Japanese Address to English Converter

How to use

1. Type or paste an address into "Japanese address". The postal code is optional
2. Once the prefecture and municipality are recognized, the result appears under "Address in English"
3. Type the reading of the town into "Reading of the town" in hiragana, katakana or Latin letters. If there is a building name, type its reading as well
4. If the form also asks for a phone number, type the domestic number, such as 090-1234-5678, into "Phone number (optional)". A phone number can also be converted on its own, without an address
5. The result is shown both on separate lines, the way it is written on an envelope, and field by field, the way overseas forms ask for it (Address Line 1, City, Phone and so on)
6. "Copy as one line" copies the lines joined by commas, and the "Copy" button of a field copies just that field

"Try an example" fills in the address and the main phone number of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. The address and phone number you enter are never sent out of your browser and are not stored.

Example

Enter the following address, type にししんじゅく as the reading of the town, and 03-5321-1111 as the phone number.

〒163-8001 東京都新宿区西新宿二丁目8番1号

Written as on an envelope, it takes these three lines, and "Copy as one line" copies them joined by commas.

2-8-1 Nishishinjuku
Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 163-8001
Japan

The single-line result is:

2-8-1 Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 163-8001, Japan

Field by field, it is split like this:

• Address Line 1: 2-8-1 Nishishinjuku
• City: Shinjuku-ku
• State / Province: Tokyo
• ZIP / Postal Code: 163-8001
• Country: Japan
• Phone: +81 3-5321-1111
• Phone (no separators): +81353211111
• Phone (with +81 chosen in its own field): 3-5321-1111

The phone number is not put on the envelope lines or in "Copy as one line"; it appears only field by field.

A building name, floor and room go together on Address Line 2. With さんぷるびる as the reading, サンプルビル5階501号室 becomes Sampurubiru 5F #501. If the building has an English name, type it as it is, such as Sample Building, in the reading field.

Conversion rules

• Order: an English address runs from the smallest unit to the largest, the reverse of Japanese: building and room, block and town, municipality, prefecture and postal code, country

• Prefecture: written without the 都, 府 or 県 suffix, as in Tokyo, Osaka and Hokkaido

• Municipality: 市, 区, 町, 村 and 郡 are joined with a hyphen, as in Shinjuku-ku, Yokohama-shi and Kutchan-cho. A ward of a designated city goes at the end of Address Line 1, and a county follows its town or village (Kutchan-cho, Abuta-gun)

• Block numbers: 二丁目8番1号 and 2丁目8-1 both become 2-8-1. A chome written in kanji and full-width digits or hyphens are read as they are

• Floor and room: 5階 becomes 5F, 地下1階 becomes B1F and 501号室 becomes #501

• Romanization: Hepburn. ん is m before b, m and p (しんばし → Shimbashi), and a small っ doubles the next consonant (はっちょうぼり → Hatchobori)

• Long vowels: with "Drop long vowels" on, the second character of おう, おお and うう and the long vowel mark ー are dropped (とうきょう → Tokyo, コーポ → Kopo). With it off, the reading is written kana by kana and ー repeats the vowel before it (Toukyou, Koopo)

• Phone number: the leading 0 is dropped and the country code +81 is put in front (090-1234-5678 → +81 90-1234-5678). The (0) of +81 (0)3… is dropped too. The groups are kept as typed, with brackets, spaces and dots turned into hyphens ((03)5321-1111 → +81 3-5321-1111). A number typed without separators is grouped only when it is an 11-digit mobile or 050 number, or starts with 03 or 06. Other area codes are 2 to 5 digits long and cannot be told from the number alone, so those numbers are written without separators (0451234567 → +81 451234567)

• Digits of a phone number: a number is converted when it has 11 digits and starts with 050, 070, 080 or 090, or otherwise has 10 digits from its area code. A beginning that no number has, such as 051 or 091, is not converted. The list of area codes is not built in, so a number with an area code that is not in use may still be converted. Check the number yourself

The readings of municipalities come from the romanized postal code data published by Japan Post.

FAQ

Why is the town not romanized automatically?

The town and the building name are romanized from the readings you type. This tool converts the address without sending it out of your browser, so what it carries is the readings of the prefectures and of every municipality in Japan. The postal code data alone lists more than 120,000 towns, and the same kanji is read differently from place to place, so a reading typed by someone who knows it is the reliable one. With the reading left empty, the town stays in kanji.

Why does まるのうち come out as Marunochi?

With "Drop long vowels" on, the second character of おう, おお and うう is dropped (とうきょう → Tokyo, おおてまち → Otemachi). When the same sequence happens to fall across two words, as in 丸の内 (まるの + うち), it is dropped there too. In that case, type Marunouchi in Latin letters in the reading field, or turn "Drop long vowels" off.

Can I leave out the prefecture?

Yes, when the municipality's name exists only once in Japan, as in 新宿区西新宿… or 横浜市西区…. When several share a name, such as 府中市 (Tokyo and Hiroshima) or 伊達市 (Hokkaido and Fukushima), start from the prefecture. A county can be left out (北海道倶知安町…).

What does "No municipality could be read" mean?

Check that the municipality is written with its official name. A designated city needs its ward, as in 横浜市西区. Names changed recently by a merger, and differences between old and new character forms (such as 檜 and 桧), may not be recognized. ヶ and ケ are treated as the same.

How do I fill in an overseas shopping form?

Copy each item under "Field by field" into the field of the same name. If the form has no Address Line 2, write the building name and room at the start of Address Line 1. If State / Province is a list without Japanese prefectures, leave it empty or write both in the City field, as in Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo. The final delivery is made by a carrier in Japan, so what matters most is that the block and room numbers are correct.

Which phone field goes where on a form?

If the form has a single phone field, use "Phone", +81 90-1234-5678. If it has a separate field for the country code, choose Japan (+81) there and put "Phone (with +81 chosen in its own field)", 90-1234-5678, in the number field. If the form rejects hyphens or spaces, use "Phone (no separators)", +819012345678.

Why is a 0120, 0570 or 020 number not converted?

Numbers starting with 0120 or 0800 (freephone), 0570 (Navi Dial), 0180 or 0990 often cannot be called from abroad, so they are not converted. Neither are numbers starting with 020, which is for data, or with the unused 030, 040 and 060. To be reachable by an overseas site or a carrier, type a mobile or landline number.

Does it handle Kyoto street directions or Hokkaido's 条 and 丁目?

They stay in the town part, so you give them through the reading. 北3条西4丁目1-1 is read as the town 北3条西 and the block 4-1-1. The reading きた3じょうにし gives Kita3jonishi, so type Latin letters directly if you want something like Kita 3-jo Nishi.