To call the US from Japan, dial 010 (Japan's international prefix), then 1 (the US country code), then the 10-digit US number: area code plus 7 digits. On a mobile phone you can skip 010 and type +1 followed by the 10 digits, which works whether your phone has a Japanese SIM or a US one.

So a New York number written as (212) 555-0147 becomes 010 1 212 555 0147 from a Japanese landline or payphone, or +1 212 555 0147 from a mobile.

That is the easy part. The harder part in Japan is that many visitors land with a phone that cannot make an ordinary call at all, and the people they want to reach are asleep for most of the Japanese day. Both are covered below.

Which sequence to dial on which phone

You are using	What to dial	Example for (212) 555-0147
A Japanese landline or hotel phone	010, then 1, then the 10 digits	010 1 212 555 0147
A gray public phone marked for international calls	010, then 1, then the 10 digits	010 1 212 555 0147
A Japanese mobile (docomo, au, SoftBank and others)	+, then 1, then the 10 digits	+1 212 555 0147
Your US phone roaming in Japan	+, then 1, then the 10 digits	+1 212 555 0147
A browser calling service	Pick United States, type the 10 digits	212 555 0147

To type the + on most phones, press and hold the 0 key for about a second. docomo's own international calling page gives exactly this instruction, and notes the method can vary by model.

NTT East's international calling guide uses the same New York example: 010, 1, 212, then the local number.

Your tourist SIM probably has no phone number

This is the most common surprise on this route. Most SIM cards and eSIMs sold to short-term visitors in Japan are data only. They give you mobile internet but no Japanese phone number, so the phone app cannot place a normal call with them. Sakura Mobile's travel SIM, for example, is sold with the line "no phone number included". Sakura Mobile lists its voice-and-data SIMs under a separate residents menu. Voice SIMs in Japan are generally sold to residents with identity checks, so a two-week visitor usually ends up with data only.

That leaves you three ways to make a real phone call to the US:

Keep your US SIM active and use WiFi calling or a roaming pass (costs below).
Use an internet calling service over your data SIM or hotel WiFi. Apps like WhatsApp or FaceTime are free if the other person has the same app. To reach a US landline, a bank or an airline, you need a service that dials real phone numbers.
Use a public phone or your hotel room phone, which still work with 010.

A dual-SIM phone is useful here: put the data-only Japanese eSIM in one slot for internet, and keep your US line in the other for WiFi calls and texts from your bank.

Payphones and hotel phones in Japan

Japan still has public phones at stations, airports and hotels, but not every one can dial abroad. NTT East says international calls from public phones can only be made from gray public telephones, or green ones with gold front panels marked "International and Domestic Card/Coin Telephone", and some restrictions may apply. The Japan National Tourism Organization's telephone guide adds that these international phones are not widespread, but can be found at airports, hotels and other key facilities.

Practical tips for a payphone call:

Carry 10 and 100 yen coins, or a telephone card (sold at station kiosks and convenience stores). JNTO notes that no change is given for a partly used 100 yen coin, so use 10 yen coins for a short call.
Look for the "International" sign on the phone before you queue.
Dial 010, then 1, then the 10-digit number. Do not dial 011, which is the US exit code and does nothing useful in Japan.

Hotel room phones work for calling the US, but the hotel sets the price. Check the rate card by the phone, or ask the front desk what an international minute costs before you dial. You will usually need to press a digit for an outside line first; the card by the phone tells you which. For anything longer than a quick message, hotel WiFi plus an app or browser call is almost always cheaper.

What a 10-minute call home costs

Prices below were checked on each company's own site as of October 2026. They are in the currency each company charges in.

How you call	Cost for a 10-minute call to the US	Notes
Japanese docomo SIM, WORLD CALL	¥680 daytime, ¥620 evenings and weekends	¥34 per 30 seconds weekday 8:00 to 19:00, ¥31 per 30 seconds other times, billed in 30-second units (docomo)
US Verizon SIM with TravelPass	$12 for that day	TravelPass is $12 a day in Japan and covers talk, text and data, charged only on days you use the phone abroad (Verizon)
US Verizon SIM on WiFi calling	No extra charge to US numbers	Verizon says calling back to the US over WiFi is free (Verizon WiFi Calling FAQs)
Data-only tourist SIM, phone app	Cannot call	No phone number on the SIM
BoraPhone in a browser over WiFi	From $0.40	From $0.04 a minute at the time of writing (October 2026); the dialer shows the exact rate for the number
Hotel room phone	Ask first	Set by the hotel

Two things stand out. First, if you have a US phone with WiFi calling turned on, calling US numbers over hotel WiFi is often the cheapest option of all, as long as you set it up before you leave (some carriers need you to activate it on US soil). Our guide to avoiding roaming charges on calls walks through airplane mode and WiFi calling step by step.

