The most expensive food in Japan is bluefin tuna: a single 243 kg fish sold for ¥510 million (about $3.2 million) at the first Toyosu auction of 2026. That is a once-a-year showpiece bid, so this list ranks ten Japanese foods by the highest price we could verify for one purchase unit (a fish, a pair of melons, a bunch of grapes, a meal), with a typical everyday price noted where it differs. Prices are as of October 2026, converted at about ¥159 to the dollar.
| Rank | Food | Top price | In dollars (approx.) | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bluefin tuna (toro) | ¥510 million per fish | $3.2 million | Jan 2026 |
| 2 | Tottori snow crab | ¥5 million per crab | $46,000 | Nov 2019 |
| 3 | Yubari King melons | ¥5.8 million per pair | $36,000 | May 2026 |
| 4 | Ruby Roman grapes | ¥1 million per bunch | $6,300 | Jul 2026 |
| 5 | Densuke black watermelon | ¥700,000 each | $4,400 | Jun 2025 |
| 6 | Domestic matsutake | up to ¥100,000 per kg | $630 per kg | 2024 to 2025 range |
| 7 | Fugu (pufferfish) course | ¥60,500 per person | $380 | Current menu |
| 8 | Square watermelon | ¥21,600 each | $136 | 2026 season |
| 9 | Kobe beef | ¥9,350 per 100 g | $59 | Current menu |
| 10 | “Adult” milk | ¥5,000 per bottle | $31 | Launch price |
1. Bluefin tuna (toro): ¥510 million
Every January the first auction of the year at Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market turns into a bidding contest that has little to do with fish economics. On 5 January 2026 a 243 kg bluefin caught off Oma, at the northern tip of Honshu, went to Kiyomura Corp., the company behind the Sushi Zanmai chain, for ¥510 million. That beat the previous record of about ¥334 million, which the same buyer set in 2019. It works out at roughly ¥2.1 million per kilogram.
The fish is cut into toro, the fatty belly, and served at the chain’s counters at ordinary restaurant prices, which makes the whole thing a very expensive advertisement. The number rests on the auction result itself, hammer price as reported on the day.
2. Tottori snow crab: ¥5 million
Tottori Prefecture auctions its first and finest crab of the season each November, and the grade-topping crab is branded with a gold tag and a name. In November 2019 a single crab went for ¥5 million (about $46,000), double the Guinness record the year before. It is the highest crab price we could confirm; we found no newer sale that beat it, so it is shown at its 2019 value and dollar rate.
Nobody pays that to eat well. The buyer, a fish wholesaler, gets a season’s worth of press and a status symbol for the shop window. Ordinary crab from the same port costs a tiny fraction of the figure. We took the figure from the prefecture’s auction result as reported at the time.
3. Yubari King melons: ¥5.8 million per pair
Yubari melons come from Hokkaido, and the cooperative picks the first perfectly round, orange-fleshed ones for a ceremonial auction in May at the Sapporo wholesale market. On 22 May 2026 a pair went for ¥5.8 million, the highest price ever paid for these melons, to a fruit and vegetable wholesaler from Kushiro. The last big number, ¥5 million, came in 2019.
Out of 912 melons sold that day, almost all went for far less, and a gift-box pair in a shop is typically a few tens of thousands of yen. Our dollar figure comes from the 2026 auction result and a rounded exchange rate.
4. Ruby Roman grapes: ¥1 million per bunch
These are the big red grapes of Ishikawa Prefecture, each the size of a ping-pong ball and sold only after a strict check on size, sugar and colour. At the season’s first auction in Kanazawa on 17 July 2026, a top-grade bunch of 33 grapes weighing about a kilogram went for ¥1 million, or about ¥30,000 per grape. A fruit retailer bought it to sell at a shop in western Tokyo.
Earlier first auctions have reportedly gone higher, so 2026 was a steady year, not a record. Below the top bunch, a normal box costs far less. The price here is the single published auction figure, which we treat with the caution that implies.
5. Densuke black watermelon: ¥700,000
The Densuke is a dark, almost stripe-free watermelon grown in Toma, Hokkaido, and only a small number a year earn the label. At the first auction of the season on 20 June 2025 the top bid, in Asahikawa, reached ¥700,000, matching the year before. Different reports give different all-time highs, from ¥650,000 in 2008 to ¥750,000 in 2019, so we use the latest verified auction instead of a record.
A regular Densuke bought in a store is much cheaper, in the range of ¥5,000 to ¥30,000 depending on the source and the year.
