This article contains an affiliate link to Bounce. If you book through it, LOCAL SIDE JAPAN earns a commission at no extra cost to you. You will find me contradicting Bounce’s own headline price below, because the ten busiest Tokyo locations on its site are not priced at that figure. Locker counts and fares are from JR East’s own pages; storage prices were read from the operators’ sites on 16 October 2026. How this site is made →
TOKYO / LUGGAGE / THE SIZE PROBLEM
Tokyo Station has more than a hundred banks of coin lockers. JR East lists the six it considers the most useful, and if you add up the machines in them you get roughly 1,400 lockers of which about 40 are large — and all forty are in one place, inside the ticket gates. Five of the six banks cannot take a big suitcase at all. Nobody tells you this, so thousands of people a day drag a 70-litre case along a platform trying door after door. The problem with luggage in Tokyo is not price. It is size, and then availability.
Fast facts
- Large lockers are about 3% of the stock in the six Tokyo Station banks JR East highlights — 40 out of roughly 1,400
- Coin locker fares: SS ¥300 · S ¥500 · M ¥700–800 · L ¥900–1,000, plus ¥100–200 in peak periods on the reservable machines
- You can reserve a station locker a month ahead — almost no visitor knows this
- Bounce advertises “from ¥275/day” in Tokyo. Its ten most popular Tokyo locations are ¥500–¥850/day
- So storage is not cheaper than a locker at the big stations. It is bigger, bookable and often 24 hours
- Protection differs tenfold: Bounce states ¥1,000,000 per booking; ecbo cloak states ¥100,000 per item
- If you are changing hotels, send the bag instead. Both the station lockers and Bounce now deliver
On this page
Why coin lockers fail you
JR East publishes the composition of the main locker banks at Tokyo Station. Here they are, with the large-locker count in the last column — which is the only column that matters if you are travelling with a checked suitcase.
| Locker bank | SS | S | M | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gransta, B1 inside the gates — the biggest | — | 728 | 152 | 40 |
| Yaesu North, outside the gates | 5 | 80 | 51 | 0 |
| Marunouchi B1 Central / North, inside | — | 91 | 37 | 0 |
| Marunouchi Central, inside | — | 40 | 19 | 0 |
| Marunouchi North, outside | — | 39 | 26 | 0 |
| Keiyo underground passage | 5 | 78 | 33 | 0 |
| Total | 10 | 1,056 | 318 | 40 |
Large lockers are under 3% of that stock, and every one of them is behind the ticket gates at Gransta. If you arrive at the Yaesu side with two big cases, the nearest machine that can take them is through a gate you may not have a ticket for. This is the single most useful fact in this article and it is hiding in plain sight on a Japanese-language page.
The second problem is simpler: they fill up. The busiest banks are the obvious ones by the main gates, and by late morning in high season the S and M doors are all red.
What a locker actually costs
| Size | Fare | Fits |
|---|---|---|
| SS | ¥300 | A daypack |
| S | ¥500 | Cabin bag or a rucksack |
| M | ¥700–800 | Medium case, roughly 60–70 litres |
| L | ¥900–1,000 | A large checked case |
One thing to note before you compare this with anything else: a coin locker charges by the day, and the day ends when the machine says it does, not 24 hours after you put the bag in. If you are storing overnight you are usually paying twice.
You can reserve a station locker a month ahead
This is the tip that saves the most trouble and almost nobody uses it. JR East’s reservable lockers — branded Multiecube — let you pick a station, a date, a time and a size up to a month in advance from your phone. The same system shows real-time availability, so you can check whether a bank is full before you walk to it, and find the nearest one that is not.
It also does something better than storage: it will deliver the bag you dropped in the locker to your hotel the same day, or ship it onward. If your problem is “I have to check out at 10 and check in at 15 across town”, that is the answer, and it does not involve carrying anything.
The catch: coverage is JR East stations, the interface is easier in Japanese than in English, and peak-period surcharges apply. Worth ten minutes of setting up before you fly.