Second, a TravelPass day is good value if you will also use data and make several calls that day, and poor value for a single 10-minute call.

BoraPhone fits the gap in between: people on a data-only SIM, a work laptop with no phone, or a US number that was disconnected. It runs in Chrome, Safari, Edge or Firefox, needs no app or SIM, and you top up from $5 with no subscription. Billing is per minute, rounded up to the next full minute, and failed calls are refunded. Your first call is free when you sign up with an email address. Check all destination rates if you also need to call within Asia.

Japan is 13 to 19 hours ahead: the time difference table

Japan uses Japan Standard Time all year and never changes its clocks. The US does, so the gap is one hour smaller from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November (US daylight saving time). In 2026 US clocks go back on 1 November.

US time zone	Japan is ahead by (US summer time)	Japan is ahead by (US winter time)
Eastern (New York, Miami)	13 hours	14 hours
Central (Chicago, Dallas)	14 hours	15 hours
Mountain (Denver)	15 hours	16 hours
Arizona (most of the state)	16 hours	16 hours
Pacific (Los Angeles, Seattle)	16 hours	17 hours
Alaska	17 hours	18 hours
Hawaii	19 hours	19 hours

What this means in practice:

Your Japanese evening is the US morning. At 10 pm in Tokyo in summer, it is 9 am the same day in New York and 6 am in Los Angeles.
Your Japanese morning is the US evening of the day before. 8 am Monday in Kyoto is 7 pm Sunday in New York during summer time.
Office hours barely overlap. A US bank or airline line that opens at 8 am Eastern opens at 9 pm or 10 pm in Japan. If you need to reach a business, plan the call for late evening, Japan time.

For banks and card issuers specifically, see our guide to calling your bank from abroad when your card is blocked.

WiFi in Japan: good, but plan for it

Hotel WiFi in Japan is usually reliable enough for voice calls. Many stations, airports and convenience store chains also offer free WiFi, but it often needs a sign-up with an email address and can have session time limits, so it is better for a quick call than a long one. A data-only SIM or eSIM gives you the most predictable connection for internet calls when you are out during the day.

For voice, a stable connection matters more than speed. If a call keeps dropping on station WiFi, move closer to the access point or switch to mobile data.

Mistakes people make calling the US from Japan

Dialing 011. That is how you leave the US, not Japan. From Japan it is 010, or + on a mobile.
Dropping the 1. The US country code is 1 even though the number already starts with an area code. You need both: 1, then the 10 digits.
Assuming the tourist SIM can call. If it came with no phone number, the phone app will not place a call on it. Use WiFi calling on your US line or an internet calling service.
Calling a US 1-800 number from abroad. Many toll-free numbers do not accept calls from outside North America. Our guide to calling US toll-free numbers from abroad explains the workarounds.
Forgetting the date line. If you call at breakfast in Tokyo, you are calling into the previous evening in the US.
Leaving data roaming on by accident. If you rely on WiFi calling, put the phone in airplane mode and then turn WiFi back on, so it cannot roam onto a Japanese network without a pass.

If you are planning a longer stay and want to keep your US number reachable, our guide on keeping your US phone number when you move abroad covers the options.

Frequently asked questions

How do I call a US phone number from a Japanese cell phone?

Type +1 and then the 10-digit US number, for example +1 212 555 0147. To get the + sign, press and hold the 0 key. You can also dial 010 1 and then the 10 digits. On docomo, calls to the mainland US are billed under WORLD CALL at ¥34 per 30 seconds on weekday daytimes, as of October 2026.

Is +1 the same as 011?

No. The 1 is the US country code and is always needed. 011 is the code people in the US dial to leave the country. From Japan you replace 011 with 010, or with the + sign on a mobile, and then dial 1 and the number.

Do you still need to dial 011 for international calls?

Only when calling out of the US or Canada. In Japan, 011 does nothing useful. Use 010 from landlines and payphones, or + from any mobile, and the phone network handles the rest.

Can I call the US for free from Japan?

Yes, in two cases. App-to-app calls on WhatsApp, FaceTime and similar apps are free over WiFi when the other person uses the same app. And US carriers such as Verizon do not charge extra for WiFi calls back to US numbers. Calls to US landlines or businesses from a Japanese SIM or a payphone are charged.

What time should I call the US from Japan?

Late evening in Japan is morning in the US. Between about 9 pm and 11 pm Japan time you reach the East Coast between 8 am and 10 am in summer, or 7 am and 9 am in winter. West Coast mornings fall after midnight in Japan.

How to Call the US from Japan: Dialing, Costs and Time Difference