Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Kazimiyah and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Al Kazimiyah: $668 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $3,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Al Kazimiyah, Iraq
Chiang Mai, Thailand
Al Kazimiyah
🇮🇶 Iraq
$668
/mo nomad
Chiang Mai
🇹🇭 Thailand
$936
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $668 in Al Kazimiyah versus $936 in Chiang Mai.

  • Al Kazimiyah $668
  • Chiang Mai $936

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,012 in Al Kazimiyah versus $1,457 in Chiang Mai.

  • Al Kazimiyah $1,012
  • Chiang Mai $1,457

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,356 in Al Kazimiyah versus $1,979 in Chiang Mai.

  • Al Kazimiyah $1,356
  • Chiang Mai $1,979

Living in Al Kazimiyah costs roughly 29% less than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Al Kazimiyah 51% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.17 IQD 6,294
$2.24 ฿75.6
86.16%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$19.25 IQD 29.1K
$19.00 ฿641
1.32%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.11 IQD 10.7K
$5.55 ฿187
28.11%
Cappuccino
$2.19 IQD 3,313
$1.67 ฿56.5
31.14%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.37 IQD 564
$0.64 ฿21.54
-42.19%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.20 IQD 296
$0.31 ฿10.31
-35.48%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.54 IQD 5,343
$2.36 ฿79.5
50.00%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.82 IQD 4,264
$3.66 ฿124
-22.95%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.86 IQD 1,303
$1.95 ฿65.7
-55.90%
White Bread (500g)
$0.62 IQD 931
$1.44 ฿48.46
-56.94%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.54 IQD 2,328
$1.33 ฿45.03
15.79%
Eggs
$1.46 IQD 2,205
$2.28 ฿77.1
-35.96%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$4.38 IQD 6,614
$16.45 ฿555
-73.37%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.58 IQD 5,402
$2.78 ฿93.9
28.78%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.05 IQD 19.7K
$9.31 ฿314
40.17%
Apples (1kg)
$1.10 IQD 1,656
$2.35 ฿79.4
-53.19%
Banana (1kg)
$0.86 IQD 1,296
$0.97 ฿32.79
-11.34%
Oranges (1kg)
$0.97 IQD 1,459
$1.60 ฿53.9
-39.38%
Tomato (1kg)
$0.62 IQD 934
$1.50 ฿50.6
-58.67%
Potato (1kg)
$0.59 IQD 893
$1.28 ฿43.11
-53.91%
Onion (1kg)
$0.65 IQD 977
$1.10 ฿37.18
-40.91%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.62 IQD 932
$0.71 ฿23.82
-12.68%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.52 IQD 792
$0.49 ฿16.36
6.12%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$1.46 IQD 2,207
$4.14 ฿140
-64.73%
Wine (Bottle)
$12.06 IQD 18.2K
$17.52 ฿591
-31.16%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.60 IQD 2,415
$1.61 ฿54.5
-0.62%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.65 IQD 2,487
$2.78 ฿93.9
-40.65%
🚌 Getting Around
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.38 IQD 570
$0.87 ฿29.30
-56.32%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$54.1 ฿1,825
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.97 IQD 2,979
$1.16 ฿39.04
69.83%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.19 IQD 1,804
$0.53 ฿17.80
124.53%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.97 IQD 9,014
$2.42 ฿81.7
146.69%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.64 IQD 968
$1.45 ฿48.88
-55.86%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$18.1K IQD 27.4M
$21.1K ฿710.5K
-13.96%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.1K IQD 28.8M
$26.9K ฿909.0K
-29.20%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$81.9 IQD 123.8K
$62.2 ฿2,098
31.77%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.68 IQD 17.6K
$12.17 ฿411
-4.03%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$25.31 IQD 38.2K
$20.12 ฿679
25.80%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$39.65 IQD 59.9K
$37.31 ฿1,259
6.27%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$3.77 ฿127
-
Cinema Ticket
$8.96 IQD 13.5K
$6.49 ฿219
38.06%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$152 IQD 229.6K
$736 ฿24.8K
-79.36%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,394 IQD 3.6M
$14.8K ฿498.2K
-83.79%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$22.57 IQD 34.1K
$53.4 ฿1,801
-57.71%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$22.79 IQD 34.4K
$24.64 ฿831
-7.51%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$53.3 IQD 80.6K
$91.5 ฿3,087
-41.70%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$32.17 IQD 48.6K
$71.9 ฿2,427
-55.28%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$234 IQD 354.1K
$482 ฿16.3K
-51.41%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$154 IQD 233.4K
$309 ฿10.4K
-50.01%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$322 IQD 486.0K
$1,006 ฿33.9K
-68.03%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$294 IQD 444.6K
$633 ฿21.4K
-53.54%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$984 IQD 1.5M
$2,363 ฿79.7K
-58.37%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$564 IQD 852.3K
$1,589 ฿53.6K
-64.50%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Al Kazimiyah
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$590 ฿19.9K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.12
5.57
-26.03%

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

Last update for Al Kazimiyah: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Al Kazimiyah
$162
Chiang Mai
$234 44.9% $73
Accommodation & Living
Al Kazimiyah
$154
Chiang Mai
$309 100% $154
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Al Kazimiyah
$119
Chiang Mai
$94 20.6% $24
Eating Out
Al Kazimiyah
$107
Chiang Mai
$78 27.2% $29
Clothing & Footwear
Al Kazimiyah
$59
Chiang Mai
$109 84.5% $50
Sport & Entertainment
Al Kazimiyah
$58
Chiang Mai
$50 12.7% $7.3
Getting Around
Al Kazimiyah
$9.5 *
Chiang Mai
$61 549% $52

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $234 in Al Kazimiyah and $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $19 in Al Kazimiyah vs $19 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $162 vs $234 per month, with Al Kazimiyah cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇮🇶 Al Kazimiyah
🇹🇭 Chiang Mai
🕒 Local time
09:29 9:29 AM
13:29 1:29 PM
4 h ahead of Al Kazimiyah
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
127,240
💱 Currency
Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,692 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.91 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.78 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Al Kazimiyah Chiang Mai 5,630 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Al Kazimiyah
  • 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 Kazimiyah vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Al Kazimiyah cheaper than Chiang Mai?
Al Kazimiyah is about 29% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
What income do you need for each city?
You’d need roughly $1,001 in Al Kazimiyah and $1,403 in Chiang Mai to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.
What is the rent difference between Al Kazimiyah and Chiang Mai?
Rent for a central apartment: $234 in Al Kazimiyah versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do food prices compare in Al Kazimiyah and in Chiang Mai?
Supermarket bills run roughly 45% higher in Chiang Mai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Childcare runs $152 in Al Kazimiyah versus $736 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Is it better to live in Al Kazimiyah or in Chiang Mai?
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.
Which city is safer, Al Kazimiyah or Chiang Mai?
Safety-wise, Al Kazimiyah and Chiang Mai are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Al Kazimiyah vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?