Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Albay and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Albay: $729 a month against $925 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Albay
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Albay Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Albay

🇵🇭 Philippines

$729

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $729 in Albay versus $925 in Chiang Mai.

Albay $729
Chiang Mai $925

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,108 in Albay versus $1,414 in Chiang Mai.

Albay $1,108
Chiang Mai $1,414

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,487 in Albay versus $1,903 in Chiang Mai.

Albay $1,487
Chiang Mai $1,903

Living in Albay costs roughly 21% less than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Albay 46% lower, Chiang Mai 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.78 ₱242

$2.29 ฿77.3

65.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.81 ₱1,074

$19.64 ฿664

-14.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.82 ₱180

$5.61 ฿190

-49.73%

Cappuccino

$2.19 ₱140

$1.66 ฿56.2

31.93%

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

$0.63 ₱40.22

$0.70 ฿23.65

-10.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ₱21.13

$0.31 ฿10.35

6.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.12 ₱71.7

$2.41 ฿81.3

-53.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 ₱127

$3.71 ฿126

-46.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 ₱103

$1.95 ฿66.0

-17.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.12 ₱71.8

$1.41 ฿47.55

-20.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.96 ₱61.4

$1.31 ฿44.10

-26.72%

Eggs

$1.88 ₱120

$2.18 ฿73.7

-13.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.70 ₱365

$16.65 ฿563

-65.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.21 ₱269

$2.76 ฿93.2

52.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.95 ₱445

$9.11 ฿308

-23.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.33 ₱149

$2.39 ฿80.9

-2.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 ₱99.7

$1.03 ฿34.64

51.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.42 ₱155

$1.63 ฿55.0

48.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.17 ₱75.1

$1.50 ฿50.6

-22.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 ₱123

$1.29 ฿43.61

49.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.96 ₱125

$1.11 ฿37.44

76.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.98 ₱62.4

$0.72 ฿24.35

36.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₱34.46

$0.53 ฿17.79

1.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.90 ₱186

$4.31 ฿146

-32.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.69 ₱491

$17.95 ฿606

-57.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₱61.4

$1.58 ฿53.5

-39.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 ₱125

$2.84 ฿96.1

-31.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 ₱15.19

$0.86 ฿29.18

-72.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.21 ₱717

$53.3 ฿1,800

-78.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱47.17

$1.21 ฿40.73

-38.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.72

$0.57 ฿19.20

-59.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.93 ₱124

$2.35 ฿79.5

-17.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 ₱79.1

$1.44 ฿48.49

-13.89%

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

$21.2K ₱1.4M

$20.7K ฿700.5K

2.34%

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

$18.9K ₱1.2M

$26.8K ฿905.6K

-29.41%

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

$124 ₱7,929

$62.3 ฿2,106

99.01%

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

$15.06 ₱963

$12.11 ฿409

24.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.69 ₱1,578

$19.94 ฿674

23.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.74 ₱2,093

$37.07 ฿1,252

-11.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.58 ₱293

$3.78 ฿128

21.16%

Cinema Ticket

$5.24 ₱335

$6.50 ฿220

-19.38%

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

$131 ₱8,392

$793 ฿26.8K

-83.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,896 ₱504.8K

$14.8K ฿500.3K

-46.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.24 ₱2,125

$53.7 ฿1,816

-38.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.61 ₱1,254

$24.62 ฿832

-20.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.4 ₱4,500

$90.9 ฿3,070

-22.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$56.3 ₱3,596

$71.1 ฿2,404

-20.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$261 ₱16.7K

$455 ฿15.4K

-42.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$170 ₱10.9K

$298 ฿10.1K

-42.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$512 ₱32.7K

$908 ฿30.7K

-43.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$351 ₱22.5K

$554 ฿18.7K

-36.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,446 ₱156.4K

$1,931 ฿65.2K

26.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$974 ₱62.3K

$1,445 ฿48.8K

-32.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$162 ₱10.3K

$591 ฿20.0K

-72.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

5.57

21.90%

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

Last update for Albay: October 18, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Albay

$178 24.5%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 32% $57

Accommodation & Living

Albay

$170 23.3%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 75.2% $128

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Albay

$164 22.5%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 42.4% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Albay

$81 11.1%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 33.9% $27

Eating Out

Albay

$78 10.8%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 0.2% $0.1

Sport & Entertainment

Albay

$43 5.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 15.8% $6.8

Getting Around

Albay

$14 1.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 333% $47

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $261 in Albay and $455 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chiang Mai pays about 3.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $17 in Albay vs $20 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $178 vs $235 per month, with Albay cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Albay

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

23:11 11:11 PM

22:11 10:11 PM

1 h behind Albay

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

179,481

127,240

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.56 USD

100 PHP = 1.39 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 63.93 PHP (100 PHP = 1.56 USD). 1 EUR = 71.73 PHP (100 PHP = 1.39 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.79 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.91 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Albay Chiang Mai 2,720 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Albay
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

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

Albay and Chiang Mai differ by about 27% in total monthly costs ($729 vs $925 including rent). Albay is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 73% lower in Albay. 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: $261 in Albay versus $455 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Chiang Mai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Albay – a meal for two runs $17 versus $20 in Chiang Mai. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Albay 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.

Expats usually find Albay gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Chiang Mai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.