How to Create a Rakuten ID in English — Free Online Sign-Up, Step by Step (2026)

Quick answer

Hi, I'm Miya — I help newcomers settle into life in Japan, and this is the first little task I set for everyone. Before you sign up for Rakuten Mobile, or almost any Rakuten service, you make one free Rakuten ID. It's a single login that works across shopping, payments, travel, and mobile, so making it early smooths out everything that comes after.

What is a Rakuten ID?

Let me demystify it. A Rakuten ID is a free account — just an email and password — that you register once online. There's no charge to create or keep it, and you can set it up in a few minutes with only an email address.

That same ID then signs you in across the wider Rakuten ecosystem, so you're never juggling a separate account for each service. That's the part I want you to hold onto.

Why I have newcomers set it up first

Daily life here leans on a handful of everyday services — online shopping, digital payments, and points that stack across them. In my experience the Rakuten ID is the single door into all of that, which is why I nudge people to create it in their first weeks.

And because Rakuten Mobile sign-up uses the same ID, having it ready means the mobile step later is far quicker when you get to it.

How to create a Rakuten ID (step by step)

Here's the walk-through. You sign up online in a few minutes: go to the Rakuten registration page, enter an email address, set a password, and confirm — that's the core of it. You can start using it right away for shopping and other services.

One tip from me: keep your login details somewhere safe. This single account is what you'll reuse across the whole ecosystem, including when you set up your phone plan.

The natural next step: your phone plan

Once your Rakuten ID exists, adding a Japanese phone number with Rakuten Mobile is refreshingly simple — you apply online with your residence card, and eSIM-capable phones can connect the same day.

Have a look at our setup guide for eligibility and the step-by-step, and confirm current terms on the official page before you apply. I'll be right here for the mobile part.