Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Atsugi and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,265 in Atsugi, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Atsugi
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Atsugi Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Atsugi

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,265

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Atsugi 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 Atsugi and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,265 in Atsugi versus $936 in Chiang Mai.

Atsugi $1,265
Chiang Mai $936

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,187 in Atsugi versus $1,457 in Chiang Mai.

Atsugi $2,187
Chiang Mai $1,457

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,108 in Atsugi versus $1,979 in Chiang Mai.

Atsugi $3,108
Chiang Mai $1,979

Living in Atsugi is roughly 35% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Atsugi 7% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.85 ¥1,239

$2.24 ฿75.6

250.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.21 ¥3,975

$19.00 ฿641

32.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.11 ¥805

$5.55 ฿187

-7.93%

Cappuccino

$1.92 ¥303

$1.67 ฿56.5

14.97%

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

$0.98 ¥155

$0.64 ฿21.55

53.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.71 ¥113

$0.31 ฿10.31

129.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.64 ¥416

$2.36 ฿79.6

11.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 ¥495

$3.66 ฿124

-14.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ¥250

$1.95 ฿65.8

-18.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 ¥245

$1.44 ฿48.48

7.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.06 ¥640

$1.33 ฿45.04

205.26%

Eggs

$2.05 ¥324

$2.28 ฿77.1

-10.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.16 ¥2,548

$16.45 ฿555

-1.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.53 ¥715

$2.78 ฿93.9

62.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.36 ¥1,950

$9.31 ฿314

32.76%

Apples (1kg)

$5.51 ¥868

$2.35 ฿79.4

134.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 ¥316

$0.97 ฿32.80

107.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.84 ¥605

$1.60 ฿53.9

140.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 ¥442

$1.50 ฿50.6

86.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.69 ¥424

$1.28 ฿43.12

110.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 ¥310

$1.10 ฿37.19

79.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 ¥180

$0.71 ฿23.82

60.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ¥142

$0.49 ฿16.37

83.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.47 ¥548

$4.14 ฿140

-16.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.73 ¥1,534

$17.52 ฿591

-44.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ¥256

$1.61 ฿54.5

0.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.12 ¥334

$2.78 ฿94.0

-23.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.60 ¥410

$0.87 ฿29.31

198.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.8 ¥8,962

$54.1 ฿1,826

5.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 ¥490

$1.16 ฿39.06

168.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.82 ¥444

$0.53 ฿17.80

432.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.34 ¥1,473

$2.42 ฿81.8

285.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 ¥169

$1.45 ฿48.90

-26.21%

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

$12.9K ¥2.0M

$21.1K ฿710.7K

-38.67%

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

$15.3K ¥2.4M

$26.9K ฿909.3K

-43.12%

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

$236 ¥37.2K

$62.2 ฿2,098

279.14%

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

$14.20 ¥2,240

$12.17 ฿411

16.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.14 ¥4,911

$20.12 ฿679

54.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ¥8,246

$37.31 ฿1,259

40.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.77 ¥1,224

$3.77 ฿127

106.10%

Cinema Ticket

$12.66 ¥1,997

$6.49 ฿219

95.07%

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

$314 ¥49.5K

$736 ฿24.8K

-57.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,091 ¥960.5K

$14.8K ฿498.3K

-58.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.57 ¥6,554

$53.4 ฿1,801

-22.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.45 ¥3,856

$24.64 ฿831

-0.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$54.5 ¥8,600

$91.5 ฿3,087

-40.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$31.86 ¥5,023

$71.9 ฿2,428

-55.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$554 ¥87.4K

$482 ฿16.3K

14.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 ¥52.6K

$309 ฿10.4K

7.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 ¥163.3K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

2.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,264 ¥199.3K

$633 ฿21.4K

99.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,039 ¥636.9K

$2,363 ฿79.8K

70.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,650 ¥417.8K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

66.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,703 ¥583.9K

$590 ฿19.9K

527.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.02

5.57

-63.73%

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

Last update for Atsugi: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Atsugi

$333 26.4%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 7.3% $24

Groceries & Markets

Atsugi

$292 23.1%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 19.8% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Atsugi

$281 22.2%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 66.4% $187

Eating Out

Atsugi

$127 10.1%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 39.1% $50

Getting Around

Atsugi

$84 6.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 27.3% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Atsugi

$78 6.1%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 35.2% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Atsugi

$69 5.4%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 58.4% $40

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $554 in Atsugi and $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Atsugi pays about 6.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $25 in Atsugi vs $19 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $234 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Atsugi

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

22:08 10:08 PM

20:08 8:08 PM

2 h behind Atsugi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

223,705

127,240

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.34 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.68 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 = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.68 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Atsugi Chiang Mai 4,370 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

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Atsugi
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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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,265 in Atsugi and $936 in Chiang Mai, so Chiang Mai is about 26% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Atsugi is about 6.3 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $554 in Atsugi versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $19 versus $25 in Atsugi. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,265 per month in Atsugi versus $936 in Chiang Mai – Chiang Mai is about 26% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Chiang Mai is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Atsugi and Chiang Mai are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 26% less than in Atsugi. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.