Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Okayama

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $979 in Okayama, rent and utilities included – about $520 less a year. The total is higher in Okayama despite lower rent and utilities.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Okayama
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Okayama Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Okayama

🇯🇵 Japan

$979

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $979 in Okayama, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Okayama $979

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,575 in Okayama, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Okayama $1,575

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,171 in Okayama, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Okayama $2,171

Chiang Mai is about 4% cheaper than Okayama, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chiang Mai and Okayama are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Okayama 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$5.97 ¥943

-62.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$25.17 ¥3,976

-24.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$5.04 ¥796

10.12%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$1.74 ¥275

-4.02%

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

$0.64 ฿21.53

$0.69 ¥109

-7.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.30

$0.69 ¥109

-55.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$1.94 ¥306

21.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$1.93 ¥305

89.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.36 ¥216

43.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.45

$0.62 ¥97.6

132.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.01

$4.09 ¥646

-67.48%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$1.55 ¥245

47.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$15.16 ¥2,394

8.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$6.43 ¥1,015

-56.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$17.03 ¥2,690

-45.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$5.05 ¥798

-53.47%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.78

$3.10 ¥489

-68.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$5.02 ¥792

-68.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$4.38 ¥691

-65.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.10

$2.17 ¥342

-41.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.17

$1.93 ¥304

-43.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.81

$1.18 ¥186

-39.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$0.67 ¥106

-26.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$3.77 ¥596

9.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$9.29 ¥1,467

88.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.89 ¥298

-14.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$1.86 ¥294

49.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.29

$1.42 ¥224

-38.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

$57.3 ¥9,050

-5.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.03

$3.20 ¥505

-63.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.79

$2.60 ¥410

-79.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$21.53 ¥3,400

-88.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.87

$1.00 ¥158

45.00%

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

$21.1K ฿710.3K

$21.9K ¥3.5M

-3.91%

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

$26.9K ฿908.7K

$15.4K ¥2.4M

75.00%

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

$62.2 ฿2,097

$71.5 ¥11.3K

-13.09%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$13.73 ¥2,168

-11.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$25.75 ¥4,066

-21.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$52.2 ¥8,247

-28.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$11.29 ¥1,783

-42.52%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$708 ¥111.8K

4.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.0K

$14.5K ¥2.3M

1.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,800

$50.2 ¥7,930

6.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$35.57 ¥5,618

-30.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,086

$61.0 ¥9,636

49.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,426

$97.0 ¥15.3K

-25.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$332 ¥52.4K

45.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$190 ¥30.0K

62.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$641 ¥101.2K

57.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$430 ¥67.9K

47.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

$3,651 ¥576.6K

-35.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$2,539 ¥401.0K

-37.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$1,366 ¥215.7K

-56.83%

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 Okayama: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Okayama

$190 19.4% 38.5% $119

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Okayama

$312 31.8% 33% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Okayama

$110 11.2% 1% $1.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Okayama

$111 11.3% 17.5% $17

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Okayama

$103 10.5% 32.6% $25

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Okayama

$79 8.1% 29% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Okayama

$75 7.6% 48.8% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $332 in Okayama. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Okayama are about 2.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $25 in Okayama. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $312 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇯🇵 Okayama

🕒 Local time

03:33 3:33 AM

05:33 5:33 AM

2 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

719,474

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.65 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 = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.65 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Okayama 3,860 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Okayama

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 Okayama: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Okayama costs about 5% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. 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 $1,469 in Okayama. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Okayama, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $332 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $708 in Okayama. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 33% more in Okayama, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $979 in Okayama. 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 $979 in Okayama. 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, Okayama makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.