Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surakarta and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Surakarta: $589 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Surakarta
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Surakarta Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Surakarta

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$589

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $589 per month in Surakarta vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Surakarta $589
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $933 per month in Surakarta vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Surakarta $933
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,278 per month in Surakarta vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Surakarta $1,278
Chiang Mai $1,979

Surakarta is about 37% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Surakarta and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Surakarta 57% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.70 Rp 30.9K

$2.24 ฿75.6

-24.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.39 Rp 206.6K

$19.00 ฿641

-40.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.06 Rp 55.4K

$5.55 ฿187

-44.86%

Cappuccino

$1.55 Rp 28.2K

$1.67 ฿56.5

-7.19%

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

$0.53 Rp 9,664

$0.64 ฿21.55

-17.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 Rp 4,147

$0.31 ฿10.31

-25.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.40 Rp 25.5K

$2.36 ฿79.6

-40.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 Rp 50.4K

$3.66 ฿124

-24.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.86 Rp 15.6K

$1.95 ฿65.8

-55.90%

White Bread (500g)

$0.74 Rp 13.4K

$1.44 ฿48.48

-48.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 Rp 13.5K

$1.33 ฿45.04

-43.61%

Eggs

$1.00 Rp 18.1K

$2.28 ฿77.1

-56.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.78 Rp 141.1K

$16.45 ฿555

-52.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$1.62 Rp 29.4K

$2.78 ฿93.9

-41.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.32 Rp 96.5K

$9.31 ฿314

-42.86%

Apples (1kg)

$1.97 Rp 35.8K

$2.35 ฿79.4

-16.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 Rp 23.7K

$0.97 ฿32.80

34.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.6K

$1.60 ฿53.9

12.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.41 Rp 25.5K

$1.50 ฿50.6

-6.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.36 Rp 24.7K

$1.28 ฿43.12

6.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 Rp 29.8K

$1.10 ฿37.19

49.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.53 Rp 9,568

$0.71 ฿23.82

-25.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 Rp 7,783

$0.49 ฿16.37

-12.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.93 Rp 34.9K

$4.14 ฿140

-53.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.23 Rp 149.3K

$17.52 ฿591

-53.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 Rp 29.3K

$1.61 ฿54.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 Rp 53.8K

$2.78 ฿94.0

6.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 Rp 7,401

$0.87 ฿29.31

-52.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.35 Rp 205.8K

$54.1 ฿1,826

-79.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.47 Rp 8,488

$1.16 ฿39.06

-59.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,747

$0.53 ฿17.80

-18.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.58 Rp 46.8K

$2.42 ฿81.8

6.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.78 Rp 14.1K

$1.45 ฿48.90

-46.21%

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

$25.0K Rp 454.0M

$21.1K ฿710.7K

18.86%

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

$32.9K Rp 596.8M

$26.9K ฿909.3K

22.13%

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

$77.7 Rp 1.4M

$62.2 ฿2,098

24.98%

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

$2.06 Rp 37.3K

$12.17 ฿411

-83.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.73 Rp 339.7K

$20.12 ฿679

-6.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.13 Rp 292.6K

$37.31 ฿1,259

-56.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.31 Rp 150.7K

$3.77 ฿127

120.42%

Cinema Ticket

$1.88 Rp 34.1K

$6.49 ฿219

-71.03%

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

$33.22 Rp 602.5K

$736 ฿24.8K

-95.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,841 Rp 33.4M

$14.8K ฿498.3K

-87.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.8 Rp 1.1M

$53.4 ฿1,801

10.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.70 Rp 665.7K

$24.64 ฿831

48.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.2 Rp 1.2M

$91.5 ฿3,087

-25.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.7 Rp 1.2M

$71.9 ฿2,428

-8.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$223 Rp 4.0M

$482 ฿16.3K

-53.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 Rp 2.7M

$309 ฿10.4K

-52.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$559 Rp 10.1M

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-44.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$367 Rp 6.7M

$633 ฿21.4K

-42.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,102 Rp 20.0M

$2,363 ฿79.8K

-53.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$712 Rp 12.9M

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-55.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$155 Rp 2.8M

$590 ฿19.9K

-73.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

5.57

34.65%

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

Last update for Surakarta: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Surakarta

$147 25%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 59% $87

Accommodation & Living

Surakarta

$147 25%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 110% $162

Clothing & Footwear

Surakarta

$103 17.5%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 5.3% $5.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surakarta

$98 16.7%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 4.1% $4

Eating Out

Surakarta

$57 9.7%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 36% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Surakarta

$20 3.4%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 153% $30

Getting Around

Surakarta

$16 2.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 294% $46

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $223 in Surakarta 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 Chiang Mai are about 3.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $11 in Surakarta versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $147 vs $234 – making Surakarta the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Surakarta

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

15:11 3:11 PM

Same time as Surakarta

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

503,421

127,240

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18,138 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.51 USD). 1 EUR = 20,241 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Surakarta Chiang Mai 3,210 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Surakarta
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

Surakarta vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 59% more than Surakarta, 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 $883 per month in Surakarta 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 Surakarta, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $223 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $33 per month in Surakarta 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 59% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $589 in Surakarta and $936 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Surakarta – 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 Surakarta. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chiang Mai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.