Home > Blog > The Most Popular Stations in Osaka, Japan

The Most Popular Stations in Osaka, Japan

As part of our list of resources for visitors to Osaka City, we provide some details about some of the most important train stations in Osaka.

Train Stations: A Mix of Train Systems in Osaka

Osaka has many different train systems and a mix of lines, including JR lines, Osaka Metro Subway lines, Hankyu lines, Hanshin lines, Nankai lines, Keihan lines, Kintetsu lines, and Osaka Monorail lines. Many of these lines share a station, or have their own stations in the same location (with slightly different names), sometimes right next to each other.

Below we provide a list of the most active, most popular train stations in Osaka City, across that mix of lines.

Busiest Train Stations in Osaka City

Here is some detail popular, busy train stations in Osaka you are likely to visit when you’re in Osaka City.

–Osaka/Umeda Station

— #1 Busiest Station
— Lines: JR lines, Osaka Metro Subway lines, Hankyu Lines, Hanshin Lines
— Neighborhood: Kita-ku, Osaka

Osaka/Umeda Station is a very big area, everything is connected and it’s a combination of many train systems, multiple train stations, and all of these interconnected buildings, malls, and department stores. The station itself is also called by many names; The JR line refers to it as “Osaka station“, Osaka Metro Subway calls it “Umeda station“, Hankyu line and Hanshin line called “Osaka Umeda station“.

–Namba Station

— #2 Busiest Station
— Lines: JR lines, Osaka Metro Subway lines, Hanshin Lines, Kintetsu Lines, Nankai Lines
— Neighborhood: Chuo-ku, Osaka

Namba Station is a central station, on the border of Chuo-ku and Naniwa-ku. An important area of commuters, Namba Station is a great area for shopping. Nankai Namba Station provides easy access to Kansai International Airport. Osaka Namba Station provides direct access to Nara via the Kintetsu line, to USJ (Universal Studios Japan), and Kobe City via the Hanshin line.

–Tennoji Station

— #3 Busiest Station
— Lines: JR lines, Osaka Metro Subway lines, Kintetsu lines
— Neighborhood: Tennoji-ku, Osaka
Tennoji Station provides service for several train lines, including JR Line, Kintetsu Line, and Osaka Metro Subway Line. Some of Osaka’s best shopping areas are connected to Tennoji Station such as MIO, Abeno Harukas and Abeno Q’s mall.

–Yodoyabashi Station

— #4 Busiest Station
— Lines: Osaka Metro Subway lines, Keihan lines
— Neighborhood: Chuo-ku, Osaka

–Honmachi Station

— #5 Busiest Station
— Lines: Osaka Metro Subway lines
— Neighborhood: Chuo-ku, Osaka

–Shinsaibashi Station

— #6 Busiest Station
— Lines: Osaka Metro Subway lines
— Neighborhood: Chuo-ku, Osaka
Osaka Metro Subway Shinsaibashi Station is situated in the middle of one of the most popular destinations for tourists, visitors, and locals. Shinsaibashi is on the best places for shopping in Osaka, and is a convenient station for PARCO and Diamaru department stores in Osaka. The Shinsaibashi Station provides service for three of the Osaka Metro lines, including Midosuji Line, Yotsubashi Line, and Nagahoritsurumiryokuchi Line.

–Higashi-Umeda Station

— #7 Busiest Station
— Lines:Osaka Metro Subway lines
— Neighborhood: Kita-ku, Osaka
While Higashi-Umeda Station has it’s own name, it is integrated into the Osaka Station complex; you can walk from Higashi-Umeda Station to the JR lines, or to Umeda shopping without ever going outside. The distinction of this station is that it only serves the Osaka Metro lines that come into Umeda. For most visitors, this station will feel like a part of Osaka Station.

–Shin-Osaka Station

— #8 Busiest Station
— Lines: JR lines, Osaka Metro Subway lines
— Neighborhood: Yodogawa-ku, Osaka
Shin-Osaka Station is in the northern part of Osaka City, on the northern side of the Yodogawa river. It is an important station for people who take high-speed JR shinkansen trains. Three different train lines pass through Shin-Osaka Station: local JR lines, the JR Shinkansen trains, and the Osaka Metro Midosuji Subway Line.

–Nishi-Umeda Station

— #9 Busiest Station
— Lines: Osaka Metro Subway lines
— Neighborhood: Kita-ku, Osaka

–Sakaisuji-Honmachi Station

— #10 Busiest Station
— Lines: Osaka Metro Subway lines, Hankyu lines
— Neighborhood: Chuo-ku, Osaka

For more information, see our articles about the busiest JR Line stations in Osaka and the busiest Osaka Metro subway stations.