Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucheon and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,490 in Bucheon, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

72

Cost of Living Index in Bucheon
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Bucheon Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Bucheon

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,490

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,490 per month in Bucheon vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Bucheon $1,490
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $2,399 per month in Bucheon vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Bucheon $2,399
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $3,308 per month in Bucheon vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Bucheon $3,308
Chiang Mai $1,979

Bucheon costs about 59% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Bucheon sits 10% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.03 ₩12.1K

$2.24 ฿75.5

303.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 ₩91.3K

$19.00 ฿640

258.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.49 ₩10.0K

$5.55 ฿187

34.95%

Cappuccino

$4.18 ₩5,607

$1.67 ฿56.4

150.30%

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

$1.54 ₩2,068

$0.64 ฿21.51

140.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 ₩1,081

$0.31 ฿10.29

161.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.66 ₩4,903

$2.36 ฿79.5

55.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.86 ₩7,855

$3.66 ฿123

60.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 ₩2,747

$1.95 ฿65.7

5.13%

White Bread (500g)

$3.09 ₩4,142

$1.44 ฿48.41

114.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.40 ₩5,901

$1.33 ฿44.97

230.83%

Eggs

$3.73 ₩4,996

$2.28 ฿77.0

63.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.50 ₩23.5K

$16.45 ฿554

6.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.55 ₩14.1K

$2.78 ฿93.8

279.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.16 ₩35.1K

$9.31 ฿314

180.99%

Apples (1kg)

$7.64 ₩10.2K

$2.35 ฿79.3

225.11%

Banana (1kg)

$3.43 ₩4,593

$0.97 ฿32.75

253.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.84 ₩7,834

$1.60 ฿53.8

265.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.35 ₩8,516

$1.50 ฿50.6

323.33%

Potato (1kg)

$3.77 ₩5,052

$1.28 ฿43.06

194.53%

Onion (1kg)

$2.60 ₩3,481

$1.10 ฿37.14

136.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.84 ₩3,805

$0.71 ฿23.79

300.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 ₩1,558

$0.49 ฿16.34

136.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.40 ₩4,558

$4.14 ฿140

-17.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ₩25.2K

$17.52 ฿590

7.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.28 ₩3,049

$1.61 ฿54.4

41.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 ₩4,348

$2.78 ฿93.8

16.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.16 ₩1,550

$0.87 ฿29.27

33.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.67 ₩4,925

$1.16 ฿39.00

216.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 ₩800

$0.53 ฿17.78

13.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.84 ₩11.9K

$2.42 ฿81.6

265.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 ₩1,955

$1.45 ฿48.82

0.69%

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

$30.0K ₩40.2M

$21.1K ฿709.7K

42.26%

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

$28.5K ₩38.3M

$26.9K ฿907.9K

5.97%

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

$215 ₩287.9K

$62.2 ฿2,095

245.46%

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

$35.76 ₩47.9K

$12.17 ฿410

193.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.84 ₩27.9K

$20.12 ฿678

3.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.1 ₩73.8K

$37.31 ฿1,257

47.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.32 ₩19.2K

$3.77 ฿127

279.84%

Cinema Ticket

$11.13 ₩14.9K

$6.49 ฿219

71.49%

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

$374 ₩501.6K

$736 ฿24.8K

-49.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K ₩30.9M

$14.8K ฿497.6K

56.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.1 ₩79.2K

$53.4 ฿1,799

10.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.12 ₩44.4K

$24.64 ฿830

34.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.3 ₩94.2K

$91.5 ฿3,083

-23.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.9 ₩109.8K

$71.9 ฿2,424

13.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$497 ₩665.9K

$482 ฿16.3K

3.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 ₩478.9K

$309 ฿10.4K

15.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,199 ₩1.6M

$1,006 ฿33.9K

19.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$740 ₩991.6K

$633 ฿21.3K

16.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,114 ₩9.5M

$2,363 ฿79.6K

201.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,501 ₩7.4M

$1,589 ฿53.6K

246.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,529 ₩2.0M

$590 ฿19.9K

159.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

5.57

-26.75%

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

Last update for Bucheon: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Bucheon

$479 32.1%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 51% $244

Accommodation & Living

Bucheon

$357 24%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 13.5% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucheon

$271 18.2%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 65.2% $177

Eating Out

Bucheon

$184 12.4%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 57.9% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Bucheon

$110 7.4%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 1.3% $1.4

Sport & Entertainment

Bucheon

$77 5.2%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 35% $27

Getting Around

Bucheon

$11 * 0.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 444% $50

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $497 in Bucheon 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.

Salaries in Bucheon are about 2.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68 in Bucheon versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $479 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Bucheon

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

11:13 11:13 AM

09:13 9:13 AM

2 h behind Bucheon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

848,191

127,240

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.7 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1,340 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD). 1 EUR = 1,492 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.7 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Bucheon Chiang Mai 3,400 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucheon
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,490 in Bucheon, $936 in Chiang Mai – Chiang Mai comes out roughly 37% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,236 per month in Bucheon and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $497 in Bucheon and $482 in Chiang Mai. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,490 in Bucheon and $936 in Chiang Mai. That makes Chiang Mai about 37% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $374 per month in Bucheon 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 $1,490 in Bucheon 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 $1,490 in Bucheon. 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.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Bucheon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.