Shrine or temple? How to tell them apart in Japan, and how to pray at each

Japan has two kinds of religious sites you will see everywhere: Shinto shrines (jinja) and Buddhist temples (tera). They can look similar to visitors. Here is how to tell them apart, and what to do at each, using JNTO's guide and Japan's official religious yearbook.

How many are there?

Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs publishes a religious yearbook (宗教年鑑). The 2024 edition counts religious corporations by tradition:

These are registered religious corporations, not a count of buildings, but they show the scale: tens of thousands of each.

How to tell them apart

From JNTO's guide:

• Shrines serve the Shinto tradition and have a torii gate at the entrance. JNTO says all shrines have a torii, even those without a main hall. The torii marks the boundary between holy ground and the everyday world.
• Temples serve the Buddhist tradition and have a sanmon gate at the entrance. Large sanmon, such as those at Todaiji in Nara or Sensoji in Tokyo, have guardian statues (niozo).
• Many temples have incense (osenko).

At a shrine

JNTO describes these steps:

1. Bow once in front of the torii before entering. Walk a little to the left or right of the center of the path.
2. At the temizuya (water basin), purify your hands and mouth with one scoop of water:
   • pour water over your left hand with the ladle in your right hand;
   • switch hands and pour over your right hand;
   • pour a little water into your left hand, rinse your mouth, and spit beside the basin. Never touch the ladle to your mouth.
3. At the altar, quietly put a coin in the offering box, and clap twice.

Some shrines have their own way. Izumo Taisha, for example, asks for two bows, four claps and one bow. Follow the sign at the shrine.

At a temple

JNTO says temples are less strict about the prayer ritual, but asks visitors to behave calmly and respectfully:

• If there is a temizuya, purify your hands and mouth as at a shrine.
• To offer incense, buy a bundle by putting a coin in the box, light it, put the flame out by waving your hand (not by blowing), place it in the burner, and join your hands in silent prayer.

Related

• Visiting temples and shrines: the rules they actually post
• Photo and drone rules at Japanese sights

Sources

• JNTO, "Shrine and Temple Traditions": https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/shrine-and-temple-traditions/ (checked 2026-09-29)
• Agency for Cultural Affairs, "Religious Yearbook, 2024 edition" (in Japanese, PDF, page 1 of the introduction): https://www.bunka.go.jp/tokei_hakusho_shuppan/hakusho_nenjihokokusho/shukyo_nenkan/pdf/r06nenkan.pdf (checked 2026-09-29)
• Izumo Taisha worship note: the official page linked on the spot page (checked 2026-09-25)