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Chiang Mai cost of living

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Nomad score 7.7/10

18.7883, 98.9859 Asia/Bangkok #389

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Researched Updated Oct 25, 2026 Last changed Oct 31, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost
Housing 6 7 8 $596 $418 $467 $358 $30
Utilities 1 6 $95 $55 $60 $39 —
Internet & Mobile 1 3 $56 $30 $45 $30 $0
Groceries 15 16 17 18 1 $95 $175 $455 $125 $6
Transportation 1 11 12 $131 $75 $180 $49 $11
Dining Out 1 10 $157 $125 $220 $76 $11
Leisure Activities 19 24 1 10 $127 $84 $2,631 $77 $12
Health Insurance 4 $68 $75 $270 $24 $2
Visa & Legal Fees 5 14 $23 $30 $92 — —
Total $1,348 $1,067 $4,420 $778 $72

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) 6 7 8 $357.57 $358 – $775 per month
Coworking Space 10 $93.91 per month
Airbnb (1 month) 6 7 8 $596.27 $447 – $775 per month
Coliving Space 6 9 $298.22 per month

Food & Dining

Coffee 22 $3.88 per cup
Beer 1 10 $2.42 per pint
Meal (Inexpensive) 1 $1.99 per meal
Fast Food Combo 20 1 $7.01 per meal
Apples 18 $1.09 per kg
Bread 1 6 $1.67 per loaf
Milk 1 $1.85 per liter
Rice 16 $1.15 per kg
Chicken Fillets 15 $2.45 per kg
Beef 17 $5.82 per kg
Wine (Mid-range) 1 $16.90 per bottle
Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 1 10 $19.70 per meal
Water (1.5L bottle) 1 $0.48 per bottle

Transportation

Taxi Start 23 12 $1.04 per trip
Taxi per km 23 12 $0.19 per km
Monthly Transport Pass 12 $25.05 per month
Gasoline 25 2 $1.51 per liter
Ride-hailing (5km) 23 $2.42 per trip
Scooter Rental 11 $86.55 per month

Services

Mobile Plan 3 $11.25 per month
Internet (60 Mbps+) 1 3 $18.70 per month
Gym Membership 19 $59.99 per month
Tennis Court (Weekend) 1 $11.93 per hour
SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 3 $8.92 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket 24 $7.75 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans 21 $38.47 per pair
Summer Dress 1 $35.78 per dress
Running Shoes 1 6 $93.60 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut 1 6 $4.23 per visit
Laundry 1 $1.49 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) 1 4 $19.10 per visit
Pharmacy (basic meds) 1 $1.23 per purchase

About these costs

Method
Researched
Last updated
Oct 25, 2026
Last changed
Oct 31, 2026
Exchange rate
1 USD = 33.532 THB on Oct 19, 2026

Checked against the sources below and compared with similar cities. Numbers in the list point to these sources.

Compared with Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Bangkok

  1. Livingcost Chiang Mai crowdsourced basket (updated Jun 2026)Index
  2. Thailand gasoline THB 50.51/L, 19 Oct 2026Index
  3. AIS Tourist SIM 299/8-day and 1250/30-day plansOfficial
  4. SafetyWing Essential USD 62.72 per 4 weeksOfficial
  5. Destination Thailand Visa fee GBP 300Official
  6. Chiang Mai rental catalogue Oct 2026Listings
  7. Escent Park Ville 1BR ฿12,000/mo Fa HamListings
  8. Liv@Nimman furnished 1BR ฿26,000/mo SuthepListings
  9. Chayayon Condo studio ฿8,000/mo SuthepListings
  10. Punspace monthly membership ฿3,149Secondary
  11. Honda Click 125i monthly scooter rentalListings
  12. Songthaew ฿30 pp; metered taxi counter faresSecondary
  13. 30-day visa-exempt tourism stays from Sep 2026Official
  14. Destination Thailand Visa programme pageOfficial
  15. Makro boneless breast trimmed ฿82/kgListings
  16. Makro Benjarong jasmine rice 5 kg ฿192Listings
  17. Makro MENA FOOD frozen minced beef 1 kg ฿195Listings
  18. Makro Chinese Fuji Apple 10-pack ฿95 (2.6 kg tray)Listings
  19. Fitness First Home Club from ฿2,011.60/moOfficial
  20. McDonald’s Thailand Big Mac meal setsOfficial
  21. Uniqlo Slim Straight Jeans ฿1,290Listings
  22. Starbucks Thailand Caffè Latte Tall ฿130Secondary
  23. Bangkok taxi meter ฿35 first km, ฿6.50/km (1–10 km)Official
  24. Major Cineplex regular seat ฿260 (Jul 2025)Secondary
  25. Caltex Gasohol 95 ฿50.61/L retail boardOfficial

