What 'furnished' means in Tokyo, and what surprises foreigners

If you're booking a Tokyo monthly furnished apartment from a country where "furnished" usually means "fully equipped, ready to move in," you're about to get a few surprises. The bath is a soaking tub. The kitchen has two gas burners and no oven. The closet might be a pole on the wall. Some of these are fine once you know to expect them. Some are real costs if you don't.

I'm not an interior designer. I've been to Japan eight times and lived in Shimokitazawa for 90 days once. I've watched friends arrive at their first Tokyo midterm with a suitcase, open the apartment door, and stare at the bathroom for a minute. The pattern in their reactions is what's below.

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The five surprises that hit Western readers first

These are the differences that make people who've rented in the US or Europe pause on move-in day.

The bathroom is a single piece of fibreglass. Most Tokyo midterm apartments have what's called a unit bath (ユニットバス — unitto basu, a moulded one-piece bathroom). Tub, walls, ceiling, sink, all one shape. It's small, efficient, and good at not leaking. The Japanese norm is to use the tub as a deep soak (湯船 — yubune) after a quick shower, not as a place to take a shower. If the listing says "shower only," you're getting a cubicle the size of a phone booth. No tub, no soak. In a Tokyo winter, that's a real cost.

The kitchen is for reheating, not roasting. The Tokyo midterm furnished kitchen usually has two gas burners and a microwave. No oven. No dishwasher. The microwave is often a microwave-grill, a combination microwave that can do a little bit of baking, but not enough for anything that needs proper heat. If your home cooking depends on an oven, you'll either learn to use a microwave-grill, buy a small countertop oven, or pick a different apartment class. Premium serviced apartments are more likely to have an oven. The day-one kitchen guide covers what's actually in the cupboard.

The closet might just be a pole. "Wardrobe" in a Tokyo listing can mean a full closet, or it can mean a pole stretched between two walls with some hangers on it. The bigger the apartment, the more likely there's a real closet. In a studio, the pole is common. Plan for a few hangers and a small folded stack of off-season clothes in a corner, not a full hanging system.

Laundry means in-apartment washing and balcony drying. A washing machine in the apartment is the Tokyo norm. A heated dryer is not. The standard pattern is to wash, then hang on the balcony or on an indoor pole rack. If the apartment has no balcony and no washer in the unit, you'll be at a coin laundry (コインランドリー — koin randorī) for the whole stay. Some operators count the coin laundry as an amenity. It isn't really. ¥400 per wash, ¥100 for ten minutes of dryer, in a small room above a parking lot. Plan for it or rule the apartment out before you book.

The size is smaller than you expect. A Tokyo studio is typically 18-25 square metres. A one-bedroom is 25-40. A Western reader who pictures a US studio is probably thinking 35-50 square metres. The bed often shares a room with the desk and the kitchenette. None of this is bad. It's how Tokyo apartments are designed. But it surprises people who haven't lived in a 25-square-metre apartment before.

What you don't need to worry about

If you're worrying about whether your Tokyo midterm furnished apartment will have the basics, you can stop. Almost every furnished apartment includes:

• Air-conditioner
• Wi-Fi or wired internet
• Desk
• Bed (frame and mattress)
• Fridge
• Microwave

If one of these is missing, the listing will say so up front. You don't need to ask about them unless the photos make you uncertain.

What's worth asking about before you book

These are the items that vary across listings and are worth confirming by email.

• Bathtub or shower only
• Washing machine in the apartment, or coin laundry only
• Cooktop: gas burners, induction, or none
• Wardrobe with a door, or just a pole
• Balcony for drying laundry

And these are the items that are rare in Tokyo midterm, so only ask if you actually need them:

• Dishwasher
• Heated dryer for clothes
• Standalone oven, separate from the microwave
• Iron and ironing board
• Vacuum (any type)
• Hair dryer

An email to send before you book

Take the items above and send the operator one email. Yes-or-no answers, two minutes to read, two minutes to reply. If they won't answer, that's your answer.

Hello, I'm considering booking [unit reference]. Before I confirm, please answer yes or no on each item below as it applies to this unit:

1. Bathtub, or shower only?
2. Washing machine in the apartment, or coin laundry only?
3. Cooktop: gas burners, induction, or both? How many burners?
4. Microwave-grill, or microwave only?
5. Dishwasher? (yes or no)
6. Heated dryer, or balcony for line-drying?
7. Separate oven, not the microwave?
8. Iron and ironing board?
9. Vacuum: stick, canister, or robot?
10. Hair dryer?
11. Internet: Wi-Fi only, or also a wired LAN port?
12. Bed: single, semi-double, double, or futon?

Thank you.

You want twelve yes-or-no answers in the same order. What you don't want is "all standard" or "fully furnished." If the operator can't list its own inclusions in writing, drop the unit.

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How I'd approach it

Find the listings on your shortlist. Check the photos for the basics. Send the 12-item email to every operator. Wait one business day for a reply.

The apartment you book probably won't have the most things. It will have the right things for your specific 30-day plan, with the inclusions confirmed in writing. If you're arriving in January, the bathtub matters. If you're arriving in May, less so. If you cook every day, the oven question is real. If you eat out, it isn't.

The point of the checklist isn't to maximise the amenity count. The point is to match the apartment to your stay, before you wire the deposit.

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— HalfKey publishes the 12-item inclusion list on every furnished Tokyo unit. Browse listings for your dates.