The Japanese pine sawyer, Monochamus alternatus Hope, 1842, an important forest pest, mainly occurs in Far East. It is the main vector of pine wood nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, which causes pine wilt disease. We determined the complete mitochondrial genome coding region of M. alternatus using long PCR and conserved primer walking. Our results show that the entire mitogenome coding region is 14,649 bp long, with 78.22% A T content [deposited in GenBank (JX987292)]. Positions and arrangement of the 37 genes encoded by the coding region are identical to those of two other longhorn beetles (Psacothea hilaris and Anoplophora glabripennis) for which the complete gene content and arrangement are known. All protein-coding genes start with a typical initiation codon ATN in insects. All tRNAs show standard clover-leaf structure, except the tRNA^Ser (AGN), which lacks dihydrouridine (DHU) arm. The most unusual feature found is the use of TCT as tRNA^Ser (AGN) anticodon instead of GCT, which is used in most other arthropods. This provides further insights into the diversity and evolution of the Cerambycidae family of long-horned beetles.