Tokyo tops air conditioning usage
26th July 2026
JAPAN: Tokyo was found to have the highest air conditioning usage in a survey of AC owners in 12 cities worldwide, with around 30% of Tokyo residents using their air conditioners 24-hours a day.
The figures are contained in manufacturer Daikin’s latest survey into people’s perceptions of heat and their use of air conditioning. One hundred people aged 20-60 were surveyed in each of the 12 cities: Tokyo, Shanghai, Bangkok, Delhi, Dubai, Istanbul, Paris, Madrid, Lagos, São Paulo, New York and Houston.
While Tokyo had the highest air conditioning use in terms of energy saving measures, 65% of people in Tokyo answered that they “set the temperature higher,” and significantly higher than the other 12 cities in the world. In Daikin’s previous survey in 2024, the average air conditioner temperature set in Tokyo was 26.2℃, the highest among the 12 cities in the world (world average: 23.6℃). Furthermore, Tokyo had the longest average air conditioner usage time among the 12 cities at 14 hours and 12 minutes.
The survey, conducted over seven days during May/June, revealed that 86.5% of people in 12 cities worldwide felt that it was hotter than five years ago, and 89.9% admitted experiencing physical discomfort due to the heat. Additionally, 84.1% reported using air conditioning for longer periods.
Bangkok had the highest percentage of people who said it had gotten hotter, at 97%, followed by Tokyo and Delhi at 94% . In Europe, Madrid and Paris, which have experienced heat waves this year, around 90% of people seem felt that temperatures have risen in recent years.
When asked about the average daily air conditioner usage time at home during the hottest time of the year, Tokyo recorded the longest usage time at 14 hours and 12 minutes. This was followed by Houston at 14 hours and 2 minutes, Dubai at 12 hours and 56 minutes, Shanghai at 11 hours and 56 minutes, and New York at 11 hours and 36 minutes.
The top 3 cities where people leave their air conditioners on all night while sleeping are Dubai, Houston, and Tokyo, while 64.4% of people in 12 cities worldwide reported that they are sometimes unable to use air conditioning adequately due to some kind of restriction.
The document – Survey on the Atmosphere of Modern People – is available on the Daikin Japan website.
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