Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aizawl and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Aizawl: $363 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

17

Cost of Living Index in Aizawl
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Aizawl Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Aizawl

🇮🇳 India

$363

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $363 per month in Aizawl vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Aizawl $363
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $583 per month in Aizawl vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Aizawl $583
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $802 per month in Aizawl vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Aizawl $802
Chiang Mai $1,979

Aizawl is about 61% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Aizawl and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Aizawl 73% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.07 ₹197

$2.24 ฿75.6

-7.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.55 ₹1,002

$19.00 ฿641

-44.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.58 ₹340

$5.55 ฿187

-35.50%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ₹158

$1.67 ฿56.5

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

$0.32 ₹30.72

$0.64 ฿21.55

-50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.15 ₹13.94

$0.31 ฿10.31

-51.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.38 ₹226

$2.36 ฿79.6

0.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ₹269

$3.66 ฿124

-22.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.76 ₹71.8

$1.95 ฿65.8

-61.03%

White Bread (500g)

$0.55 ₹51.8

$1.44 ฿48.48

-61.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.63 ₹60.0

$1.33 ฿45.04

-52.63%

Eggs

$0.91 ₹86.7

$2.28 ฿77.1

-60.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.02 ₹477

$16.45 ฿555

-69.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.93 ₹373

$2.78 ฿93.9

41.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₹181

$2.35 ฿79.4

-19.15%

Banana (1kg)

$0.64 ₹60.6

$0.97 ฿32.80

-34.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.95 ₹89.8

$1.60 ฿53.9

-40.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.45 ₹43.09

$1.50 ฿50.6

-70.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 ₹31.39

$1.28 ฿43.12

-74.22%

Onion (1kg)

$0.40 ₹38.05

$1.10 ฿37.19

-63.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.40 ₹38.44

$0.71 ฿23.82

-43.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.19 ₹18.06

$0.49 ฿16.37

-61.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.03 ₹477

$4.14 ฿140

21.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.79 ₹644

$17.52 ฿591

-61.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 ₹158

$1.61 ฿54.5

3.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.96 ₹281

$2.78 ฿94.0

6.47%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.96 ₹471

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 ₹22.68

$0.87 ฿29.31

-72.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.10 ₹579

$54.1 ฿1,826

-88.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 ₹76.5

$1.16 ฿39.06

-30.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.27 ₹25.55

$0.53 ฿17.80

-49.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.39 ₹132

$2.42 ฿81.8

-42.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ₹105

$1.45 ฿48.90

-23.45%

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

$9,805 ₹930.9K

$21.1K ฿710.7K

-53.44%

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

$22.1K ₹2.1M

$26.9K ฿909.3K

-17.91%

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

$36.75 ₹3,489

$62.2 ฿2,098

-40.89%

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

$3.57 ₹339

$12.17 ฿411

-70.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.53 ₹620

$20.12 ฿679

-67.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$14.21 ₹1,350

$37.31 ฿1,259

-61.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.62 ₹629

$3.77 ฿127

75.60%

Cinema Ticket

$2.97 ₹282

$6.49 ฿219

-54.24%

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

$45.67 ₹4,335

$736 ฿24.8K

-93.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,529 ₹145.1K

$14.8K ฿498.3K

-89.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$21.88 ₹2,078

$53.4 ฿1,801

-59.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.92 ₹2,271

$24.64 ฿831

-2.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$38.25 ₹3,632

$91.5 ฿3,087

-58.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$28.08 ₹2,666

$71.9 ฿2,428

-60.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$103 ₹9,813

$482 ฿16.3K

-78.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$62.9 ₹5,975

$309 ฿10.4K

-79.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$255 ₹24.2K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-74.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$160 ₹15.2K

$633 ฿21.4K

-74.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,015 ₹96.3K

$2,363 ฿79.8K

-57.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$500 ₹47.5K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-68.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$263 ₹25.0K

$590 ฿19.9K

-55.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.86

5.57

59.07%

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

Last update for Aizawl: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Aizawl

$107 29.4%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 120% $128

Eating Out

Aizawl

$67 18.4%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 16.2% $11

Accommodation & Living

Aizawl

$63 17.3%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 391% $246

Clothing & Footwear

Aizawl

$50 13.9%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 115% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aizawl

$47 12.9%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 102% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Aizawl

$20 5.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 149% $30

Getting Around

Aizawl

$9.2 2.5%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 567% $52

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $103 in Aizawl versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Chiang Mai are about 2.2 times higher, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $11 in Aizawl versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $107 vs $234 – making Aizawl the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Aizawl

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

11:15 11:15 AM

12:45 12:45 PM

1 h 30 min ahead of Aizawl

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

291,822

127,240

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 94.94 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Aizawl Chiang Mai 850 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Aizawl
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

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

Yes – Chiang Mai is pricier by about 158%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $545 per month in Aizawl and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Aizawl, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $103 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $11 in Aizawl and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $363 in Aizawl and $936 in Chiang Mai. That makes Aizawl about 61% cheaper.

Families tend to lean toward Aizawl – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Aizawl. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chiang Mai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.