How to say "suburbs" in Japanese

• 市外しがいCommon
  no-adjectiveCovers the residential sense of 'suburbs': areas lying outside the city limits. It is a neutral, geographical term, typical in contexts like mail delivery zones, phone rates, or commuting from outside the city.
  私の自宅じたくの電話番号でんわばんごうは市し外がい局番きょくばんが２０１で１２３ー４５６７番ばんです。↗

  My home phone number is, area code two-oh-one, one-two-three, four-five-six-seven.
• 野外やがいJLPT N1approx.Common
  nounReally means 'outdoors' or 'in the open air' — open country away from buildings. Its gloss 'outskirts; suburbs' is marginal, so it is seldom the word you want for suburban residential areas; think of outdoor events or camping instead.

For 'suburbs' meaning the residential areas outside a city, 市外 is the usual choice; 野外 primarily means open-air or the outdoors, so it only loosely matches 'outskirts' and is rarely what you want.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 市外しがいoutside the city
• 野外やがいfields
• 在ざいoutskirts