Japan has the costliest construction labor of 33 economies once output per worker is counted
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — October 14, 2026 — Once output per worker is counted, no country of the 33 pays more for construction labor than Japan, according to the Industry Economics & Competitiveness 2025 Annual Review, published today by Intratec Solutions. On that basis, an hour of construction labor in Japan costs $77.2, and the country ranks last of the 33 on the measure.
The report compares 33 manufacturing economies, together more than 80% of global manufacturing output, measured on the same basis. It scores each on 14 pillars — including labor costs, energy prices, taxes and trade access — that combine into a single 0–100 Country Score and a ranking from 1 to 33. For construction labor, the report counts the cost of an hour of work adjusted for output per worker.
Building is where Japan's costs concentrate. A new plant there costs 1.16 times what it would cost in the United States, and with the output-counted labor bill on top, the report places Japan among the priciest of the 33 in which to build from scratch.
Alexandre Carvalho, Analyst, Industry Economics & Competitiveness, said: “Adjusted for output per worker, an hour of construction labor in Japan costs $77.2 — more than in any of the 33 countries we track. That is half again the US price, and more than double Japan's own 2015 level. Japan has been last on this measure for seven straight years.”
The industry underneath is strong. Japan ranks 5th of 33 for both domestic market size and industrial production, 6th for logistics and infrastructure and 9th for its tax environment. Energy costs $25.7 per MMBtu, and employers pay a light payroll charge of 16%, the cheapest part of an otherwise expensive cost base.
Trade access is where Japan gives ground, with freight costs ranked 29th of 33 and tariff access 30th. Overall, Japan ranks 29th of 33, down three places from 2024, and is the only Asia-Pacific country in the global bottom five.
The Industry Economics & Competitiveness 2025 Annual Review ranks 33 countries as places to make the industrial commodities the modern economy runs on, plastics, fertilizers and industrial metals among them. The ranking is free to read and the methodology is open.
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