Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Airway Heights, WA and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $2,531 in Airway Heights, WA, rent and utilities included – about $19,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Airway Heights, WA
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Airway Heights, WA Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Airway Heights, WA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,531

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,531 in Airway Heights, WA versus $925 in Chiang Mai.

Airway Heights, WA $2,531
Chiang Mai $925

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,742 in Airway Heights, WA versus $1,414 in Chiang Mai.

Airway Heights, WA $3,742
Chiang Mai $1,414

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,953 in Airway Heights, WA versus $1,903 in Chiang Mai.

Airway Heights, WA $4,953
Chiang Mai $1,903

Living in Airway Heights, WA is roughly 174% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Airway Heights, WA is 87% above, Chiang Mai is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.26 $17.26

$2.29 ฿77.2

653.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.2 $76.2

$19.64 ฿663

288.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.78 $9.78

$5.61 ฿189

74.33%

Cappuccino

$4.26 $4.26

$1.66 ฿56.1

156.63%

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

$2.34 $2.34

$0.70 ฿23.62

234.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 $2.24

$0.31 ฿10.33

622.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.84 $5.84

$2.41 ฿81.2

142.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.07 $6.07

$3.71 ฿125

63.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$1.95 ฿65.9

-51.28%

White Bread (500g)

$3.30 $3.30

$1.41 ฿47.48

134.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.84 $4.84

$1.31 ฿44.04

269.47%

Eggs

$4.42 $4.42

$2.18 ฿73.6

102.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.81 $15.81

$16.65 ฿562

-5.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.02 $10.02

$2.76 ฿93.1

263.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.69 $16.69

$9.11 ฿307

83.21%

Apples (1kg)

$4.99 $4.99

$2.39 ฿80.7

108.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.03 ฿34.59

42.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.37 $5.37

$1.63 ฿54.9

229.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.05 $4.05

$1.50 ฿50.5

170.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.34 $2.34

$1.29 ฿43.54

81.40%

Onion (1kg)

$2.82 $2.82

$1.11 ฿37.38

154.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.95 $1.95

$0.72 ฿24.31

170.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 $1.87

$0.53 ฿17.76

252.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.30 $10.30

$4.31 ฿145

138.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.93 $13.93

$17.95 ฿605

-22.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 $1.79

$1.58 ฿53.4

13.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 $4.37

$2.84 ฿95.9

53.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.98 $1.98

$0.86 ฿29.14

130.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$58.8 $58.8

$53.3 ฿1,798

10.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.12 $5.12

$1.21 ฿40.67

323.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.69 $1.69

$0.57 ฿19.17

196.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.84 $39.84

$2.35 ฿79.4

1595.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 $1.36

$1.44 ฿48.42

-5.56%

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

$27.8K $27.8K

$20.7K ฿699.4K

34.02%

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

$24.5K $24.5K

$26.8K ฿904.2K

-8.71%

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

$136 $136

$62.3 ฿2,103

118.55%

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

$51.7 $51.7

$12.11 ฿409

327.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.1 $70.1

$19.94 ฿673

251.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.39 $40.39

$37.07 ฿1,251

8.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$13.48 $13.48

$6.50 ฿219

107.38%

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

$1,374 $1,374

$793 ฿26.7K

73.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.2K $14.2K

$14.8K ฿499.6K

-4.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 $52.8

$53.7 ฿1,813

-1.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.46 $43.46

$24.62 ฿831

76.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 $105

$90.9 ฿3,065

15.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$145 $145

$71.1 ฿2,400

104.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 $1,589

$455 ฿15.4K

248.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 $1,300

$298 ฿10.0K

336.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,462 $2,462

$908 ฿30.6K

171.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,156 $2,156

$554 ฿18.7K

289.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,888 $2,888

$1,931 ฿65.1K

49.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,183 $2,183

$1,445 ฿48.7K

51.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,269 $4,269

$591 ฿19.9K

622.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.84

5.57

22.80%

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

Last update for Airway Heights, WA: October 18, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Airway Heights, WA

$1.3K 51.4%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 77.1% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Airway Heights, WA

$391 15.5%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 39.8% $156

Eating Out

Airway Heights, WA

$278 11%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 71.8% $200

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Airway Heights, WA

$258 10.2%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 63.4% $164

Clothing & Footwear

Airway Heights, WA

$156 6.2%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 30.6% $48

Getting Around

Airway Heights, WA

$80 3.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 24.3% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Airway Heights, WA

$67 2.7%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 25.7% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,589 in Airway Heights, WA and $455 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Airway Heights, WA pays about 7.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $76 in Airway Heights, WA vs $20 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $391 vs $235 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Airway Heights, WA

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

17:11 5:11 PM

07:11 7:11 AM

14 h ahead of Airway Heights, WA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

10,757

127,240

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.893 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.893 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.8 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

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Airway Heights, WA Chiang Mai 11,780 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Airway Heights, WA
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

Airway Heights, WA vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai wins on cost – living expenses run 63% lower than in Airway Heights, WA. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Chiang Mai the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Airway Heights, WA is about 7.2 times higher, 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: $1,589 in Airway Heights, WA versus $455 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,374 in Airway Heights, WA versus $793 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 66% higher in Airway Heights, WA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Chiang Mai is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Airway Heights, WA 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 63% less than in Airway Heights, WA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.