Change history

    • Method Generated Researched
    • Airbnb (1 month) 852.89 596.27
    • Apartment (1 bedroom) 441.68 357.57
    • Apples 2.89 1.09
    • Beef 12.79 5.82
    • Beer 2.74 2.42
    40 more changes
    • Bread 1.68 1.67
    • Chicken Fillets 5.64 2.45
    • Cinema Ticket 7.31 7.75
    • Coffee 2.28 3.88
    • Coliving Space 593.98 298.22
    • Coworking Space 115.75 93.91
    • Dining Out local 91.38, nomad 456.91, expat 274.14, family 548.29, tourist 36.55 local 76, nomad 156.57, expat 125, family 220, tourist 10.74
    • Doctor Visit (GP) 36.55 19.1
    • Fast Food Combo 6.7 7.01
    • Gasoline 1.2 1.51
    • Groceries local 137.07, nomad 91.38, expat 243.68, family 548.29, tourist 4.57 local 125, nomad 95, expat 175, family 455, tourist 5.5
    • Gym Membership 48.74 59.99
    • Haircut 12.18 4.23
    • Health Insurance local 15.23, nomad 76.15, expat 106.61, family 365.52, tourist 3.05 local 23.86, nomad 67.69, expat 74.55, family 270, tourist 2.26
    • Housing local 167.53, nomad 670.13, expat 426.45, family 1066.11, tourist 45.69 local 357.57, nomad 596.27, expat 417.72, family 467, tourist 29.82
    • Internet & Mobile local 18.28, nomad 258.91, expat 33.51, family 67.01, tourist 1.52 local 29.95, nomad 55.98, family 44.94, tourist 0.3
    • Internet (60 Mbps+) 21.02 18.7
    • Jeans 54.83 38.47
    • Laundry 1.83 1.49
    • Leisure Activities local 30.46, nomad 182.76, expat 152.3, family 304.6, tourist 24.37 local 76.69, nomad 126.79, expat 83.85, family 2631, tourist 11.93
    • Meal (Inexpensive) 1.83 1.99
    • Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 27.41 19.7
    • Milk 3.2 1.85
    • Mobile Plan 19.8 11.25
    • Monthly Transport Pass 27.41 25.05
    • Pharmacy (basic meds) 4.57 1.23
    • Rice 1.37 1.15
    • Ride-hailing (5km) 3.66 2.42
    • Running Shoes 88.34 93.6
    • SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 15.2 8.92
    • Scooter Rental 106.61 86.55
    • Summer Dress 28.94 35.78
    • Taxi Start 1.52 1.04
    • Taxi per km 0.37 0.19
    • Tennis Court (Weekend) 10.66 11.93
    • Transportation local 45.69, nomad 137.07, expat 106.61, family 365.52, tourist 12.18 local 48.91, nomad 131.28, expat 75, family 180, tourist 10.74
    • Utilities local 36.55, nomad 106.61, expat 85.29, family 197.99, tourist 0 local 38.7, nomad 95.43, expat 55, family 59.9, tourist 0
    • Visa & Legal Fees local 0, nomad 60.92, expat 45.69, family 121.84, tourist 1.22 local 0, nomad 22.92, expat 30, family 91.68
    • Water (1.5L bottle) 0.55 0.48
    • Wine (Mid-range) 22.85 16.9

    Apples, Beef, Chicken Fillets, Cinema Ticket, Coffee, Gym Membership, Jeans, Leisure Activities (local, nomad, expat), Ride-hailing (5km), Rice, Taxi Start, and Taxi per km moved to operator/listing tariffs (makro.pro, fitnessfirst.com, allaboutbotstore.com, thailand.go.th, caltex.com)

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