Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jacksonville, FL and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,487 in Jacksonville, FL, rent and utilities included – about $18,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Jacksonville, FL
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Jacksonville, FL Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Jacksonville, FL

🇺🇸 United States

$2,487

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,487 per month in Jacksonville, FL vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Jacksonville, FL $2,487
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $3,787 per month in Jacksonville, FL vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Jacksonville, FL $3,787
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $5,087 per month in Jacksonville, FL vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Jacksonville, FL $5,087
Chiang Mai $1,979

Jacksonville, FL costs about 166% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Jacksonville, FL sits 83% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.69 $19.69

$2.24 ฿75.6

779.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$102 $102

$19.00 ฿641

435.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.37 $11.37

$5.55 ฿187

104.86%

Cappuccino

$5.58 $5.58

$1.67 ฿56.5

234.13%

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

$3.11 $3.11

$0.64 ฿21.53

385.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 $2.18

$0.31 ฿10.30

603.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.98 $4.98

$2.36 ฿79.5

111.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.19 $7.19

$3.66 ฿124

96.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$1.95 ฿65.7

-48.72%

White Bread (500g)

$3.35 $3.35

$1.44 ฿48.45

132.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.73 $3.73

$1.33 ฿45.01

180.45%

Eggs

$4.40 $4.40

$2.28 ฿77.0

92.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.72 $13.72

$16.45 ฿555

-16.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.57 $9.57

$2.78 ฿93.8

244.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.24 $16.24

$9.31 ฿314

74.44%

Apples (1kg)

$4.82 $4.82

$2.35 ฿79.4

105.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 $1.42

$0.97 ฿32.78

46.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.97 $3.97

$1.60 ฿53.9

148.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.53 $4.53

$1.50 ฿50.6

202.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.93 $2.93

$1.28 ฿43.10

128.91%

Onion (1kg)

$3.06 $3.06

$1.10 ฿37.17

178.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.67 $2.67

$0.71 ฿23.81

276.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$0.49 ฿16.36

410.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.34 $9.34

$4.14 ฿140

125.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.63 $14.63

$17.52 ฿591

-16.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.05 $2.05

$1.61 ฿54.5

27.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 $3.21

$2.78 ฿93.9

15.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.77 $1.77

$0.87 ฿29.29

103.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.5 $64.5

$54.1 ฿1,825

19.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 $1.51

$1.16 ฿39.03

30.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.17 $1.17

$0.53 ฿17.79

120.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.75 $13.75

$2.42 ฿81.7

468.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$1.45 ฿48.87

-28.28%

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

$31.3K $31.3K

$21.1K ฿710.3K

48.75%

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

$26.1K $26.1K

$26.9K ฿908.7K

-3.16%

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

$218 $218

$62.2 ฿2,097

250.46%

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

$64.4 $64.4

$12.17 ฿410

429.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.2 $68.2

$20.12 ฿679

238.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.02 $35.02

$37.31 ฿1,259

-6.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.49 $6.49

$3.77 ฿127

72.15%

Cinema Ticket

$14.76 $14.76

$6.49 ฿219

127.43%

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

$1,318 $1,318

$736 ฿24.8K

78.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K $12.0K

$14.8K ฿498.0K

-18.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.1 $64.1

$53.4 ฿1,800

20.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.85 $47.85

$24.64 ฿831

94.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 $112

$91.5 ฿3,086

22.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$151 $151

$71.9 ฿2,426

110.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,651 $1,651

$482 ฿16.3K

242.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,118 $1,118

$309 ฿10.4K

261.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,590 $2,590

$1,006 ฿33.9K

157.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,963 $1,963

$633 ฿21.4K

209.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,356 $2,356

$2,363 ฿79.7K

-0.31%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,066 $2,066

$1,589 ฿53.6K

29.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,010 $4,010

$590 ฿19.9K

580.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.69

5.57

20.11%

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

Last update for Jacksonville, FL: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Jacksonville, FL

$1.1K 45%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 72.4% $809

Groceries & Markets

Jacksonville, FL

$386 15.5%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 39.4% $152

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jacksonville, FL

$350 14.1%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 73% $256

Eating Out

Jacksonville, FL

$319 12.8%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 75.7% $241

Clothing & Footwear

Jacksonville, FL

$169 6.8%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 35.7% $60

Getting Around

Jacksonville, FL

$79 3.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 22.3% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Jacksonville, FL

$65 2.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 22.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,651 in Jacksonville, FL 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 Jacksonville, FL are about 6.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $102 in Jacksonville, FL versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $386 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Jacksonville, FL

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

09:39 9:39 AM

21:39 9:39 PM

12 h ahead of Jacksonville, FL

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

949,611

127,240

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

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).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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Jacksonville, FL Chiang Mai 14,550 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Jacksonville, FL
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

Jacksonville, FL vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Jacksonville, FL costs about 166% 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 $3,730 per month in Jacksonville, FL and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. 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 $1,651 in Jacksonville, FL.

Kindergarten costs $1,318 per month in Jacksonville, FL and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 65% more in Jacksonville, FL, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,487 in Jacksonville, FL and $936 in Chiang Mai. 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.

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