Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Fujayrah and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $3,206 in Al Fujayrah, rent and utilities included – about $27,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

155

Cost of Living Index in Al Fujayrah
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Al Fujayrah Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Al Fujayrah

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$3,206

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,206 per month in Al Fujayrah vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Al Fujayrah $3,206
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $4,790 per month in Al Fujayrah vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Al Fujayrah $4,790
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $6,373 per month in Al Fujayrah vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Al Fujayrah $6,373
Chiang Mai $1,979

Al Fujayrah costs about 243% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Al Fujayrah sits 136% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.96 AED 29.22

$2.24 ฿75.6

255.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.9 AED 220

$19.00 ฿641

215.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.74 AED 35.76

$5.55 ฿187

75.50%

Cappuccino

$5.81 AED 21.34

$1.67 ฿56.5

247.90%

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

$1.42 AED 5.20

$0.64 ฿21.55

121.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.60 AED 2.21

$0.31 ฿10.31

93.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.72 AED 50.4

$2.36 ฿79.6

481.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.88 AED 51.0

$3.66 ฿124

279.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 AED 6.76

$1.95 ฿65.8

-5.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 AED 4.27

$1.44 ฿48.48

-19.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.52 AED 9.24

$1.33 ฿45.04

89.47%

Eggs

$3.52 AED 12.93

$2.28 ฿77.1

54.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.50 AED 20.19

$16.45 ฿555

-66.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.22 AED 19.19

$2.78 ฿93.9

87.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.78 AED 28.57

$9.31 ฿314

-16.43%

Apples (1kg)

$1.73 AED 6.34

$2.35 ฿79.4

-26.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 AED 4.90

$0.97 ฿32.80

37.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 AED 4.76

$1.60 ฿53.9

-18.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.42 AED 5.20

$1.50 ฿50.6

-5.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 AED 3.62

$1.28 ฿43.12

-22.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.05 AED 3.84

$1.10 ฿37.19

-4.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 AED 4.05

$0.71 ฿23.82

54.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 AED 2.43

$0.49 ฿16.37

34.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.39 AED 23.46

$4.14 ฿140

54.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.41 AED 60.3

$17.52 ฿591

-6.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.62 AED 9.63

$1.61 ฿54.5

62.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 AED 11.03

$2.78 ฿94.0

7.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.88 AED 10.57

$0.87 ฿29.31

231.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.16 AED 59.3

$54.1 ฿1,826

-70.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.77 AED 10.19

$1.16 ฿39.06

138.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.28 AED 1.04

$0.53 ฿17.80

-47.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.69 AED 9.90

$2.42 ฿81.8

11.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.78 AED 2.86

$1.45 ฿48.90

-46.21%

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

$26.3K AED 96.7K

$21.1K ฿710.7K

25.09%

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

$22.0K AED 80.7K

$26.9K ฿909.3K

-18.47%

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

$239 AED 878

$62.2 ฿2,098

284.75%

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

$44.28 AED 163

$12.17 ฿411

263.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$91.6 AED 336

$20.12 ฿679

355.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$96.6 AED 355

$37.31 ฿1,259

158.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.57 AED 109

$3.77 ฿127

684.35%

Cinema Ticket

$9.95 AED 36.55

$6.49 ฿219

53.31%

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

$275 AED 1,009

$736 ฿24.8K

-62.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,443 AED 16.3K

$14.8K ฿498.3K

-69.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.39 AED 108

$53.4 ฿1,801

-44.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.0 AED 202

$24.64 ฿831

123.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 AED 378

$91.5 ฿3,087

12.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.9 AED 297

$71.9 ฿2,428

12.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,379 AED 8,739

$482 ฿16.3K

393.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 AED 7,628

$309 ฿10.4K

572.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,048 AED 18.5K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

401.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,064 AED 14.9K

$633 ฿21.4K

541.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,673 AED 13.5K

$590 ฿19.9K

522.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-64.09%

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

Last update for Al Fujayrah: 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

Al Fujayrah

$2.1K 64.8%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 85.1% $1.8K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al Fujayrah

$375 11.7%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 74.8% $281

Eating Out

Al Fujayrah

$267 8.3%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 70.9% $189

Groceries & Markets

Al Fujayrah

$218 6.8%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 7.3% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Al Fujayrah

$121 3.8%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 10% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Al Fujayrah

$116 3.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 56.8% $66

Getting Around

Al Fujayrah

$32 1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 92.7% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,379 in Al Fujayrah 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 Al Fujayrah are about 6.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60 in Al Fujayrah versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $218 in Al Fujayrah vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Al Fujayrah wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Al Fujayrah

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

17:56 5:56 PM

20:56 8:56 PM

3 h ahead of Al Fujayrah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

118,933

127,240

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.244 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.1 AED (1 AED = 0.244 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Al Fujayrah Chiang Mai 4,450 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Al Fujayrah
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

Al Fujayrah vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al Fujayrah costs about 243% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,810 per month in Al Fujayrah 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 $2,379 in Al Fujayrah.

Kindergarten costs $275 per month in Al Fujayrah and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 7% cheaper in Al Fujayrah – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,206 in Al Fujayrah and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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 Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Al Fujayrah makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.