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If you had to choose between those two cities to live in, which would you choose and why? Of course the differences between the two and which one would win each criteria are no-brainers, so I'm going to list the advantages and disadvantages of each:
ATLANTA
Advantages:
- Low cost of living (can get a lot of house for your money)
- Less crowded, more spaced out
- Moderate climate (not so cold in winter, and no as hot/humid as other parts of the Southeast)
- Not as prone to natural disasters (may get an occasional small tornado but even that's rare)
- Christian faith is common/lots of churches (if that is important to you)
Disadvantages:
- High crime rate
- Traffic and lack of mass transit
- The Georgia politics (which can be an advantage depending on how you look at it)
- Racial tensions
- It's in America (which can be an advantage depending on how you look at it. One thing it's easier for a US citizen)
TOKYO
Advantages
- Very safe
- Efficient public transit
- Technologically advanced
- Healthier lifestyle and healthcare system
- Also moderate climate
Disadvantages
- High cost of living
- More crowded and not as driver friendly (which can be an issue during the pandemic)
- It's not easy to live if you're not a Japanese citizen, not as diverse
- Prone to natural disasters (earthquakes, typhoons, floods, etc.)
- Houses don't have central heating and AC so it can be less comfortable in the summer and winter months
Right now in 2020 I would choose Tokyo in a heartbeat. The only thing that's stopping me is the fact that neither me nor my wife are Japanese citizens. The reason we're living in Atlanta is because of family, and the job market and able to buy a decent size house. Atlanta has seen better days and years than 2020. When we first moved up here 3 years ago that was the first time I didn't miss Japan and didn't wish I was living there.
You've hit the nail on the head for pros and cons for both, except I disagree with the high cost of living. The average house cost in Tokyo vs Atlanta is more or less the same, but I do agree you get a hell of a lot bigger house in Atlanta with a lot more space for the same money. This is not necessarily viewed as a bad thing by Japanese people, and owning a house is way less of an important thing as compared to the US, so part of this is cultural.
In terms of urbanity AKA how you will live and move around, they're actually polar opposites, so that's more or less up to preference.
I would take Tokyo any day, but both are fair options. I'm not sure if comparing a massive world class city to a city magnitudes smaller is really fair though, in any case.
Cost of living part isn't quite accurate except for the very specific criteria of sheer amount per square foot. I don't know this guy, but he does a decent rundown about housing costs which are higher in Tokyo, but not exorbitantly so as the average employed person can fairly easily afford owning their own home even in Tokyo:
The other thing is that you don't need to have a car (though having a car of the same make and model between the two places is going to be more expensive in Tokyo) without having any notable drop in quality of life, so you can also wipe out those expenses. The other expenses you can wipe out is needing to pay a premium for good or better public schools as the funding among schools is essentially equalized rather than dependent on the taxes that can be generated by the municipality where wealthier areas get better schools. There's also healthcare expenses that are generally far less expensive, childcare that's far less expensive, quality universities that are far less expensive. In terms of foods and restaurants, western/American food will be notably more expensive in Tokyo, but various Japanese foods and things like quality seafood are generally notably less expensive.
I do think that Tokyo is an odd comparison for Atlanta. The massive size difference means the absolute number rather than proportion of certain things like number of immigrants sort of then ends up tilting a lot of things towards Tokyo. That sheer size difference is really extreme. Perhaps Fukuoka and its metropolitan area is more comparable as it's closer to Atlanta in metropolitan population and compared to Tokyo is less dense, more auto-centric, warmer overall especially in winter, less seismically active and is more of a regional center of sorts rather than a national one.
In either comparison though, I'd choose the Japanese city over Atlanta as I really dislike having to drive to places unless it's a fun roadtrip. However, there are a few US cities that I would generally choose over any Japanese city since it's a lot easier to be in an English-speaking environment for me.
Last edited by OyCrumbler; 07-14-2020 at 08:28 AM..
As an outsider to both (been 2 times to Tokyo, never to Atlanta or America...) my preference is still heavily leaning towards Tokyo. For Atlanta I only know CNN is there (which means it's the worst city in the universe lol!) and I suspect cost of living is way lower, Tokyo's COL is legendary.
You've hit the nail on the head for pros and cons for both, except I disagree with the high cost of living. The average house cost in Tokyo vs Atlanta is more or less the same, but I do agree you get a hell of a lot bigger house in Atlanta with a lot more space for the same money. This is not necessarily viewed as a bad thing by Japanese people, and owning a house is way less of an important thing as compared to the US, so part of this is cultural.
In terms of urbanity AKA how you will live and move around, they're actually polar opposites, so that's more or less up to preference.
I would take Tokyo any day, but both are fair options. I'm not sure if comparing a massive world class city to a city magnitudes smaller is really fair though, in any case.
Yeah, you can find cheap real estate in Japan. I've seen small apartments for as low as 3 million yen (just under $30,000 USD) in the nearby suburbs of Tokyo. It's other costs that will get you, particularly transportation. At the same time you can get by without a car in most places so you can save that way.
Having just gotten back from a 4 month stint in Tokyo, 100% Tokyo or Sapporo well before Atlanta. Culturally, aesthetically, politically, food, etc 100% Tokyo. I miss it so much
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