I’ve been living in Tokyo for just over a year but the Japanese barber I go to doesn’t always get it right and I’m trying to find an affordable barber that speaks English.anyone know any?
I’ve been going to and recommend WEC Hair in Ebisu. Kenji speaks fluent English and is quite a cool guy. It’s a little on the expensive side compared to what I’m used to from the States, but for me it’s worth it.
If you have long hair, ask where the host boys with gyaru hair styles get their cuts, and go there. What I do is… is I prime my hair by cutting most of it, then I tell them just to clean it. Haven’t had any ‘close cuts’ in a while.
You don’t.
You find a pic of a hairstyle you want, show the barber and hope they can do it.
I use [Wolt](https://www.wolthair.com/) in Koenji. Maseda speaks English pretty well and is a super chill dude.
2,500 is a pretty low bar unfortunately. If you don’t mind going to 5,000/6,000, then The Chop Shop in Kichijōji is your new go to. Julian, the owner, speaks fluent English and gives a cracking haircut.
I go to underground train stations and pay ¥1200 they do pretty good job. I just show them a hairstyle that I like and they do it. Nothing crazy at all though. Typical American haircut,tapered and all that. Not their best but good enough
I go to any 1000円カット place always and they get the job done nice and quick. Even if you don’t speak any Nihongo you can show them a picture of Jason Statham and they’ll understand.
I have a great Barber in Hibiya. Everyone there speaks English well and does a great cut, however it’s not really affordable. It’s more in line with what I paid in the US.
I’m sorry to say that you’re up against the quality triangle.
How do they usually mess it up for you?
When they do a poor job with me, it’s usually ‘cause they leave it too long/low in the back, so I have to remember to stress that the back should be short and the fade high up. Usually a couple photos help—and I don’t mean photos of somewhat similar hairstyles on very different-looking people. I’ve had to go out of my way to find pics very similar to me.
Another issue I’ve had with some (cheap) barbers here is that they go crazy with those comb-scissors and thin it out way too much when my hair is already very fine, lank and *somewhat* sparse compared to a typical young Japanese dude, so I often say “not on the top” when they pull out those scissors.
I don’t think one can do much better with a budget of 1000~2000JPY.
You don’t necessarily need an English speaking barber if you prepare beforehand. When my Japanese was rusty, I used to go to QB House and show a written description of what I wanted in Japanese that my wife wrote lol, though mine was the same each time (i.e. make me look presentable). I eventually memorized the description and tweak it occasionally. As long as you cover any questions they might have – behind the ears, clipper ok, fringe length, etc etc then should be fine. Or as others have said, show a photo with the haircut you want. I think there are apps that can help with this as well.
You don’t. Study a bit of barber-related topic Japanese and go to a good ol’ fashioned tokoya san
2,500 is too tight of a budget for what you are looking for. Someone who does a good cut, is fluent at English, and has experience with cutting different hair types would ask for a higher price point due to the amount of time/effort they invested into their skills. Also high price point means they have more time to spend on your hair to make it look just right.
Honestly at your budget and expectations, I recommend learning to cut your own hair. My household has been doing it for around 8 years now and we have gotten pretty good at it! Watch a few youtube videos before you start and you will be surprised at how easy it is to skill up.
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r/Tokyo Please.
What’s does affordable sound like?
I’ve been going to and recommend WEC Hair in Ebisu. Kenji speaks fluent English and is quite a cool guy. It’s a little on the expensive side compared to what I’m used to from the States, but for me it’s worth it.
If you have long hair, ask where the host boys with gyaru hair styles get their cuts, and go there. What I do is… is I prime my hair by cutting most of it, then I tell them just to clean it. Haven’t had any ‘close cuts’ in a while.
You don’t.
You find a pic of a hairstyle you want, show the barber and hope they can do it.
I use [Wolt](https://www.wolthair.com/) in Koenji. Maseda speaks English pretty well and is a super chill dude.
2,500 is a pretty low bar unfortunately. If you don’t mind going to 5,000/6,000, then The Chop Shop in Kichijōji is your new go to. Julian, the owner, speaks fluent English and gives a cracking haircut.
I go to underground train stations and pay ¥1200 they do pretty good job. I just show them a hairstyle that I like and they do it. Nothing crazy at all though. Typical American haircut,tapered and all that. Not their best but good enough
I go to any 1000円カット place always and they get the job done nice and quick. Even if you don’t speak any Nihongo you can show them a picture of Jason Statham and they’ll understand.
I have a great Barber in Hibiya. Everyone there speaks English well and does a great cut, however it’s not really affordable. It’s more in line with what I paid in the US.
I’m sorry to say that you’re up against the quality triangle.
How do they usually mess it up for you?
When they do a poor job with me, it’s usually ‘cause they leave it too long/low in the back, so I have to remember to stress that the back should be short and the fade high up. Usually a couple photos help—and I don’t mean photos of somewhat similar hairstyles on very different-looking people. I’ve had to go out of my way to find pics very similar to me.
Another issue I’ve had with some (cheap) barbers here is that they go crazy with those comb-scissors and thin it out way too much when my hair is already very fine, lank and *somewhat* sparse compared to a typical young Japanese dude, so I often say “not on the top” when they pull out those scissors.
I don’t think one can do much better with a budget of 1000~2000JPY.
You don’t necessarily need an English speaking barber if you prepare beforehand. When my Japanese was rusty, I used to go to QB House and show a written description of what I wanted in Japanese that my wife wrote lol, though mine was the same each time (i.e. make me look presentable). I eventually memorized the description and tweak it occasionally.
As long as you cover any questions they might have – behind the ears, clipper ok, fringe length, etc etc then should be fine.
Or as others have said, show a photo with the haircut you want. I think there are apps that can help with this as well.
You don’t. Study a bit of barber-related topic Japanese and go to a good ol’ fashioned tokoya san
2,500 is too tight of a budget for what you are looking for. Someone who does a good cut, is fluent at English, and has experience with cutting different hair types would ask for a higher price point due to the amount of time/effort they invested into their skills. Also high price point means they have more time to spend on your hair to make it look just right.
Honestly at your budget and expectations, I recommend learning to cut your own hair. My household has been doing it for around 8 years now and we have gotten pretty good at it! Watch a few youtube videos before you start and you will be surprised at how easy it is to skill up.