助産師 助産師
What 助産師 do
An English description is being prepared. Japanese description:
正常な妊娠・分娩・産褥の経過であれば、助産師の責任で分娩を介助し、妊産婦と新生児の健康診査や健康教育を行うことができる。
助産師は、戦前「お産婆さん」と呼ばれ、自宅での出産に立ち会って生まれる赤ちゃんをとりあげ、地域で母子の健康に大きく貢献していたが、戦後は病院での出産が主流になり、多くの助産師が病院で活躍するようになった。
病院では、出産の介助を中心に、乳房マッサージを行ったり、新生児の健康診査、沐浴（もくよく）・授乳の介助、新生児のケア、育児指導をするなど、産後の母子の健康を見守り、精神的に不安定になりがちな妊産婦の相談にのったりアドバイスをしたりする。
助産所では、正常な経過の妊娠、出産しか取り扱わないため、どうしても必要な時以外は、薬や器械は使用せずに自然出産するよう手助けしており、薬は医師の指示がなければ使用できない。
また、助産師は一般的に、妊娠・出産・子育てという、いわゆる出産をめぐって世話をする人というイメージがあるが、女性への指導を中心にして、男性をも含めた両性への性と生殖にかかわる支援をする専門家として、不妊相談や遺伝相談、思春期・更年期の人々への相談・支援等を行う仕事も行っている。
◇ よく使う道具、機材、情報技術等
医療機器（聴診器、注射器等）
Employment type of workers
助産師 salary
The average annual pay for 助産師 in Japan is ¥5.67M (≈ $36,038; Basic Survey on Wage Structure (2025), national). The estimated median is ¥5.27M, the typical range is ¥3.84M–¥9.77M and the top 10% earn about ¥8.40M.
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The distribution is estimated from Japan's national wage statistics, including pay differences by age.
Pay by ageest.
Estimated from the average pay and average age (41.2) using the age-wage curve of the Basic Survey on Wage Structure.
Pay by experienceest.
Pay by employment typeest.
The average hourly wage of ¥2,880 is 2.4× Japan's national average minimum wage of ¥1,177 (fiscal 2026). Minimum wage by prefecture →
Japanese pay is shown in yen (¥5.57M = 5.57 million yen ≈ 557万円). Dollar figures use the current rate of 157.25 yen per dollar and are for reference only; purchasing power differs.
Pay over time
| Year | Average pay | Employment | Openings ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ¥5.54M | — | — |
| 2022 | ¥5.84M | — | — |
| 2023 | ¥5.67M | — | 1.99x |
| 2024 | ¥5.81M | — | 2.06x |
| 2025 | ¥5.67M | — | 2.04x |
Projected pay for 助産師 (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today ¥5.67M → in 3 years ¥6.12M → in 5 years ¥6.44M → in 10 years ¥7.31M (10-year range ¥6.28M–¥8.48M). The model assumes pay growth of +2.6% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (the job-openings-to-applicants ratio), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for 助産師
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace 助産師? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using the MHLW job tag survey on work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for 助産師
A ratio above 1.0 means there are more job openings than applicants (a labor shortage). The 5- and 10-year figures are estimates from the openings ratio, wage momentum and AI replacement risk.
Skills, education and requirements for 助産師
Key skills
Skill levels from the MHLW job tag worker survey.
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Licenses and certifications (Japan)
- 助産師
- 看護師 National license
Related qualifications listed on job tag (names in Japanese). Some are mandatory, others recommended.
Education of workers
Training before entry
Related work experience
Difficulty of entry: ★★★★☆ Demanding (from education, training, experience, licenses)
How to become 助産師
The typical path in Japan is shown by the education, training and experience of current workers above and in the Japanese guidance below. A detailed English guide for this occupation is being prepared.
Guidance from job tag (Japanese)
現在は職業・資格・試験の名称が「助産婦」から「助産師」に変わっているものの、助産師試験の受験資格は女性に限られている。
出産時の母子の生命の安全を確保するために、関連の専門知識・技術に加えて、適切な判断力と敏速な対応能力が求められる。
Career path and how to earn more as 助産師
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by experience is shown in the Pay section.