What does Bounce actually cost?
Bounce is the app-based alternative: instead of a machine, a shop — a cafe, a karaoke place, a hotel desk — keeps your bag behind the counter. In Tokyo it lists 1,465 locations, and the page headline reads “from ¥275/day”.
I checked what the ten most popular Tokyo locations on that same page actually charge. Not one of them is ¥275.
| Location | Price | Rating | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo Station, Yaesu North exit | ¥850/day | 4.78 from 2,500+ | 8am – 7:30am |
| Shibuya Station, Hachiko exit | ¥850/day | 4.84 from 1,500+ | 24 hours |
| Shinjuku Station, west gate | ¥500/day | 4.77 from 2,000+ | 9am – 6pm |
| Near Tsukiji Hongan-ji | ¥500/day | 4.9 from 2,500+ | 24 hours |
| Near Asakusa station (TX line) | ¥500/day | 4.96 from 1,000+ | 9am – 7pm |
| Ueno, Ameyoko market | ¥500/day | 4.9 from 1,000+ | 10am – 7pm |
So the honest comparison is this. At the stations you will actually use, Bounce costs ¥500–¥850 a day against ¥500–¥1,000 for a coin locker. It is not a money-saver. What you are buying is:
- No size limit. A shop counter does not care that your case is 75cm. This is the real reason to use it
- A guaranteed space, booked in advance, instead of walking a platform trying doors
- Opening hours a locker cannot match — several Tokyo locations are 24 hours, which matters for a red-eye
- Free cancellation, which a coin that is already in the slot does not offer
And one warning I would want if I were you: the headline price is a single outlier somewhere in the city. Check the price on the specific store page before you book, because at Tokyo Station and Shibuya it is more than three times the advertised figure.
1,465 Tokyo locations · realistically ¥500–¥850/day at the major stations · ¥1,000,000 protection per booking · free cancellation · affiliate link
What happens if they lose your bag?
Almost no guide compares this, and it is the one number that matters if something goes wrong.
| Stated protection | |
|---|---|
| Bounce | ¥1,000,000 per booking, stated on its Tokyo page alongside free cancellation and 24/7 support |
| ecbo cloak | ¥100,000 per item — its own site describes insurance up to that amount for loss, theft or damage |
| Coin locker | Whatever the operator’s terms say, which is not displayed on the door and is generally limited |
Tenfold difference between the two app services. If your bag contains camera equipment or a laptop, that is not a detail.
A note on ecbo cloak, the Japanese competitor: over 1,000 locations from Hokkaido to Okinawa, accepts anything one person can carry — instruments, pushchairs, golf bags — and has in-station and 24-hour shops. Prices are set per store and shown at booking; I could not verify a single flat rate, so check the store page. It is the better-covered service outside the big tourist districts.
The option nobody mentions: send the bag
Storage solves the wrong problem for most people. The actual situation is almost always “I check out at 10 and I cannot check in until 15, and my next hotel is across the city” — and in that situation you do not want your suitcase in a locker. You want it at the other hotel.
Two ways to do that, both now mainstream:
- Hotel-to-hotel delivery. Ask your current hotel’s front desk — nearly all of them will arrange it. Typically next-day within Tokyo, same-day on some routes, and the cost is in the low thousands of yen per case
- The locker and the app both deliver now. JR East’s reservable lockers will send a bag you dropped in to your hotel the same day, and Bounce has launched a delivery option in Tokyo — drop the bag off and they take it on
The arithmetic is better than it looks. Two large lockers for a day is ¥1,800–¥2,000 and you still have to go back for them, carry them across town and arrive sweating. Delivery is often similar money and buys you the whole day. If you are moving hotels, send the bag. Only store it if you are coming back to the same station.
