Government Survey Finds Japanese Homeless Population Continues to Decrease

Homelessness Survey

A January 2025 survey by the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare found that there were 2,591 homeless people in Japan, down 229 or 8.1% year on year. The survey has been conducted according to law since 2003. In the January survey, employees of local authorities observed homeless people staying overnight in areas including parks and beside rivers. There were 2,346 men, 163 women, and 82 people whose gender could not be determined.

The number of homeless people observed has fallen by around a third since the total of 3,824 in 2021. However, it does not include people without fixed residences who stay in internet cafés and similar locations.

By prefecture, Osaka had the most homeless people at 763. This was followed by Tokyo with 565 and Kanagawa with 366. There were no homeless people found in nine prefectures, including Aomori, Niigata, and Nagasaki.

The most common locations where homeless people stayed were urban parks (25.5%), roadsides (24.1%), riversides (21.6%), and station buildings (5.8%), with 22.9% in other locations. The number of people sleeping by rivers has decreased in recent years.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)