Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Matsudo

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,239 in Matsudo, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Matsudo
Learn more

Matsudo Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Matsudo

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,239

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Matsudo actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,239 in Matsudo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Matsudo $1,239

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,907 in Matsudo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Matsudo $1,907

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,574 in Matsudo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Matsudo $2,574

Chiang Mai is about 25% cheaper than Matsudo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Matsudo are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Matsudo 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$6.20 ¥977

-63.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$37.45 ¥5,906

-49.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$4.94 ¥779

12.35%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$3.54 ¥558

-52.82%

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

$0.64 ฿21.55

$1.10 ¥174

-41.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.31

$0.79 ¥124

-60.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$2.58 ¥407

-8.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.13 ¥494

16.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.45 ¥228

34.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.48

$1.67 ¥264

-13.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.04

$3.60 ¥568

-63.06%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$1.99 ¥313

14.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$10.36 ¥1,633

58.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$5.96 ¥939

-53.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$14.76 ¥2,327

-36.92%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$4.82 ¥761

-51.24%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.80

$2.27 ¥358

-57.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$2.82 ¥445

-43.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$4.23 ¥667

-64.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.12

$2.64 ¥416

-51.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.19

$2.66 ¥420

-58.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.82

$1.19 ¥188

-40.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.37

$0.76 ¥120

-35.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$3.78 ¥596

9.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$6.43 ¥1,015

172.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.71 ¥270

-5.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.01 ¥317

38.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.31

$1.52 ¥239

-42.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,826

$57.6 ¥9,080

-6.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.06

$3.15 ¥497

-63.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

$2.69 ¥423

-80.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$18.50 ¥2,917

-86.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.90

$1.10 ¥173

31.82%

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

$21.1K ฿710.7K

$21.9K ¥3.5M

-3.91%

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

$26.9K ฿909.3K

$14.9K ¥2.4M

80.26%

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

$62.2 ฿2,098

$135 ¥21.3K

-54.01%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$23.07 ¥3,638

-47.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$30.51 ¥4,812

-34.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$45.93 ¥7,242

-18.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$13.05 ¥2,058

-50.27%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$835 ¥131.6K

-11.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.3K

$14.8K ¥2.3M

-0.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,801

$55.8 ¥8,797

-4.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$32.81 ¥5,174

-24.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,087

$62.5 ¥9,857

46.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,428

$70.7 ¥11.1K

1.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$593 ¥93.5K

-18.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$383 ¥60.5K

-19.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$904 ¥142.6K

11.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$718 ¥113.2K

-11.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$4,478 ¥706.1K

-47.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$2,545 ¥401.2K

-37.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.25

147.56%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Matsudo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Matsudo

$383 31% 24.1% $75

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Matsudo

$281 22.7% 20.1% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Matsudo

$100 8.1% 8.1% $8.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Matsudo

$189 15.2% 99.8% $94

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Matsudo

$134 10.8% 72.2% $56

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Matsudo

$80 6.5% 30.7% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Matsudo

$72 5.8% 43.3% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $593 in Matsudo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $37 in Matsudo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $281 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇯🇵 Matsudo

🕒 Local time

11:08 11:08 AM

13:08 1:08 PM

2 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

485,803

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.34 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.68 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 = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

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).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Matsudo 4,420 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Matsudo

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 Matsudo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Matsudo costs about 32% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,403 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,859 in Matsudo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $593 in Matsudo.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $835 in Matsudo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 20% more in Matsudo, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,239 in Matsudo. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Chiang Mai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

For expats, Chiang Mai is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 25% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.