Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-musayyib and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-musayyib: $768 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

38

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

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Al-musayyib

🇮🇶 Iraq

$768

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $768 in Al-musayyib versus $936 in Chiang Mai.

Al-musayyib $768
Chiang Mai $936

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,152 in Al-musayyib versus $1,457 in Chiang Mai.

Al-musayyib $1,152
Chiang Mai $1,457

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,536 in Al-musayyib versus $1,979 in Chiang Mai.

Al-musayyib $1,536
Chiang Mai $1,979

Living in Al-musayyib costs roughly 18% less than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Al-musayyib 44% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.50 IQD 6,793

$2.24 ฿75.7

100.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.91 IQD 39.1K

$19.00 ฿642

36.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.43 IQD 9,721

$5.55 ฿188

15.86%

Cappuccino

$2.82 IQD 4,267

$1.67 ฿56.6

68.86%

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

$0.38 IQD 576

$0.64 ฿21.56

-40.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.22 IQD 332

$0.31 ฿10.32

-29.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 IQD 5,026

$2.36 ฿79.6

41.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 IQD 4,904

$3.66 ฿124

-11.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.90 IQD 1,359

$1.95 ฿65.8

-53.85%

White Bread (500g)

$0.67 IQD 1,019

$1.44 ฿48.51

-53.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.30 IQD 1,971

$1.33 ฿45.07

-2.26%

Eggs

$1.29 IQD 1,951

$2.28 ฿77.1

-43.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.42 IQD 5,163

$16.45 ฿556

-79.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.28 IQD 4,962

$2.78 ฿94.0

17.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.03 IQD 15.1K

$9.31 ฿314

7.73%

Apples (1kg)

$1.02 IQD 1,540

$2.35 ฿79.5

-56.60%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 IQD 1,357

$0.97 ฿32.82

-7.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.94 IQD 1,415

$1.60 ฿53.9

-41.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.48 IQD 721

$1.50 ฿50.7

-68.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.54 IQD 817

$1.28 ฿43.15

-57.81%

Onion (1kg)

$0.48 IQD 732

$1.10 ฿37.22

-56.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.48 IQD 730

$0.71 ฿23.84

-32.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.34 IQD 518

$0.49 ฿16.38

-30.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.68 IQD 2,531

$4.14 ฿140

-59.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.98 IQD 18.1K

$17.52 ฿592

-31.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 IQD 2,862

$1.61 ฿54.5

17.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 IQD 2,831

$2.78 ฿94.0

-32.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 IQD 480

$0.87 ฿29.33

-63.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.01 IQD 3,043

$1.16 ฿39.08

73.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 IQD 1,961

$0.53 ฿17.82

145.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.75 IQD 10.2K

$2.42 ฿81.8

178.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.55 IQD 825

$1.45 ฿48.93

-62.07%

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

$16.5K IQD 25.0M

$21.1K ฿711.2K

-21.51%

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

$16.5K IQD 25.0M

$26.9K ฿909.8K

-38.63%

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

$187 IQD 282.9K

$62.2 ฿2,100

201.14%

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

$19.82 IQD 30.0K

$12.17 ฿411

62.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.37 IQD 58.0K

$20.12 ฿680

90.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.70 IQD 50.9K

$37.31 ฿1,260

-9.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$10.19 IQD 15.4K

$6.49 ฿219

57.01%

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

$146 IQD 220.6K

$736 ฿24.9K

-80.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,199 IQD 4.8M

$14.8K ฿498.6K

-78.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.73 IQD 38.9K

$53.4 ฿1,802

-51.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.53 IQD 50.7K

$24.64 ฿832

36.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$58.9 IQD 89.0K

$91.5 ฿3,089

-35.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.11 IQD 62.1K

$71.9 ฿2,429

-42.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$206 IQD 311.9K

$482 ฿16.3K

-57.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$127 IQD 192.6K

$309 ฿10.4K

-58.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$321 IQD 485.3K

$1,006 ฿34.0K

-68.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$308 IQD 465.5K

$633 ฿21.4K

-51.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$974 IQD 1.5M

$2,363 ฿79.8K

-58.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$537 IQD 811.4K

$1,589 ฿53.7K

-66.20%

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-musayyib: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-musayyib

$245 31.9%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 61.5% $151

Groceries & Markets

Al-musayyib

$145 18.9%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 61.3% $89

Accommodation & Living

Al-musayyib

$127 16.6%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 142% $181

Eating Out

Al-musayyib

$115 14.9%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 32.4% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Al-musayyib

$72 9.3%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 51.6% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Al-musayyib

$54 7%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 7% $3.8

Getting Around

Al-musayyib

$9.8 * 1.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 528% $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 $206 in Al-musayyib and $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $26 in Al-musayyib vs $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries flip the comparison at $145 vs $234, with Al-musayyib cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Al-musayyib

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

19:59 7:59 PM

23:59 11:59 PM

4 h ahead of Al-musayyib

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

279,939

127,240

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.95 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 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 October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,682 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.95 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Al-musayyib Chiang Mai 5,630 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

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

Al-musayyib and Chiang Mai differ by about 22% in total monthly costs ($768 vs $936 including rent). Al-musayyib is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,153 in Al-musayyib 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $206 in Al-musayyib versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $146 in Al-musayyib versus $736 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $19 versus $26 in Al-musayyib. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Al-musayyib gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.