Which one should you use?
| Your situation | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Daypack, a few hours, back to the same station | Coin locker, SS or S | ¥300–500 and no app. The small sizes are the ones that are actually available |
| Big suitcase at a major station | Bounce or ecbo cloak | Large lockers are under 3% of the stock and mostly behind the gates. A shop counter has no size limit |
| Early flight, late arrival, odd hours | Bounce, 24-hour location | Several Tokyo stores are open around the clock; machines are tied to first and last train |
| You know the date already | Reserve a station locker | Bookable a month ahead with live availability — and cheaper than storage |
| Changing hotels | Send the bag | Storage solves the wrong problem. Your hotel desk will arrange it |
| Something valuable or fragile | Bounce | ¥1,000,000 stated protection against ecbo’s ¥100,000 |
| Outside the central tourist districts | ecbo cloak | Over 1,000 locations nationwide, including small cities Bounce does not reach |
Quick answers
How much do coin lockers cost in Tokyo?
JR East’s published guide figures are about ¥300 for the smallest, ¥500 for small, ¥700–800 for medium and ¥900–1,000 for large, varying by location and machine. The reservable Multiecube machines add ¥100–200 to medium and large sizes in busy and peak periods. Note that the charge is per calendar day, not per 24 hours, so an overnight stay usually costs two days.
Will a big suitcase fit in a Tokyo coin locker?
Often not. Across the six locker banks JR East recommends at Tokyo Station, large lockers are about 40 out of roughly 1,400 machines, and all of them are at Gransta inside the ticket gates. Five of the six banks have no large lockers at all. For a checked-size case, an app-based storage shop or a reservable locker is far more reliable.
Can you reserve a coin locker in Tokyo?
Yes, and almost no visitor does. JR East’s Multiecube lockers can be booked from a phone up to a month ahead by station, date, time and size, and the same system shows live availability so you can see which banks are full before walking to them. It can also deliver a bag you dropped in the locker to your hotel the same day.
Is Bounce cheaper than a coin locker in Tokyo?
Not at the main stations. Bounce advertises from ¥275 a day in Tokyo, but the ten most popular Tokyo locations on its own page are ¥500–¥850 a day — Tokyo Station Yaesu North and Shibuya Hachiko are both ¥850. A coin locker is ¥500–¥1,000. What storage buys you is no size limit, a guaranteed space, longer hours and free cancellation, not a lower price. Check the specific store’s price before booking.
Is luggage storage in Tokyo insured?
The two app services both state cover, and the amounts differ by a factor of ten. Bounce states ¥1,000,000 protection per booking; ecbo cloak states insurance up to ¥100,000 per item for loss, theft or damage. Coin lockers rely on the operator’s terms, which are not displayed on the door. Read the terms if you are storing anything valuable.
What should I do with my luggage between hotel check-out and check-in?
If you are moving to a different hotel, do not store it — send it. Nearly every Tokyo hotel front desk will arrange hotel-to-hotel delivery, usually next-day within Tokyo and same-day on some routes, for a few thousand yen a case. JR East’s reservable lockers and Bounce both offer delivery now too. Storage only makes sense if you are returning to the same station.
What is ecbo cloak?
A Japanese luggage-storage service that uses shops rather than machines, with over 1,000 locations from Hokkaido to Okinawa, including in-station and 24-hour venues. It accepts anything one person can carry, including instruments, pushchairs and golf bags, and states insurance up to ¥100,000 per item. Prices are set per store and shown when you book. It covers smaller cities that international apps do not.
Planning the rest of the trip
Luggage is usually an airport problem before it is a hotel problem, and the tickets in from Narita and Haneda carry conditions that are easy to miss — including a discount that works in one direction only. If the bag is in the way because you are out for a long day, that day is often Mount Fuji, Hakone or Tokyo Disney, and each has its own published traps.
Locker counts, fares and the reservation system are from JR East’s own pages, which were last updated in October 2025. Storage prices, location counts and stated protection were read from Bounce’s and ecbo cloak’s own sites on 16 October 2026. Prices change and vary by store; the figure on the store page at the moment you book is the one that counts. The Bounce link is an affiliate link.
