Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-mawsil and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-mawsil: $597 a month against $935 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Al-mawsil
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Al-mawsil Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Al-mawsil

🇮🇶 Iraq

$597

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $597 in Al-mawsil versus $935 in Chiang Mai.

Al-mawsil $597
Chiang Mai $935

Estimated couple costs with rent: $906 in Al-mawsil versus $1,467 in Chiang Mai.

Al-mawsil $906
Chiang Mai $1,467

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,214 in Al-mawsil versus $1,999 in Chiang Mai.

Al-mawsil $1,214
Chiang Mai $1,999

Living in Al-mawsil costs roughly 36% less than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Al-mawsil 56% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.17 IQD 6,296

$2.13 ฿72.0

95.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.66 IQD 16.1K

$18.62 ฿628

-42.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.81 IQD 7,265

$5.60 ฿189

-14.11%

Cappuccino

$0.68 IQD 1,029

$1.66 ฿56.1

-59.04%

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

$0.32 IQD 482

$0.65 ฿21.83

-50.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.18 IQD 265

$0.30 ฿10.29

-40.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.81 IQD 1,224

$2.32 ฿78.4

-65.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 IQD 2,029

$3.67 ฿124

-63.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.69 IQD 1,037

$2.02 ฿68.0

-65.84%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 IQD 976

$1.41 ฿47.51

-53.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.58 IQD 872

$1.39 ฿46.96

-58.27%

Eggs

$0.95 IQD 1,435

$2.37 ฿79.9

-59.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.22 IQD 10.9K

$16.52 ฿557

-56.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.99 IQD 4,522

$2.67 ฿90.1

11.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.89 IQD 11.9K

$9.02 ฿304

-12.53%

Apples (1kg)

$0.68 IQD 1,031

$2.40 ฿80.9

-71.67%

Banana (1kg)

$0.68 IQD 1,033

$1.04 ฿35.13

-34.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.49 IQD 738

$1.66 ฿56.0

-70.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.24 IQD 364

$1.56 ฿52.6

-84.62%

Potato (1kg)

$0.27 IQD 410

$1.24 ฿41.76

-78.23%

Onion (1kg)

$0.32 IQD 482

$1.09 ฿36.66

-70.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 IQD 911

$0.76 ฿25.70

-21.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 IQD 779

$0.51 ฿17.35

1.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.61 IQD 2,425

$4.12 ฿139

-60.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.80 IQD 16.3K

$17.93 ฿605

-39.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 IQD 2,237

$1.62 ฿54.8

-8.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 IQD 2,810

$2.82 ฿95.2

-34.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 IQD 523

$0.93 ฿31.53

-62.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.92 IQD 39.2K

$52.9 ฿1,785

-50.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 IQD 2,521

$1.18 ฿39.70

41.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 IQD 2,349

$0.17 ฿5.79

811.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 IQD 6,008

$1.81 ฿61.1

119.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.29 IQD 432

$1.47 ฿49.69

-80.27%

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

$13.4K IQD 20.2M

$21.0K ฿708.9K

-36.46%

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

$15.4K IQD 23.3M

$26.5K ฿894.6K

-41.77%

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

$90.9 IQD 137.3K

$62.6 ฿2,111

45.25%

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

$12.11 IQD 18.3K

$11.60 ฿392

4.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.19 IQD 35.0K

$20.30 ฿685

14.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.94 IQD 55.8K

$37.88 ฿1,278

-2.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.70 IQD 10.1K

$3.70 ฿125

81.08%

Cinema Ticket

$6.54 IQD 9,880

$6.51 ฿220

0.46%

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

$295 IQD 445.5K

$727 ฿24.5K

-59.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$589 IQD 889.3K

$16.6K ฿559.2K

-96.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.58 IQD 25.1K

$53.5 ฿1,807

-69.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$13.00 IQD 19.6K

$24.80 ฿837

-47.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.4 IQD 89.7K

$90.4 ฿3,050

-34.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$16.06 IQD 24.3K

$72.0 ฿2,428

-77.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$212 IQD 319.8K

$481 ฿16.2K

-56.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$139 IQD 210.0K

$310 ฿10.5K

-55.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$374 IQD 564.8K

$1,058 ฿35.7K

-64.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$314 IQD 475.0K

$659 ฿22.2K

-52.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$868 IQD 1.3M

$2,418 ฿81.6K

-64.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$491 IQD 741.2K

$1,609 ฿54.3K

-69.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$522 IQD 788.5K

$595 ฿20.1K

-12.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.53

5.57

-54.58%

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

Last update for Al-mawsil: October 31, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Al-mawsil

$139 23.3%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1% 123% $171

Groceries & Markets

Al-mawsil

$133 22.3%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 77.7% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-mawsil

$126 21.1%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 25.1% $32

Eating Out

Al-mawsil

$65 10.8%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 18.5% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Al-mawsil

$50 8.4%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 1.8% $0.9

Clothing & Footwear

Al-mawsil

$47 7.9%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 129% $61

Getting Around

Al-mawsil

$37 6.2%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 59.6% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $212 in Al-mawsil and $481 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chiang Mai pays 14% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $11 in Al-mawsil vs $19 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $133 vs $237 per month, with Al-mawsil cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Al-mawsil

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

23:59 11:59 PM

03:59 3:59 AM

4 h ahead of Al-mawsil

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,683,000

127,240

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.92 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇶 Iraqi Dinar (ع.د)

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,690 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.92 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.73 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Al-mawsil Chiang Mai 5,760 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

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

Al-mawsil is about 36% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 12% lower in Al-mawsil. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $212 in Al-mawsil versus $481 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $295 in Al-mawsil versus $727 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 78% higher in Chiang Mai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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.

Expats usually find Al-mawsil gentler on the wallet – expenses run 36% less than in Chiang Mai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.