What could 100 yen buy in 1950 in Japan?

Source: 明治〜平成 値段史. The above website (in Japanese) lists the prices for different staple goods (and average salaries), in some cases as far back as 1870. For the time in question, the average salary for an office worker was approximately 120,000 yen per year. read more

In 1920, 1 JPY was worth about 50 cents. In 1920, 50c could buy a pound of bacon, a pound of coffee or a dozen eggs. So a 100 yen was 50 dollars. According to Inflation Calculator that's roughly $600 in today's money, or 60,000 yen. read more

5 Things You Can Do With A 500 Yen Coin in Tokyo May 29, 2014 June 17, 2017 TheTokyoite The 500 yen coin used in Japan is one of the world’s largest coin denominations in terms of monetary value (its rival being the Swiss 5 franc coin). read more

I’m not sure what kind of items you’re looking for, so I can’t make tailored suggestions, but I can give you a couple of ideas of where to shop. 100 yen stores: These are all over the place. One major chain is Daiso. read more