6. Domestic matsutake: up to ¥100,000 per kilogram
Matsutake, the pine mushroom, is the autumn status food. Domestic harvests have shrunk to a few dozen tons, and imports from China, Korea and North America fill most of the gap at far lower prices. Domestic mushrooms are quoted at roughly ¥5,000 to ¥10,000 per 100 g, which is ¥50,000 to ¥100,000 per kilogram, and the first ones of the season can fetch more. The dollar figure here is the top of that range. Our estimate leans on a published range, not a single sale, so treat it as a ceiling for ordinary retail.
7. Fugu: ¥60,500 per person
Fugu, the pufferfish, can kill you if the chef gets the preparation wrong, which is why Japan licenses the people who cut it. A standard course in Shimonoseki, the fugu capital, runs about ¥24,200 to ¥35,200 per person, and the wild-caught course at one leading restaurant there is ¥60,500 including tax. In Tokyo, one specialist raised its fugu menu prices in October 2025, citing a sharp drop in wild catches, and its courses now run roughly ¥35,200 to ¥52,000.
Cheaper chains serve set meals from a few thousand yen. The ranking uses the top published menu price, so the price you pay depends heavily on whether the fish is wild or farmed.
8. Square watermelon: up to ¥21,600
Square watermelons are grown inside cube-shaped boxes in Zentsuji, in Kagawa Prefecture, so that they fit a fridge shelf. The idea sounds practical until you learn the fruit has to be picked unripe to hold its shape, so it is mostly a decoration. Shipping for 2026 started on 30 June, with around 400 expected through mid-July at about ¥10,000 each wholesale. A high-end Tokyo shop listed one at ¥21,600, and an overseas reseller asks about $455.
The top price comes from a single shop listing, so we mark it as a ceiling for the Japanese market.
9. Kobe beef: ¥9,350 per 100 grams
Kobe beef is Tajima-gyu wagyu raised in Hyogo Prefecture and certified to strict marbling standards. Prices swing wildly by cut and setting. A lean 110 g steak in Kobe itself is listed at ¥4,235 (about ¥3,850 per 100 g), while a Tokyo restaurant lists lean-cut Kobe at ¥9,350 per 100 g at lunch, with dinner courses higher. We used the Tokyo lunch price as the top example. A full dinner of 200 to 300 g therefore easily passes ¥20,000.
10. “Adult” milk: ¥5,000 per bottle
The Hokkaido dairy company Nakazawa Foods launched a milk for stressed adults, taken from cows at dawn and marketed as relaxing, at ¥5,000 a bottle. Western coverage turned that into about $40 a quart. It is the cheapest entry here and also the most dated: the price is a launch figure from older reports, and we could not find a current shelf price. Nakazawa’s ordinary milk costs around ¥1,000 or less per litre in Japanese listings.
Records set in 2025 and 2026
- January 2026: the ¥510 million bluefin at Toyosu, a new record for a tuna.
- May 2026: a pair of Yubari King melons at ¥5.8 million, the highest ever paid for the fruit.
- June 2025: a Densuke watermelon at ¥700,000 at the first auction of the season.
- July 2026: a bunch of Ruby Roman grapes at ¥1 million.
- October 2025: a Tokyo fugu specialist raised its menu prices, citing smaller wild catches.
What drives these prices
- Ceremonial auctions. The first fish, melon or bunch of the year is bought for publicity, and the price tells you about marketing, not taste.
- Tiny supply. Domestic matsutake, wild fugu and the top Densuke are rare because the growing conditions or catches are limited.
- Grading culture. Japanese produce is sorted by size, shape and sugar, and only the top few percent get the premium tag.
- Gifting. Fruit is a formal gift, so a perfect melon is priced like a luxury good.
The habits that let people afford this
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What is the most expensive food in Japan?
A bluefin tuna that sold for ¥510 million (about $3.2 million) at Toyosu in January 2026.
What is the most expensive fruit in Japan?
A pair of Yubari King melons, which sold for ¥5.8 million in May 2026 at the first auction of the season.
Why is Japanese fruit so expensive?
Growers keep one fruit per plant, grade by shape and sugar, and sell the best as formal gifts. The first ones of the year go to auction for publicity.
Is fugu dangerous to eat?
Only a licensed chef can prepare it in restaurants, and the risk comes from improper home preparation. Courses at specialist restaurants cost roughly ¥20,000 to ¥60,000.
How much does Kobe beef cost?
About ¥3,850 to ¥9,350 per 100 g on the menus we found, depending on the cut and the restaurant.
What is the cheapest item on this list?
The “adult” milk, at a reported launch price of ¥5,000 a bottle.
How we put this list together
We ranked these foods by verified sale price, using auction results and disclosed sales compiled in an internal valuation model. Prices are approximate and change over time.
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Last updated: October 2026.
