Average Journalist Salary in Sendai, Japan for 2026

In this article, we will look at the average Journalist salary for 2026 in Sendai and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the Japanese yen. To keep things simple, we are using the JPY currency code instead of the currency symbol ¥.

How Much Does a Journalist Make in Sendai?

A Journalist working in Sendai will typically earn around 6,577,500 JPY per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 3,553,500 JPY to the highest average salary of 9,935,600 JPY.

Average Annual Salary6,577,500 JPY
Average Monthly Salary548,125 JPY
Average Lowest Salary3,553,500 JPY
Lowest Monthly Salary296,125 JPY
Average Highest Salary9,935,600 JPY
Highest Monthly Salary827,966 JPY

These are average salaries for a Journalist in Sendai and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Journalist to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Journalist salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Journalist Salaries in Sendai

So we've looked at the average salaries a Journalist will earn in Sendai. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Journalist can earn between 3,553,500 JPY and 9,935,600 JPY on average in Sendai. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Journalist in Sendai is 6,058,300 JPY. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 6,058,300 JPY, and 50% of the population earn more than 6,058,300 JPY.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Journalist salary in Sendai, 25% of the population are earning less than 4,320,200 JPY while 75% of the population earn more than 4,320,200 JPY.

75% of the population earn less than 7,356,900 JPY, and 25% of the population earn more than 7,356,900 JPY.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Journalist Salary by Experience Level in Sendai

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average Journalist salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Journalist in Sendai that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 4,129,300 JPY.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Journalist salary would increase to 5,209,200 JPY.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Journalist, the average salary would be 6,875,100 JPY.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 8,087,400 JPY.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Journalist with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 8,952,900 JPY.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Journalist with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 9,528,200 JPY.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years-
4,129,300 JPY
2-5 Years+26%
5,209,200 JPY
5-10 Years+32%
6,875,100 JPY
10-15 Years+18%
8,087,400 JPY
15-20 Years+11%
8,952,900 JPY
20+ Years+6%
9,528,200 JPY

Journalist Salary by Education Level in Sendai

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Journalist in Sendai based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • High School. A Journalist in Sendai with a high school education can earn an average salary of 5,017,100 JPY.
  • Certificate or Diploma. A Journalist in Sendai with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 5,663,200 JPY.
  • Bachelor's Degree. A Journalist in Sendai with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 7,453,000 JPY.
  • Master's Degree. A Journalist in Sendai with a master's degree education can earn an average salary of 9,239,600 JPY.

Average Salary by Education Chart

High School-
5,017,100 JPY
Certificate or Diploma+13%
5,663,200 JPY
Bachelor's Degree+32%
7,453,000 JPY
Master's Degree+24%
9,239,600 JPY

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in Japan is around 2,570,000 to 7,720,000 JPY and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Journalist Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In Sendai, a male journalist will earn an average of 7,680,400 JPY, while a female journalist will earn around 7,309,600 JPY.

This means that a male journalist earns approximately 5% more than a female journalist for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Sendai

Male-
7,680,400 JPY
Female-5%
7,309,600 JPY

Journalist Average Pay Raise in Sendai

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Journalist in Sendai is around 11% every 16 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in Japan is around 8% every 16 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 11 ÷ 16 ) × 12  = 8%

What this means is that a Journalist in Sendai can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 8% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Sendai for 2026

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in Japan.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking-
8%
Energy-
7%
Information Technology-
6%
Healthcare-
5%
Travel-
4%
Construction-
3%
Education-
2%

Journalist Bonus and Incentive Rates in Sendai

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Journalist is a moderate bonus based job, with 53% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

47% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 4% to 5%.

Received Bonus-
53%
No Bonus-
47%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in Japan earn approximately 4% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector-
6,300,400 JPY
Private Sector-4%
6,048,900 JPY

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Journalist

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Journalist in Sendai.

