Cost of living comparison
compared to
Chiang Mai vs. Cape Town Cost of Living Summary
Chiang Mai is 13.6% more expensive than Cape Town.
Chiang Mai vs. Cape Town Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Chiang Mai instead of Cape Town, you would:
pay 30.9% less for restaurants
Cape Town | Chiang Mai | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant | $11.47 ZAR194.88 | $2.02 THB67.29 | |
| Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar | $5.16 ZAR87.70 | $8.05 THB268.66 | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) | $1.20 ZAR20.43 | $0.79 THB26.47 | |
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) | $0.92 ZAR15.59 | $0.34 THB11.34 | |
Cape Town vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of restaurants
pay 14.2% more for groceries
Cape Town | Chiang Mai | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread 1 loaf | $1.14 ZAR19.28 | $1.58 THB52.80 | |
| Local cheese (8 oz) | $4.37 ZAR74.21 | $8.36 THB279.30 | |
| Milk (1 gallon) | $4.50 ZAR76.37 | $6.70 THB223.71 | |
| Eggs 1 dozen | $2.49 ZAR42.34 | $2.07 THB69.02 | |
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) | $2.43 ZAR41.33 | $1.36 THB45.45 | |
| Apples (1 lb) | $0.78 ZAR13.32 | $1.33 THB44.48 | |
| Bananas (1 lb) | $0.76 ZAR12.88 | $0.53 THB17.57 | |
| Oranges (1 lb) | $0.74 ZAR12.59 | $0.79 THB26.46 | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) | $0.78 ZAR13.24 | $0.74 THB24.85 | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) | $0.60 ZAR10.12 | $0.64 THB21.48 | |
| Onions (1 lb) | $0.62 ZAR10.54 | $0.55 THB18.28 | |
Cape Town vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of groceries
pay 2.6% less for transportation
Cape Town | Chiang Mai | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) | $4.73 ZAR80.41 | $4.83 THB161.29 | |
| Monthly public transit pass | $28.68 ZAR487.20 | $19.14 THB639.18 | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | $21,796.50 ZAR370K | $22,478.88 THB751K | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | $10.15 ZAR172.47 | $11.94 THB398.59 | |
Cape Town vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of transportation
pay 50.5% less for housing
Cape Town | Chiang Mai | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl | $42.97 ZAR730.04 | $19.34 THB645.70 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | $838.02 ZAR14,236.08 | $440.41 THB14,705.47 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center | $559.94 ZAR9,512.06 | $249.32 THB8,324.94 | |
| Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating | $91.96 ZAR1,562.12 | $51.23 THB1,710.70 | |
Cape Town vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of housing
pay 2.9 times more for childcare
Cape Town | Chiang Mai | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | $228.00 ZAR3,873.27 | $644.65 THB21,525.39 | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | $5,090.62 ZAR86,478.48 | $15,231.38 THB509K | |
Cape Town vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of childcare
pay 7.9% less for entertainment and sports
Cape Town | Chiang Mai | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) | $2.87 ZAR48.72 | $2.25 THB75.06 | |
| Cappuccino in mid-range area | $2.12 ZAR35.95 | $1.90 THB63.60 | |
| Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar | $3.15 ZAR53.59 | $4.34 THB144.94 | |
| Monthly membership at local gym | $44.05 ZAR748.26 | $35.28 THB1,177.90 | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | $6.88 ZAR116.93 | $5.12 THB170.82 | |
Cape Town vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 18.3% less for clothing
Cape Town | Chiang Mai | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular jeans Levi's brand | $55.23 ZAR938.21 | $62.01 THB2,070.58 | |
| Regular dress from H&M or similar store | $33.91 ZAR576.03 | $19.90 THB664.31 | |
| Running shoes Nike or Adidas | $117.06 ZAR1,988.67 | $93.02 THB3,105.87 | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) | $88.13 ZAR1,497.21 | $67.18 THB2,243.13 | |
Cape Town vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: June 2026
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