Cost of living comparison
compared to
Chiang Mai vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
Chiang Mai is 45.0% cheaper than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 67.3% less in Chiang Mai
- Groceries
-
pay 36.5% less in Chiang Mai
- Transportation
-
pay 23.0% less in Chiang Mai
- Housing
-
pay 73.5% less in Chiang Mai
- Childcare
-
pay 43.9% less in Chiang Mai
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 54.9% less in Chiang Mai
- Clothing
-
pay 16.2% less in Chiang Mai
Expenses including housing, restaurants, entertainment and sports, childcare, groceries, and transportation are lower in Chiang Mai.
Chiang Mai vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Chiang Mai instead of United States, you would:
pay 67.3% less for restaurants
|
United States
|
Chiang Mai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.45
|
$2.02
THB63.48
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.12
|
$8.05
THB253.44
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$0.79
THB24.97
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$0.34
THB10.70
|
|
United States vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of restaurants
pay 36.5% less for groceries
|
United States
|
Chiang Mai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.56
|
$1.58
THB49.81
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.50
|
$8.36
THB263.48
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.97
|
$6.70
THB211.04
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.27
|
$2.07
THB65.11
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.41
|
$1.36
THB42.88
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$1.33
THB41.96
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.53
THB16.58
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$0.79
THB24.97
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$0.74
THB23.45
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$0.64
THB20.27
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$0.55
THB17.24
|
|
United States vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of groceries
pay 23.0% less for transportation
|
United States
|
Chiang Mai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.41
|
$4.83
THB152.16
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.85
|
$19.14
THB602.99
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,336.38
|
$22,478.88
THB708,083.21
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.61
|
$11.94
THB376.02
|
|
United States vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of transportation
pay 73.5% less for housing
|
United States
|
Chiang Mai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.97
|
$19.34
THB609.13
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,664.59
|
$440.41
THB13,872.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,416.15
|
$249.32
THB7,853.55
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.19
|
$51.23
THB1,613.83
|
|
United States vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of housing
pay 43.9% less for childcare
|
United States
|
Chiang Mai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,387.27
|
$644.65
THB20,306.52
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,196.46
|
$15,231.38
THB479,787.41
|
|
United States vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of childcare
pay 54.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Chiang Mai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
|
$2.25
THB70.81
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.15
|
$1.90
THB60.00
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.90
|
$4.34
THB136.73
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.45
|
$35.28
THB1,111.20
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.64
|
$5.12
THB161.15
|
|
United States vs. Chiang Mai - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 16.2% less for clothing
|
United States
|
Chiang Mai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.08
|
$62.01
THB1,953.33
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.81
|
$19.90
THB626.69
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.56
|
$93.02
THB2,930.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.04
|
$67.18
THB2,116.11
|
|
United States 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: December 2025
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in United States vs. Thailand.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United States and Thailand.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Chiang Mai or United States. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.