Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Asahikawa and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,189 in Asahikawa, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Asahikawa
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Asahikawa Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Asahikawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,189

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Asahikawa and in Chiang Mai

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Asahikawa and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,189 per month in Asahikawa vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Asahikawa $1,189
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,948 per month in Asahikawa vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Asahikawa $1,948
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $2,706 per month in Asahikawa vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Asahikawa $2,706
Chiang Mai $1,979

Asahikawa costs about 27% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Asahikawa and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Asahikawa 13% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.31 ¥997

$2.24 ฿75.6

181.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.58 ¥5,146

$19.00 ฿641

71.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.55 ¥719

$5.55 ฿187

-18.02%

Cappuccino

$3.10 ¥490

$1.67 ฿56.5

85.63%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.26 ¥199

$0.64 ฿21.53

96.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.71 ¥112

$0.31 ฿10.30

129.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.87 ¥453

$2.36 ฿79.5

21.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 ¥474

$3.66 ฿124

-18.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 ¥241

$1.95 ฿65.7

-22.05%

White Bread (500g)

$1.52 ¥239

$1.44 ฿48.45

5.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.95 ¥624

$1.33 ฿45.01

196.99%

Eggs

$2.26 ¥358

$2.28 ฿77.0

-0.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.74 ¥1,696

$16.45 ฿555

-34.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.72 ¥1,061

$2.78 ฿93.8

141.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.29 ¥2,573

$9.31 ฿314

74.97%

Apples (1kg)

$3.20 ¥505

$2.35 ฿79.4

36.17%

Banana (1kg)

$2.62 ¥414

$0.97 ฿32.78

170.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.46 ¥388

$1.60 ฿53.9

53.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.62 ¥730

$1.50 ฿50.6

208.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.73 ¥431

$1.28 ฿43.10

113.28%

Onion (1kg)

$2.31 ¥365

$1.10 ฿37.17

110.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 ¥216

$0.71 ฿23.81

92.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 ¥137

$0.49 ฿16.36

77.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.94 ¥622

$4.14 ฿140

-4.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.66 ¥1,210

$17.52 ฿591

-56.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 ¥277

$1.61 ฿54.5

9.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 ¥296

$2.78 ฿93.9

-32.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.64 ¥259

$0.87 ฿29.29

88.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.1 ¥8,393

$54.1 ฿1,825

-1.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.07 ¥485

$1.16 ฿39.03

164.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.68 ¥423

$0.53 ฿17.79

405.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.03 ¥3,321

$2.42 ฿81.7

769.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 ¥185

$1.45 ฿48.87

-19.31%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$22.6K ¥3.6M

$21.1K ฿710.3K

7.27%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$13.6K ¥2.2M

$26.9K ฿908.7K

-49.33%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$154 ¥24.3K

$62.2 ฿2,097

147.82%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$25.29 ¥3,993

$12.17 ฿410

107.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.28 ¥5,414

$20.12 ฿679

70.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.3 ¥8,733

$37.31 ฿1,259

48.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$12.20 ¥1,926

$6.49 ฿219

87.98%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$630 ¥99.5K

$736 ฿24.8K

-14.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ¥1.8M

$14.8K ฿498.0K

-23.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.4 ¥8,114

$53.4 ฿1,800

-3.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.99 ¥4,420

$24.64 ฿831

13.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.6 ¥9,418

$91.5 ฿3,086

-34.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 ¥16.1K

$71.9 ฿2,426

41.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$611 ¥96.5K

$482 ฿16.3K

26.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$291 ¥45.9K

$309 ฿10.4K

-5.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$987 ¥155.9K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-1.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$809 ¥127.8K

$633 ฿21.4K

27.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,455 ¥703.6K

$2,363 ฿79.7K

88.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,602 ¥411.0K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

63.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.21

5.57

-60.32%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Asahikawa: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Asahikawa

$291 24.5%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 19.5% $57

Accommodation & Living

Asahikawa

$291 24.4%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 6.2% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Asahikawa

$214 18%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 55.8% $119

Eating Out

Asahikawa

$130 10.9%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 40.1% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Asahikawa

$109 9.1%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 0.1% $0.1

Sport & Entertainment

Asahikawa

$80 6.7%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 36.9% $29

Getting Around

Asahikawa

$76 6.4%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 19.4% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $611 in Asahikawa versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $33 in Asahikawa versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $291 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Asahikawa

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

23:34 11:34 PM

21:34 9:34 PM

2 h behind Asahikawa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

329,306

127,240

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Between locations

Asahikawa Chiang Mai 4,890 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Asahikawa
Chiang Mai

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Asahikawa vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,189 in Asahikawa, $936 in Chiang Mai – Chiang Mai comes out roughly 21% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,784 per month in Asahikawa and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $611 in Asahikawa.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,189 in Asahikawa and $936 in Chiang Mai. That makes Chiang Mai about 21% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $630 per month in Asahikawa and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,189 in Asahikawa and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $1,189 in Asahikawa. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.