Tokyo

administrative subdivision, Japan

Written and fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Nov. 14, 2026 •History

News •

JR East to launch walk-through ticket gates at 40 stations in 2028 • Nov. 10, 2026, 6:10 AM ET (Straits Times)

Coordinated activity gives large pedestrian crowds a distinctive seismic signature • Nov. 5, 2026, 10:00 AM ET (Phys.org)

Japan faces diplomatic dilemma amid joint pressure from nuclear neighbors • Nov. 3, 2026, 5:25 PM ET (NPR)

Tokyo: Industry Insiders Skeptical of Bold Japanese Government Plans for Overseas Content Sales Push • Nov. 2, 2026, 11:38 AM ET (The Hollywood Reporter)

Isabelle Huppert Vampire Film Was Cut Against Director's Wishes • Nov. 1, 2026, 2:00 AM ET (Variety)

Tokyo, to (metropolis), in east-central Honshu, Japan. It is bordered by the ken (prefectures) of Saitama (north), Chiba (east), Yamanashi (west), and Kanagawa (southwest) and by Tokyo Bay (southeast). It is centred on the city of Tokyo, which is both the national capital and the capital of the metropolis.

Tokyo metropolis is one of three prefecture-level urban administrative units in Japan, the other two being Ōsaka and Kyōto. In addition to Tokyo city, the metropolis includes numerous industrial and residential suburbs—several with populations of more than 200,000—and a large mountainous rural area to the west. Tokyo metropolis is a major component of the Tokyo-Yokohama Metropolitan Area as well as of the Keihin Industrial Zone. Area 848 square miles (2,197 square km). Pop. (2010) 13,159,388.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Kenneth Pletcher.