

If what you need to charge is a phone, tablet, earbuds or a USB-C laptop, you can skip the adapter and buy a Japanese USB wall charger, which plugs straight into the socket. Konbini sell them: in 2022 FamilyMart relaunched its range of USB cables, wall chargers and earphones across about 16,500 stores in Japan, with colour-coded packaging (navy for iPhone cables, orange for Android cables, yellow for multi-cables and chargers), so the right box is easy to spot even if you can't read Japanese. Daiso's official online store also lists USB AC adapters and USB-C cables in its electrical section.

Bring the cable that came with your device, or buy one that matches its port. While you sort things out, JNTO notes that newer Shinkansen models have outlets next to the window seats (ask for one when you buy your ticket) and that some hamburger chains and family restaurants have outlets.

If you can wait a day, ordering online saves hunting through shop shelves. Amazon.co.jp offers same-day shipping in certain regions, depending on stock and order cut-off times, including a 3-hour option in some of those areas. Next-day delivery arrives approximately between 7:00 and 22:30. For same-day orders you can pick a delivery window at checkout. Some places, such as remote islands, are not covered by expedited shipping.

If you'd rather not depend on a front desk, use Amazon Pickup: Lawson, FamilyMart and MiniStop stores, Yamato Transport centres, Amazon Lockers, Amazon Counters and PUDO lockers, for items shipped by Amazon.co.jp (some items are excluded by type, size or weight). Collect within 4 calendar days of delivery at a Lawson, FamilyMart or MiniStop counter, 3 days at an Amazon Locker or FamiLocker, and 7 days at an Amazon Counter. Rakuten Ichiba offers konbini pickup too, but which chains you can use depends on the shop; the pickup window is 2–3 days from arrival, and it isn't available for parcels over 100 cm or 10 kg, date or time-slot deliveries, or cash on delivery.

Having it sent to your hotel or ryokan? Ask first whether the front desk will accept a parcel for you. Amazon's same-day page says that if no one is available to receive the package, the order is cancelled and refunded, with no redelivery.

If you're already at your inn, start at the front desk: ask whether they can lend an adapter or a charger, whether there's a shop nearby, and whether they'll take in a parcel. Inns in mountain valleys can be a long way from the nearest konbini or electronics store, and delivery can take longer, so if you're heading somewhere remote, sort out an adapter in the city first.

Before you worry about a hair dryer, check what the inn provides. At Nushiyu Ryokan in Kusatsu, hair dryers are lent at the front desk for use in your room; at Hotel Kikusuitei on Lake Hamana they're in the baths, with loan dryers at the front desk; at Mukaitaki in Aizu-Wakamatsu they're in the bath changing rooms or on loan. At Yukyo no Hibiki Yusai in Kurokawa Onsen, 2026 guests mention few power outlets, and the front desk lends extension leads.

Sockets can be scarce. Main-building reviewers at Okada Ryokan in Hirayu Onsen mention a single power socket, so a multi-port USB charger or a short power strip with one adapter helps. Lamp no Yado Aoni Onsen in Aomori is the extreme case: its rooms are lamp-lit, and reviewers mention no outlet, so arrive with your phone and power bank fully charged.

Before your next trip, read the labels on everything you plan to plug in: chargers, shaver, hair tools. Anything marked 100–240 V needs only a Type A plug adapter in Japan; anything single-voltage is worth leaving at home or replacing with a dual-voltage model. Pack one adapter per device you charge overnight, or one adapter plus a multi-port USB charger, and keep it in your day bag, not your checked suitcase, so you can charge on arrival.

On checkout morning at a ryokan, look behind the futon and the TV for adapters and chargers still in the socket: a small pouch for cables makes them harder to leave behind.