Cost of living comparison

compared to

Chiang Mai vs. Phnom Penh Cost of Living Summary

Chiang Mai is 22.2% more expensive than Phnom Penh.

Restaurants: pay 30.6% less in Chiang Mai
Groceries: pay 15.0% less in Chiang Mai
Transportation: pay 22.2% more in Chiang Mai
Housing: pay 16.3% less in Chiang Mai
Childcare: pay 2.2 times more in Chiang Mai
Entertainment and Sports: pay 42.8% more in Chiang Mai
Clothing: pay 35.9% more in Chiang Mai

The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, clothing, and transportation in Chiang Mai are more expensive than in Phnom Penh. Expenses including restaurants, housing, and groceries are lower in Chiang Mai. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Chiang Mai.

Chiang Mai vs. Phnom Penh Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Chiang Mai instead of Phnom Penh, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 30.6% less for restaurants

	Phnom Penh	Chiang Mai
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$5.00 KHR20,018.85	$2.02 THB64.12	-59.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.00 KHR28,026.39	$8.05 THB255.99	+14.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.93 KHR3,721.15	$0.79 THB25.23	-14.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.91 KHR3,656.62	$0.34 THB10.80	-62.8%
Average			-30.6%

Phnom Penh vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of restaurants

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pay 15.0% less for groceries

	Phnom Penh	Chiang Mai
Bread 1 loaf	$1.65 KHR6,608.28	$1.58 THB50.31	-4.2%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.70 KHR26,825.26	$8.36 THB266.13	+24.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$8.17 KHR32,701.82	$6.70 THB213.16	-18.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.82 KHR7,282.41	$2.07 THB65.77	+13.6%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.01 KHR8,041.21	$1.36 THB43.31	-32.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.81 KHR7,249.19	$1.33 THB42.38	-26.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.88 KHR3,541.36	$0.53 THB16.74	-40.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.91 KHR7,663.87	$0.79 THB25.22	-58.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.73 KHR2,942.05	$0.74 THB23.68	+1.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.88 KHR3,511.09	$0.64 THB20.47	-26.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.54 KHR2,149.03	$0.55 THB17.42	+2.0%
Average			-15.0%

Phnom Penh vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of groceries

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pay 22.2% more for transportation

	Phnom Penh	Chiang Mai
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.33 KHR17,336.51	$4.83 THB153.69	+11.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$9.60 KHR38,436.20	$19.14 THB609.04	+99.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$49,000.00 KHR196,184,757.29	$22,478.88 THB715,197.55	-54.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$9.05 KHR36,245.37	$11.94 THB379.79	+31.9%
Average			+22.2%

Phnom Penh vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of transportation

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pay 16.3% less for housing

	Phnom Penh	Chiang Mai
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$21.29 KHR85,223.90	$19.34 THB615.25	-9.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$481.60 KHR1,928,225.26	$440.41 THB14,012.16	-8.6%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$273.92 KHR1,096,705.90	$249.32 THB7,932.45	-9.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$82.99 KHR332,257.04	$51.23 THB1,630.04	-38.3%
Average			-16.3%

Phnom Penh vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of housing

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pay 2.2 times more for childcare

	Phnom Penh	Chiang Mai
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$293.33 KHR1,174,439.36	$644.65 THB20,510.55	+119.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$7,141.67 KHR28,593,594.73	$15,231.38 THB484,607.99	+113.3%
Average			+116.5%

Phnom Penh vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of childcare

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pay 42.8% more for entertainment and sports

	Phnom Penh	Chiang Mai
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.21 KHR4,837.39	$2.25 THB71.52	+86.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.53 KHR10,114.79	$1.90 THB60.60	-24.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.88 KHR7,507.07	$4.34 THB138.11	+131.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$41.67 KHR166,823.77	$35.28 THB1,122.37	-15.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.75 KHR15,014.14	$5.12 THB162.77	+36.4%
Average			+42.8%

Phnom Penh vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 35.9% more for clothing

	Phnom Penh	Chiang Mai
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$25.75 KHR103,097.09	$62.01 THB1,972.96	+140.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$23.33 KHR93,421.31	$19.90 THB632.99	-14.7%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$88.00 KHR352,331.81	$93.02 THB2,959.44	+5.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$60.20 KHR241,026.99	$67.18 THB2,137.37	+11.6%
Average			+35.9%

Phnom Penh vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of clothing

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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: December 2025

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