Tokyo Convenience Store Guide: 7-Eleven, Lawson & FamilyMart Must-Buys (2025)
Tokyo Convenience Store Guide: Must-Buys at 7-Eleven, Lawson & FamilyMart
Better food than most international airports, the friendliest ATM in Japan, and a workable second living room — all on every block
The Japanese konbini — the convenience store — is one of the small wonders of Tokyo. Three chains dominate the country, each with around 20,000 stores, and almost every block in central Tokyo has at least one. Inside, you will find better food than most international airports, a working ATM, ticketing machines, free Wi-Fi, public toilets, and a level of service that has surprised generations of first-time visitors.
This guide is for travellers who want to skip the bad meals, find the genuinely excellent items, and use a konbini for everything it is good at — which is more than you would expect.
The Big Three Chains
Tokyo has many smaller chains (Daily Yamazaki, Ministop, NewDays at JR stations) but most travellers will live in the world of the big three. Each chain has loyalists. In practice the three are 90% interchangeable for daily use, with each having a few signature items locals genuinely prefer.
Best for: onigiri, the famous egg sandwich, house-brand drinks, and the most foreigner-friendly ATM in Japan. Slightly more expensive but rarely disappointing.
Best for: famichiki fried chicken, rotating seasonal sweets, decent espresso. The Famima Sweets line is an underrated dessert range.
Best for: Karaage-kun fried chicken, the Premium Roll Cake, an excellent in-house bakery, and Loppi machines for concert and event tickets.
Best Food Items, Ranked
The single most surprising thing about a Japanese konbini is the food quality. Items are made fresh several times a day, delivered in small batches, and rotated aggressively. The store you walk into at 06:00 has different inventory than at 22:00.
Onigiri (rice balls)
Triangular rice balls wrapped in nori, ¥130–¥250 each. The wrapping has a clever three-step opening that keeps the nori crisp until you eat it. Numbered tabs guide you. Most travellers fail at it once and figure it out the second time.
The most popular flavour in Japan. Available at all three chains.
Grilled salmon flakes. Reliably good, mild.
Sour, salty, an acquired taste — but a classic.
Spicy cod roe. Mild heat, oily, pairs well with green tea.
Hot food at the register
Thigh-meat fried chicken patty, ¥230. Most consistent of the three.
Bite-sized boneless karaage, ¥250 for a five-piece box. Multiple flavours rotate.
Lawson and FamilyMart got there first; 7-Eleven's version is good but not signature.
October–February. Daikon, eggs, chikuwa simmered in dashi. ¥100–¥200 per piece.
The 7-Eleven egg sandwich
So famous Anthony Bourdain talked about it on television. White milk bread, a thick layer of egg salad, no crusts. ¥250. Try it once just to see what the fuss is about. Lawson and FamilyMart make decent versions but 7-Eleven is the benchmark.
Sweets and bakery
The dessert that built Lawson's brand. ¥220, soft sponge with whipped cream centre.
Rotating seasonal cakes. The custard pudding is reliably excellent.
Premium snacks. The Gold milk chocolate bar is a long-runner.
Daifuku and warabi mochi at all three chains. Cheap and weirdly textured.
Drinks worth trying
- Calpis: a tangy yoghurt-flavoured drink. Try the original; the soda version is also good.
- Boss Coffee canned: serviceable hot coffee from a can.
- UCC Black Mate: mate-and-coffee blend, popular among Tokyo office workers.
- Asahi Strong Zero: a 9% canned chuhai cocktail, around ¥200. Famous in expat circles.
- Suntory Royal Bitter, Yebisu, Ichiban: all the Japanese beers at half what a bar charges.
- House-brand bottled tea (oolong, green, mugicha): ¥100, often better than the international brands stocked beside them.
Useful Services Beyond Food
Konbini are infrastructure. Knowing what they can do saves you a lot of time on a Tokyo trip.
The 7-Eleven ATM
The most foreigner-friendly cash machine in Japan. It accepts almost every international debit and credit card, has a clear English menu, and is open 24 hours in nearly every store. FamilyMart's Bank ATMs are similar but less consistent. If your card is rejected at a Japanese bank ATM, try a 7-Eleven first.
In-store ticket machines
Konbini are the country's de facto ticket office. Through the in-store machines (Loppi at Lawson, Famiport at FamilyMart, multifunction copier at 7-Eleven) you can buy:
- Concert and event tickets, including teamLab, Ghibli Museum, Tokyo Disney
- Bullet train tickets (with a small surcharge)
- Highway bus tickets
- Some museum and theme park entries cheaper than at the gate
Other quietly useful services
All three chains. Sign up once, connect at any branch nationwide.
Most stores have a clean, free customer toilet. A small purchase on the way out is polite.
Yamato or Sagawa to your hotel, the airport, or another city. ¥1,500–¥2,500 for a regular suitcase.
Print from your phone over Wi-Fi or USB. Useful for passport-size photos.
How to Navigate Without Japanese
- Hot/cold labels: red sticker = hot, blue sticker = cold. Useful at the prepared-food shelf.
- Just point. Saying "kore o kudasai" (this please) and pointing works for everything at the register.
- Heating up food: staff will ask "atatame masu ka?" — say "yes" or nod. They will microwave it for you.
- Chopsticks and spoons are added on request — say "spoon kudasai" or just point.
- Plastic bag: bags now cost ¥3–¥5 each. Decline by saying "fukuro wa daijoubu" or "no bag please".
Pro tip: if your IC card balance is low, you can top up at any konbini cashier in 1,000-yen increments. Just hand over the card and the cash, and say "chaaji onegaishimasu".
Items Worth Buying as Souvenirs
Konbini snacks make great gifts. Cheap, light, and full of flavours that do not cross the ocean.
- Kit Kats in regional flavours: matcha, sake, wasabi, hojicha. Around ¥800 for a multi-pack.
- Royce chocolate (Lawson): the milk chocolate is excellent and travels well in cooler weather.
- Pocky and Pretz seasonal flavours: matcha, sakura, almond crush.
- Calpis sachets: small concentrate bottles to mix at home.
- Ramune candy and Hi-Chew packs: cheap, weird, fun.
What to Skip
Not everything in a konbini is worth eating:
- The pasta dishes are usually mediocre. Stick to onigiri or bento.
- The salads are fresh but bland. Better at a depachika.
- Hot pizza pockets and "American" food tend to be the weakest items.
- Imported snacks are a fraction of what a normal supermarket has and cost more.
Practical Tips
- The 24-hour rule is real but not universal — some city-centre stores now close briefly overnight. Most are open round the clock.
- You can pay your bills at the register: utilities, NHK fees, even some local taxes. Useful if you stay long term.
- Cash is still common for konbini purchases, but every store accepts IC cards (Suica, Pasmo) and most accept tap-and-go credit cards.
- Hot tea and oden in winter, ice cream in summer are seasonal staples — keep an eye on the rotating shelves.
Ready for the Real Tokyo Food?
The konbini is your Tokyo backup meal. For the front-of-house experience, see our Tokyo Food Guide, our Tsukiji Outer Market guide, and our Best Ramen in Tokyo roundup.
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