Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Banyuwangi and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Banyuwangi: $470 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

23

Cost of Living Index in Banyuwangi
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Banyuwangi Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Banyuwangi

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$470

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $470 in Banyuwangi versus $936 in Chiang Mai.

Banyuwangi $470
Chiang Mai $936

Estimated couple costs with rent: $759 in Banyuwangi versus $1,457 in Chiang Mai.

Banyuwangi $759
Chiang Mai $1,457

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,049 in Banyuwangi versus $1,979 in Chiang Mai.

Banyuwangi $1,049
Chiang Mai $1,979

Living in Banyuwangi costs roughly 50% less than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Banyuwangi 66% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$0.67 Rp 12.2K

$2.24 ฿75.6

-70.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.24 Rp 204.0K

$19.00 ฿641

-40.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.08 Rp 55.9K

$5.55 ฿187

-44.50%

Cappuccino

$1.18 Rp 21.4K

$1.67 ฿56.5

-29.34%

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

$0.38 Rp 6,815

$0.64 ฿21.54

-40.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 Rp 3,022

$0.31 ฿10.31

-45.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.10 Rp 38.2K

$2.36 ฿79.5

-11.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.17 Rp 75.7K

$3.66 ฿124

13.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.01 Rp 18.4K

$1.95 ฿65.7

-48.21%

White Bread (500g)

$0.63 Rp 11.5K

$1.44 ฿48.46

-56.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.79 Rp 14.4K

$1.33 ฿45.03

-40.60%

Eggs

$0.73 Rp 13.3K

$2.28 ฿77.1

-67.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.62 Rp 65.7K

$16.45 ฿555

-77.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.08 Rp 37.7K

$2.78 ฿93.9

-25.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.22 Rp 112.9K

$9.31 ฿314

-33.19%

Apples (1kg)

$1.94 Rp 35.2K

$2.35 ฿79.4

-17.45%

Banana (1kg)

$0.58 Rp 10.5K

$0.97 ฿32.79

-40.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.70 Rp 12.7K

$1.60 ฿53.9

-56.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.97 Rp 17.6K

$1.50 ฿50.6

-35.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.81 Rp 14.7K

$1.28 ฿43.11

-36.72%

Onion (1kg)

$0.90 Rp 16.3K

$1.10 ฿37.18

-18.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.57 Rp 10.3K

$0.71 ฿23.82

-19.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.33 Rp 5,912

$0.49 ฿16.36

-32.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.96 Rp 35.5K

$4.14 ฿140

-52.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.49 Rp 99.7K

$17.52 ฿591

-68.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 Rp 25.3K

$1.61 ฿54.5

-13.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 Rp 40.2K

$2.78 ฿93.9

-20.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 Rp 4,165

$0.87 ฿29.30

-73.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.37 Rp 206.3K

$54.1 ฿1,825

-78.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.49 Rp 8,869

$1.16 ฿39.04

-57.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 Rp 5,314

$0.53 ฿17.80

-45.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.58 Rp 46.9K

$2.42 ฿81.7

6.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 Rp 13.0K

$1.45 ฿48.88

-50.34%

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

$22.4K Rp 406.4M

$21.1K ฿710.5K

6.36%

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

$27.9K Rp 507.1M

$26.9K ฿909.0K

3.73%

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

$46.01 Rp 834.8K

$62.2 ฿2,098

-25.99%

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

$4.67 Rp 84.8K

$12.17 ฿411

-61.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.65 Rp 320.3K

$20.12 ฿679

-12.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.89 Rp 324.6K

$37.31 ฿1,259

-52.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.03 Rp 145.8K

$3.77 ฿127

113.00%

Cinema Ticket

$1.88 Rp 34.2K

$6.49 ฿219

-71.03%

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

$27.75 Rp 503.5K

$736 ฿24.8K

-96.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,080 Rp 19.6M

$14.8K ฿498.2K

-92.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.34 Rp 405.3K

$53.4 ฿1,801

-58.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$10.98 Rp 199.3K

$24.64 ฿831

-55.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$54.8 Rp 994.4K

$91.5 ฿3,087

-40.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$27.18 Rp 493.2K

$71.9 ฿2,427

-62.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$227 Rp 4.1M

$482 ฿16.3K

-52.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$148 Rp 2.7M

$309 ฿10.4K

-52.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$558 Rp 10.1M

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-44.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$368 Rp 6.7M

$633 ฿21.4K

-41.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,173 Rp 21.3M

$2,363 ฿79.7K

-50.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$778 Rp 14.1M

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-51.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$148 Rp 2.7M

$590 ฿19.9K

-74.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.84

5.57

22.80%

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

Last update for Banyuwangi: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Banyuwangi

$148 31.4%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 109% $161

Groceries & Markets

Banyuwangi

$116 24.7%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 102% $118

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Banyuwangi

$68 14.6%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 38.2% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Banyuwangi

$52 11.1%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 109% $57

Eating Out

Banyuwangi

$50 10.6%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 55.9% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Banyuwangi

$22 4.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 132% $29

Getting Around

Banyuwangi

$14 3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 331% $47

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $227 in Banyuwangi and $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chiang Mai pays about 4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $11 in Banyuwangi vs $19 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $116 vs $234 per month, with Banyuwangi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Banyuwangi

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

19:35 7:35 PM

Same time as Banyuwangi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

117,558

127,240

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.93 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 18,145 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,281 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.93 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 27, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.71 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Banyuwangi Chiang Mai 3,440 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Banyuwangi
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

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

Banyuwangi is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and transport. The 99% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 75% lower in Banyuwangi. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $227 in Banyuwangi versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 102% higher in Chiang Mai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Banyuwangi – a meal for two runs $11 versus $19 in Chiang Mai. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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, Banyuwangi and Chiang Mai are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Banyuwangi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Chiang Mai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.