Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Setagaya-ku and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,183 in Setagaya-ku, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Setagaya-ku
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Setagaya-ku Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Setagaya-ku

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,183

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,183 per month in Setagaya-ku vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Setagaya-ku $1,183
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $1,834 per month in Setagaya-ku vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Setagaya-ku $1,834
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $2,484 per month in Setagaya-ku vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Setagaya-ku $2,484
Chiang Mai $1,914

Setagaya-ku costs about 26% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Setagaya-ku and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Setagaya-ku 12% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.12 ¥968

$2.26 ฿75.4

170.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.64 ¥4,050

$19.18 ฿641

33.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.36 ¥690

$5.59 ฿187

-22.00%

Cappuccino

$2.97 ¥470

$1.72 ฿57.6

72.67%

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

$1.04 ¥165

$0.64 ฿21.54

62.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 ¥102

$0.33 ฿11.18

96.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 ¥346

$2.36 ฿78.7

-7.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 ¥508

$3.90 ฿130

-17.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 ¥194

$2.05 ฿68.6

-40.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 ¥272

$1.40 ฿46.70

22.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.64 ¥575

$1.28 ฿42.89

184.38%

Eggs

$1.17 ¥186

$2.25 ฿75.3

-48.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.40 ¥1,643

$16.94 ฿566

-38.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.11 ¥965

$2.74 ฿91.6

122.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.25 ¥2,252

$9.36 ฿313

52.24%

Apples (1kg)

$5.59 ¥883

$2.40 ฿80.3

132.92%

Banana (1kg)

$2.74 ¥433

$1.01 ฿33.92

171.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.95 ¥466

$1.61 ฿53.9

83.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.14 ¥654

$1.52 ฿50.7

172.37%

Potato (1kg)

$2.62 ¥415

$1.28 ฿42.90

104.69%

Onion (1kg)

$2.63 ¥416

$1.11 ฿37.22

136.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ¥196

$0.72 ฿24.09

72.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ¥87.7

$0.52 ฿17.54

7.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.79 ¥599

$4.33 ฿145

-12.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.26 ¥989

$17.73 ฿593

-64.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 ¥287

$1.63 ฿54.4

11.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 ¥330

$2.85 ฿95.3

-26.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 ¥231

$0.85 ฿28.31

71.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.7 ¥8,012

$53.9 ฿1,801

-5.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.23 ¥510

$1.17 ฿39.18

176.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.66 ¥421

$0.57 ฿19.00

366.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.85 ¥3,294

$2.37 ฿79.2

779.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ¥174

$1.45 ฿48.32

-24.14%

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

$21.2K ¥3.4M

$20.5K ฿684.3K

3.67%

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

$18.6K ¥2.9M

$26.5K ฿886.1K

-30.00%

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

$131 ¥20.6K

$62.3 ฿2,083

109.59%

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

$23.82 ¥3,764

$12.27 ฿410

94.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.73 ¥5,013

$19.97 ฿668

58.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.0 ¥8,691

$37.91 ฿1,267

45.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$11.52 ¥1,820

$6.71 ฿224

71.68%

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

$636 ¥100.5K

$797 ฿26.6K

-20.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.7K ¥2.3M

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-0.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.3 ¥9,846

$53.3 ฿1,780

17.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.37 ¥5,747

$25.05 ฿837

45.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$62.1 ¥9,814

$91.6 ฿3,062

-32.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 ¥16.2K

$73.5 ฿2,455

39.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$534 ¥84.4K

$464 ฿15.5K

15.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$325 ¥51.4K

$305 ฿10.2K

6.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,152 ¥182.0K

$915 ฿30.6K

25.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$674 ¥106.4K

$552 ฿18.5K

21.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,724 ¥588.4K

$1,912 ฿63.9K

94.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,635 ¥258.4K

$1,438 ฿48.1K

13.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-64.09%

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

Last update for Setagaya-ku: October 12, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Setagaya-ku

$325 27.5%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 6.3% $20

Groceries & Markets

Setagaya-ku

$281 23.7%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 15.2% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Setagaya-ku

$186 15.7%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 49.2% $92

Eating Out

Setagaya-ku

$122 10.3%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 35.2% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Setagaya-ku

$118 10%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 7.5% $8.9

Sport & Entertainment

Setagaya-ku

$78 6.6%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 34.2% $27

Getting Around

Setagaya-ku

$73 6.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 16.1% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $534 in Setagaya-ku versus $464 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $26.00 in Setagaya-ku versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $281 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Setagaya-ku

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

02:56 2:56 AM

00:56 12:56 AM

2 h behind Setagaya-ku

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

943,664

127,240

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Setagaya-ku Chiang Mai 4,400 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Setagaya-ku
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

Setagaya-ku vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Setagaya-ku costs about 26% 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 $1,775 per month in Setagaya-ku and $1,408 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $636 per month in Setagaya-ku and $797 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 18% more in Setagaya-ku, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $938, than in Setagaya-ku at $1,183. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Setagaya-ku it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,183 in Setagaya-ku. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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