Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Japan

Name: Japan
Address: JP

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $906 a month against $1,332 in Japan, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Japan
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Japan Living Index

Jump to prices

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$906

/mo nomad

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,332

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Chiang Mai is 26.9% cheaper than Japan without rent, and 32% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Chiang Mai is 28.2% cheaper than Japan without rent, and 30.5% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.4

$6.27 ¥993

-66.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.40 ฿649

$32.23 ¥5,101

-39.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.47 ฿183

$5.08 ¥805

7.68%

Cappuccino

$1.68 ฿56.4

$3.11 ¥492

-45.98%

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

$0.66 ฿22.10

$1.12 ¥178

-41.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ฿11.52

$0.74 ¥117

-54.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.42 ฿81.0

$3.25 ¥515

-25.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 ฿125

$3.73 ¥590

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 ฿68.9

$1.49 ¥236

38.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿48.78

$1.45 ¥229

0.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 ฿45.09

$4.94 ¥782

-72.67%

Eggs

$2.27 ฿76.0

$2.11 ¥333

7.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.31 ฿546

$11.44 ¥1,810

42.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.70 ฿90.3

$6.32 ¥1,000

-57.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.20 ฿308

$17.80 ¥2,817

-48.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.1

$4.80 ¥760

-50.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿34.66

$2.45 ¥388

-57.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.7

$4.29 ¥680

-62.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 ฿48.37

$4.52 ¥715

-68.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 ฿43.59

$2.70 ¥428

-51.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.29

$2.70 ¥427

-58.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.70 ฿23.55

$1.34 ¥211

-47.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.99

$0.89 ¥140

-42.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.13 ฿138

$3.88 ¥614

6.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.78 ฿595

$7.49 ¥1,186

137.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ฿54.7

$1.90 ¥301

-14.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 ฿96.0

$2.62 ¥415

9.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.76

$1.36 ¥215

-36.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.2 ฿1,780

$57.6 ¥9,122

-7.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 ฿40.81

$3.66 ¥578

-66.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.56 ฿18.81

$3.16 ¥499

-82.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.31 ฿77.5

$20.05 ¥3,174

-88.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ฿50.2

$1.07 ¥170

40.19%

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

$20.9K ฿698.3K

$21.7K ¥3.4M

-3.83%

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

$26.7K ฿895.0K

$16.1K ¥2.5M

66.01%

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

$61.3 ฿2,051

$156 ¥24.7K

-60.73%

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

$12.50 ฿419

$24.21 ¥3,831

-48.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.36 ฿682

$32.72 ¥5,178

-37.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.94 ฿1,270

$52.6 ¥8,326

-27.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿126

$17.92 ¥2,836

-78.96%

Cinema Ticket

$6.60 ฿221

$12.84 ¥2,032

-48.60%

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

$774 ฿25.9K

$544 ¥86.2K

42.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K ฿483.2K

$12.0K ¥1.9M

20.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.8 ฿1,835

$46.82 ¥7,409

17.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.26 ฿846

$29.43 ¥4,657

-14.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 ฿3,032

$61.8 ¥9,774

46.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.3 ฿2,453

$78.2 ¥12.4K

-6.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$459 ฿15.4K

$569 ¥90.1K

-19.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$294 ฿9,835

$390 ¥61.7K

-24.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$919 ฿30.8K

$1,310 ¥207.4K

-29.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 ฿18.5K

$770 ¥121.8K

-28.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,917 ฿64.2K

$5,494 ¥869.3K

-65.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.4K

$2,810 ¥444.6K

-48.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$592 ฿19.8K

$2,077 ¥328.7K

-71.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.13

161.50%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 5, 2026

Last update for Japan: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$294 31.8%

Japan

$390 29.8% 32.8% $96

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$236 25.6%

Japan

$315 24% 33.3% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$110 11.9%

Japan

$97 7.4% 11.3% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Japan

$213 16.3% 126% $119

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.4%

Japan

$134 10.2% 73.3% $57

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Japan

$83 6.3% 36.1% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5%

Japan

$78 6% 53.1% $27

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇯🇵 Japan

🕒 Local time

14:48 2:48 PM

16:48 4:48 PM

2 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

125,440,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 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 October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Japan 4,410 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Japan

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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