Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Atsugi

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.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Atsugi
Learn more

Atsugi Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Atsugi

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,265

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

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

Chiang Mai $936
Atsugi $1,265

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

Chiang Mai $1,457
Atsugi $2,187

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

Chiang Mai $1,979
Atsugi $3,108

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 26% less than in Atsugi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$7.85 ¥1,241

-71.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$25.21 ¥3,981

-24.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$5.11 ¥807

8.61%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$1.92 ¥303

-13.02%

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

$0.64 ฿21.53

$0.98 ¥155

-34.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.30

$0.71 ¥113

-56.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$2.64 ¥416

-10.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.14 ¥496

16.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.58 ¥250

23.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.45

$1.55 ¥246

-7.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.01

$4.06 ¥641

-67.24%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$2.05 ¥324

11.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$16.16 ¥2,552

1.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$4.53 ¥716

-38.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$12.36 ¥1,953

-24.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$5.51 ¥870

-57.35%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.78

$2.01 ¥317

-51.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$3.84 ¥606

-58.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$2.80 ¥443

-46.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.10

$2.69 ¥424

-52.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.17

$1.97 ¥311

-44.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.81

$1.14 ¥180

-37.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$0.90 ¥142

-45.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$3.47 ¥548

19.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$9.73 ¥1,536

80.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.62 ¥256

-0.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$2.12 ¥334

31.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.29

$2.60 ¥411

-66.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

$56.8 ¥8,976

-4.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.03

$3.11 ¥491

-62.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.79

$2.82 ¥445

-81.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$9.34 ¥1,475

-74.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.87

$1.07 ¥170

35.51%

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

$21.1K ฿710.3K

$12.9K ¥2.0M

63.05%

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

$26.9K ฿908.7K

$15.3K ¥2.4M

75.82%

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

$62.2 ฿2,097

$236 ¥37.2K

-73.62%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$14.20 ¥2,243

-14.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$31.14 ¥4,918

-35.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$52.3 ¥8,259

-28.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$7.77 ¥1,226

-51.48%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$12.66 ¥2,000

-48.74%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$314 ¥49.6K

134.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.0K

$6,091 ¥962.0K

142.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,800

$41.57 ¥6,565

28.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$24.45 ¥3,862

0.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,086

$54.5 ¥8,613

67.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,426

$31.86 ¥5,031

125.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$554 ¥87.5K

-12.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$333 ¥52.6K

-7.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$1,036 ¥163.6K

-2.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,264 ¥199.6K

-49.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

$4,039 ¥637.9K

-41.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$2,650 ¥418.5K

-40.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$3,703 ¥584.8K

-84.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.02

175.74%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Atsugi: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Atsugi

$333 26.4% 7.9% $24

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Atsugi

$292 23.1% 24.7% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Atsugi

$69 5.4% 36.9% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Atsugi

$281 22.2% 198% $187

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Atsugi

$127 10.1% 64.3% $50

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Atsugi

$84 6.7% 37.6% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Atsugi

$78 6.1% 54.4% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $482 in Chiang Mai and $554 in Atsugi. 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: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $25 in Atsugi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $292 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇯🇵 Atsugi

🕒 Local time

22:13 10:13 PM

00:13 12:13 AM

2 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

223,705

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

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).

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).

USD to THB in detail →

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

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Chiang Mai
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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

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

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

On paper, salaries run 84% lower in Chiang Mai. 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: $482 in Chiang Mai versus $554 in Atsugi. 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 $936 per month in Chiang Mai versus $1,265 in Atsugi – 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, Chiang Mai and Atsugi 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.