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Buy Japanese Yen Online – AUD to JPY
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Plan your trip to Japan efficiently!
Japan has embraced card and phone payments fast, but yen in cash is still the thing you'll reach for most often on a typical day. Order your Japanese yen online, pay when you collect from a Prosegur Change branch, and pay 0% commission on the exchange.
If you're heading over for the ski season in Niseko or Hakuba, or for spring blossoms in Kyoto, sorting your yen before you leave means you can pay for the train from the airport, the first bowl of ramen and the coin locker without hunting for an ATM that accepts foreign cards.
JPY Currency Options
Cash
- Reserve online, pay & pickup at a branch
- Get our best exchange rates online
- 0% commission
- Collection available from the next day
Travel Money Card
- Pay online, in-store & use ATMs worldwide
- No fees on purchases abroad
- 10 currencies available
- 100% secured by Mastercard
Travelling soon?
Here's how to easily reserve your currencies online
1. Choose your currency
1. Choose your currency
Determine the amount of travel money you will need to enjoy your trip.
2. Choose a date & a pick-up location
2. Choose a date & a pick-up location
Collect your order from one of our exchange bureaus at major airports and city centre.
3. Collect & pay
3. Collect & pay
Pay upon pickup and enjoy
your trip.
Where you'll still need cash in Japan
Cards are now accepted in hotels, department stores, convenience stores and most chain restaurants in the big cities. Cash still dominates in the places many visitors enjoy most: small family-run restaurants and izakaya, ramen shops that use ticket machines at the door, festival and market stalls, rural guesthouses, and shrines and temples, where entry fees, offerings and omamori charms are paid in cash. Coin lockers and many vending machines take coins only.
Because Japan's coins go up to ¥500, a lot of everyday spending happens in coins. A small coin purse is one of the most useful things you can pack.
If you'll be using trains and buses, an IC card such as Suica, PASMO or ICOCA saves a lot of fumbling with tickets. Physical cards are topped up at station machines, most of which take cash only, so keep some ¥1,000 notes for that. Suica and PASMO can also be added to an iPhone's Wallet and topped up by card.
Everyday prices in Tokyo
Cappuccino
¥560
Tokyo National Museum
¥1,000
Metro ride
from ¥180
Dinner, mid-range
¥3,000 per person
What's changing for visitors in 2026
From 1 November 2026, Japan's tax-free shopping scheme for tourists moves to a refund system. Instead of having the consumption tax removed at the till, you'll pay the full price in store, show your passport, and claim the refund at customs when you leave Japan, before you check in for your flight. Goods must leave Japan within 90 days of purchase, and the old split between general goods and consumables disappears. Allow extra time at the airport on departure day if you plan to claim.
Japan's departure tax, the International Tourist Tax, also rose from ¥1,000 to ¥3,000 per departure from July 2026. It's normally included in your airfare, so you won't need cash for it, but it's part of the reason Japan fares have risen slightly.
How much yen to take
A comfortable mid-range trip, with business hotels, a mix of casual and sit-down meals, local transport and a few attractions, typically runs ¥20,000 to ¥30,000 per person a day, excluding accommodation booked in advance. Budget travellers in guesthouses can manage on ¥8,000 to ¥12,000 a day. A 7-day Japan Rail Pass now costs ¥50,000 for an ordinary car, so compare it with individual shinkansen tickets for your route before buying.
Many travellers bring between ¥30,000 and ¥50,000 per person for the first few days, then pay larger amounts by card and withdraw more if needed. Today's AUD to JPY rate is on our exchange rates page.
Japan currency at a glance
|
|
|---|---|
|
Name |
Japanese Yen |
|
ISO Code |
JPY |
|
Symbol |
¥ |
|
Notes |
¥1,000, 2,000, 5,000 and 10,000 |
|
Coins |
¥1, 5, 10, 50, 100 and 500 |
|
|
|---|---|
|
Cash Index |
50% |
|
Other currencies accepted |
None. Japanese yen only. |
|
Tips |
No — tipping is not customary and may cause confusion. |
Japan's ATMs and paying by card
When you need more yen, 7-Eleven ATMs (Seven Bank) and Japan Post ATMs are the most reliable for Australian cards, with English menus and long opening hours. Many regional bank ATMs don't accept foreign cards at all. When paying by card, choose to be charged in yen rather than Australian dollars to avoid dynamic currency conversion mark-ups.
Our Travel Money Card holds Japanese yen as one of its 10 currencies. Load it before you go to lock in the rate on that first load, then use it anywhere Mastercard is accepted. To stay online between cities and on the slopes, you can set up a Japan plan with our international eSIM.
Japanese banknotes and coins
The yen was introduced in 1871 under the Meiji government. Banknotes come in ¥1,000, ¥5,000 and ¥10,000, plus a ¥2,000 note that's still legal tender but rarely seen. Coins are ¥1, ¥5, ¥10, ¥50, ¥100 and ¥500. In July 2024 Japan released new ¥10,000, ¥5,000 and ¥1,000 notes, featuring industrialist Eiichi Shibusawa, educator Umeko Tsuda and bacteriologist Shibasaburō Kitasato, with a 3D hologram portrait for security. Older notes remain valid, but a few vending and ticket machines in rural areas may not yet read the new ones.
At shrines you'll see visitors drop a ¥5 coin into the offering box. The coin is called go-en, which sounds like the word for a good connection or fate.
Got yen left over? You can sell your foreign currency back at any branch, or keep it for your next trip. Combining Japan with a US stopover? Order US dollars at the same time.
Ordering yen with Prosegur Change
Choose your amount on our currency order page, pick a branch and date, and pay when you collect. Travellers on direct flights to Tokyo and Osaka can pick up at our Melbourne Airport or Brisbane Airport branches. You can also collect in town at Sydney, Bondi Junction, Canberra, Adelaide and every other branch on our branch list.
FAQs about Japanese Yen (JPY)
Yes. Breaking a ¥10,000 note is normal in Japan, even for a coffee, and convenience stores are the easiest place to do it. Small rural shops and bus fare boxes are the exception, so keep some ¥1,000 notes and coins for those.
Lift passes, rental shops and resort hotels in Niseko and Hakuba take cards. The small restaurants, onsen and izakaya in the villages around them are much more likely to be cash only.
Nobody can reliably predict currency movements. If you're worried about the rate moving against you, a common approach is to buy part of your yen when you book your trip and the rest closer to departure.
No. Tipping isn't part of Japanese culture and staff may chase you to return money left on the table. Good service is already included in the price.
There's no limit, but you must declare cash and similar instruments worth more than ¥1,000,000 when you enter or leave Japan, using the form at customs.