Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ajijic and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,327 in Ajijic, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Ajijic
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Ajijic Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Ajijic

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,327

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,327 per month in Ajijic vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ajijic $1,327
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $2,083 per month in Ajijic vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ajijic $2,083
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $2,840 per month in Ajijic vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ajijic $2,840
Chiang Mai $1,979

Ajijic costs about 42% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ajijic and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Ajijic 3% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.36 MX$176

$2.24 ฿75.6

317.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.80 MX$804

$19.00 ฿641

125.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 MX$130

$5.55 ฿187

24.14%

Cappuccino

$3.53 MX$66.4

$1.67 ฿56.5

111.38%

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

$1.58 MX$29.63

$0.64 ฿21.55

146.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.16 MX$21.78

$0.31 ฿10.31

274.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.18 MX$41.03

$2.36 ฿79.6

-7.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 MX$61.8

$3.66 ฿124

-10.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 MX$26.84

$1.95 ฿65.8

-26.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.18 MX$41.00

$1.44 ฿48.48

51.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.09 MX$20.58

$1.33 ฿45.04

-18.05%

Eggs

$2.25 MX$42.24

$2.28 ฿77.1

-1.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.96 MX$150

$16.45 ฿555

-51.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.19 MX$154

$2.78 ฿93.9

194.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.07 MX$133

$9.31 ฿314

-24.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 MX$40.80

$2.35 ฿79.4

-7.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 MX$24.51

$0.97 ฿32.80

34.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.52 MX$28.65

$1.60 ฿53.9

-5.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.68 MX$31.51

$1.50 ฿50.6

12.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 MX$28.28

$1.28 ฿43.12

17.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.39 MX$26.05

$1.10 ฿37.19

26.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 MX$19.18

$0.71 ฿23.82

43.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 MX$16.53

$0.49 ฿16.37

79.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 MX$83.3

$4.14 ฿140

7.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.58 MX$161

$17.52 ฿591

-51.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 MX$28.20

$1.61 ฿54.5

-6.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 MX$24.37

$2.78 ฿94.0

-53.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 MX$12.70

$0.87 ฿29.31

-21.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.9 MX$1,088

$54.1 ฿1,826

6.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.24 MX$23.33

$1.16 ฿39.06

6.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.23 MX$79.4

$0.53 ฿17.80

698.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.75 MX$202

$2.42 ฿81.8

344.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.73

$1.45 ฿48.90

2.07%

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

$24.6K MX$463.2K

$21.1K ฿710.7K

17.03%

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

$23.6K MX$444.3K

$26.9K ฿909.3K

-12.25%

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

$55.2 MX$1,038

$62.2 ฿2,098

-11.15%

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

$14.17 MX$266

$12.17 ฿411

16.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.59 MX$462

$20.12 ฿679

22.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.01 MX$451

$37.31 ฿1,259

-35.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.27 MX$99.1

$3.77 ฿127

39.79%

Cinema Ticket

$4.77 MX$89.6

$6.49 ฿219

-26.50%

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

$211 MX$3,967

$736 ฿24.8K

-71.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,800 MX$52.6K

$14.8K ฿498.3K

-81.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.69 MX$802

$53.4 ฿1,801

-20.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.24 MX$305

$24.64 ฿831

-34.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$66.4 MX$1,249

$91.5 ฿3,087

-27.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.5 MX$1,307

$71.9 ฿2,428

-3.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$844 MX$15.9K

$482 ฿16.3K

75.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$644 MX$12.1K

$309 ฿10.4K

108.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,509 MX$28.4K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

50.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,248 MX$23.5K

$633 ฿21.4K

97.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,324 MX$62.5K

$2,363 ฿79.8K

40.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,782 MX$33.5K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

12.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$548 MX$10.3K

$590 ฿19.9K

-7.14%

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 Ajijic: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ajijic

$644 48.6%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 52% $335

Groceries & Markets

Ajijic

$218 16.4%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 7.6% $16

Eating Out

Ajijic

$166 12.5%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 53.4% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ajijic

$94 7.1%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 0.5% $0.5

Clothing & Footwear

Ajijic

$88 6.6%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 23.9% $21

Getting Around

Ajijic

$83 6.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 26% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Ajijic

$34 2.5%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 49.9% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $844 in Ajijic 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 run about 8% higher in Chiang Mai, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Ajijic versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $218 in Ajijic vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Ajijic wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Ajijic

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

22:40 10:40 PM

11:40 11:40 AM

13 h ahead of Ajijic

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,439

127,240

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 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 MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ajijic Chiang Mai 15,040 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Ajijic
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

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

Yes – Ajijic is pricier by about 42%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,990 per month in Ajijic 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 Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $844 in Ajijic.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Ajijic 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 $1,327 in Ajijic and $936 in Chiang Mai. That makes Chiang Mai about 29% cheaper.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,327 in Ajijic and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $936 versus $1,327 in Ajijic. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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