Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aguascalientes and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,092 in Aguascalientes, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Aguascalientes
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Aguascalientes Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Aguascalientes

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,092

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,092 in Aguascalientes versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

Aguascalientes $1,092
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,731 in Aguascalientes versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

Aguascalientes $1,731
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,369 in Aguascalientes versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

Aguascalientes $2,369
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in Aguascalientes is roughly 16% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Aguascalientes 19% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.38 MX$229

$2.26 ฿75.4

447.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.61 MX$806

$19.18 ฿641

127.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.11 MX$131

$5.59 ฿187

27.19%

Cappuccino

$3.66 MX$67.6

$1.72 ฿57.6

112.79%

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

$1.67 MX$30.86

$0.64 ฿21.54

160.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 MX$23.02

$0.33 ฿11.18

278.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.22 MX$41.02

$2.36 ฿78.7

-5.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.34 MX$61.7

$3.90 ฿130

-14.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 MX$27.63

$2.05 ฿68.6

-26.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.18 MX$40.35

$1.40 ฿46.70

55.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MX$28.40

$1.28 ฿42.89

20.31%

Eggs

$2.48 MX$45.90

$2.25 ฿75.3

10.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.06 MX$149

$16.94 ฿566

-52.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.17 MX$151

$2.74 ฿91.6

198.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.64 MX$215

$9.36 ฿313

24.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.22 MX$40.93

$2.40 ฿80.3

-7.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.32 MX$24.42

$1.01 ฿33.92

30.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 MX$28.51

$1.61 ฿53.9

-4.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.69 MX$31.21

$1.52 ฿50.7

11.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 MX$28.92

$1.28 ฿42.90

22.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 MX$26.06

$1.11 ฿37.22

27.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 MX$18.90

$0.72 ฿24.09

41.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 MX$15.61

$0.52 ฿17.54

61.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.49 MX$83.0

$4.33 ฿145

3.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.92 MX$165

$17.73 ฿593

-49.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 MX$33.90

$1.63 ฿54.4

12.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 MX$61.3

$2.85 ฿95.3

16.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 MX$11.62

$0.85 ฿28.31

-25.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.57 MX$454

$53.9 ฿1,801

-54.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.26 MX$23.28

$1.17 ฿39.18

7.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.10 MX$20.36

$0.57 ฿19.00

92.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.79 MX$199

$2.37 ฿79.2

355.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$28.16

$1.45 ฿48.32

4.83%

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

$21.5K MX$396.5K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

4.79%

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

$23.7K MX$437.8K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

-10.64%

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

$55.3 MX$1,023

$62.3 ฿2,083

-11.23%

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

$24.53 MX$453

$12.27 ฿410

99.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.95 MX$461

$19.97 ฿668

24.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.67 MX$585

$37.91 ฿1,267

-16.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.89 MX$405

$3.76 ฿126

482.18%

Cinema Ticket

$5.21 MX$96.4

$6.71 ฿224

-22.35%

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

$211 MX$3,894

$797 ฿26.6K

-73.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,871 MX$53.0K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-80.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.1 MX$1,018

$53.3 ฿1,780

3.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.63 MX$695

$25.05 ฿837

50.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 MX$1,900

$91.6 ฿3,062

12.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.4 MX$1,319

$73.5 ฿2,455

-2.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$502 MX$9,285

$464 ฿15.5K

8.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$356 MX$6,577

$305 ฿10.2K

16.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$806 MX$14.9K

$915 ฿30.6K

-11.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$628 MX$11.6K

$552 ฿18.5K

13.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,163 MX$21.5K

$1,912 ฿63.9K

-39.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,194 MX$22.1K

$1,438 ฿48.1K

-16.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$854 MX$15.8K

$595 ฿19.9K

43.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.2

5.57

101.08%

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

Last update for Aguascalientes: October 10, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Aguascalientes

$356 32.6%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 14.4% $51

Groceries & Markets

Aguascalientes

$242 22.1%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 1.6% $3.8

Eating Out

Aguascalientes

$194 17.7%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 59.2% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Aguascalientes

$120 11%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 8.8% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aguascalientes

$105 9.6%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 9.8% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Aguascalientes

$42 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 21.9% $9.2

Getting Around

Aguascalientes

$34 3.1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 81.1% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $502 in Aguascalientes and $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aguascalientes pays 43% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $44.00 in Aguascalientes vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $242 vs $238 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Aguascalientes

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

10:40 10:40 AM

23:40 11:40 PM

13 h ahead of Aguascalientes

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

863,893

127,240

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Aguascalientes Chiang Mai 14,930 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Aguascalientes
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

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

Chiang Mai is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 16% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 43% higher in Aguascalientes, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $502 in Aguascalientes versus $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Chiang Mai runs roughly 119% less than in Aguascalientes. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $211 in Aguascalientes versus $797 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $1,092 in Aguascalientes, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Aguascalientes. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Chiang Mai is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Aguascalientes, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Aguascalientes and Chiang Mai are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Aguascalientes. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.