Job TitleCategorySalary
3D ArtistMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,857,100 JPY
3D DesignerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,197,600 JPY
3D GeneralistMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,681,400 JPY
3D Visualization SpecialistMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,698,400 JPY
Acrobatic RiggerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,718,600 JPY
ActorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment7,309,600 JPY
Art AdministratorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,989,600 JPY
Art DirectorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment7,285,700 JPY
Art LeadMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment7,523,300 JPY
Associate Media DirectorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment6,709,300 JPY
Associate ProducerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment8,448,800 JPY
Broadcast AssociateMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,224,200 JPY
Broadcast News AnalystMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,989,600 JPY
Broadcast TechnicianMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,432,600 JPY
Broadcast and Sound EngineerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,053,200 JPY
Broadcasting JournalistMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment6,984,300 JPY
Broadcasting PresenterMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment7,763,600 JPY
CAS EngineerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,952,700 JPY
Camera Equipment RepairerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,912,600 JPY
Camera OperatorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,659,400 JPY
Cartoonist / AnimatorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,363,700 JPY
Censorship ExecutiveMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment6,395,900 JPY
ChoreographerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,292,500 JPY
ColoristMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,013,500 JPY
Communications ManagerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment8,290,700 JPY
CorrespondentMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment6,251,400 JPY
Dance DirectorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,698,400 JPY
DancerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,099,700 JPY
Director of PhotographyMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment6,335,800 JPY
Disc JockeyMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,755,300 JPY
Editorial AssistantMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,359,900 JPY
Events ManagerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,833,500 JPY
Graphic DesignerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,043,600 JPY
IllustratorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,558,700 JPY
Industrial DesignerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,898,100 JPY
Instructional DesignerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,685,200 JPY
Makeup ArtistMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,116,600 JPY
Media Design ManagerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment10,199,600 JPY
Media Equipment OperatorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,359,900 JPY
Media Operations ManagerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment8,051,500 JPY
Media PlannerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,545,500 JPY
Media ProducerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment7,596,200 JPY
Media Product Development ManagerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment10,369,900 JPY
Media Production ManagerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment10,187,500 JPY
Media Program DirectorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment11,509,500 JPY
Media Relation ExecutiveMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment11,245,700 JPY
Media Relations ManagerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment10,932,200 JPY
Media Sales ManagerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment11,543,100 JPY
Movement and Dance CoordinatorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment6,193,900 JPY
Multimedia CoordinatorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,850,500 JPY
Multimedia DesignerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,889,500 JPY
Music ConsultantMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,351,400 JPY
MusicianMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,211,600 JPY
News AssociateMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,614,600 JPY
News ReporterMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment6,768,400 JPY
Post Production AssistantMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,635,200 JPY
ProducerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment9,985,800 JPY
Product DesignerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,755,300 JPY
Product PlannerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,981,700 JPY
Production ArtistMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,076,600 JPY
Production AssistantMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,539,100 JPY
Production DirectorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment8,206,100 JPY
Production TechnicianMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,395,900 JPY
Program ResearcherMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment6,457,900 JPY
Promotion CoordinatorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,846,300 JPY
Sound EngineerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,305,100 JPY
Sound Engineering TechnicianMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,047,800 JPY
Stage TechnicianMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,108,200 JPY
Sub EditorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment3,503,800 JPY
Television Executive ProducerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment11,734,300 JPY
Transmission EngineerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,399,900 JPY
Video EditorMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment4,403,400 JPY
Video ProducerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,857,100 JPY
VideographerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,267,700 JPY
Visual DesignerMedia / Broadcasting / Arts / Entertainment5,567,700 JPY

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in Japan, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

CityAverage Salary
Fukuoka7,499,500 JPY
Hiroshima6,733,900 JPY
Kawasaki7,045,600 JPY
Kobe7,369,700 JPY
Kyoto7,211,600 JPY
Nagoya7,823,800 JPY
Osaka7,980,700 JPY
Saitama6,887,700 JPY
Sapporo7,669,900 JPY
Tokyo8,290,700 JPY
Yokohama8,134,400 JPY

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