Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between 'aqrah and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in 'aqrah: $661 a month against $938 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in 'aqrah
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'aqrah Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

'aqrah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$661

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $661 in 'aqrah versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

'aqrah $661
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,015 in 'aqrah versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

'aqrah $1,015
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,369 in 'aqrah versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

'aqrah $1,369
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in 'aqrah costs roughly 30% less than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: 'aqrah 51% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.62 IQD 5,467

$2.26 ฿75.3

60.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.82 IQD 33.0K

$19.18 ฿641

13.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.82 IQD 10.3K

$5.59 ฿187

22.00%

Cappuccino

$2.38 IQD 3,602

$1.72 ฿57.6

38.37%

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

$0.32 IQD 485

$0.64 ฿21.53

-50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.18 IQD 273

$0.33 ฿11.17

-45.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.11 IQD 4,706

$2.36 ฿78.7

31.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.61 IQD 3,945

$3.90 ฿130

-33.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.94 IQD 1,416

$2.05 ฿68.6

-54.15%

White Bread (500g)

$0.72 IQD 1,086

$1.40 ฿46.68

-48.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.46 IQD 2,205

$1.28 ฿42.87

14.06%

Eggs

$1.70 IQD 2,573

$2.25 ฿75.2

-24.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.48 IQD 5,252

$16.94 ฿566

-79.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.16 IQD 6,291

$2.74 ฿91.6

51.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.31 IQD 20.1K

$9.36 ฿313

42.20%

Apples (1kg)

$0.92 IQD 1,383

$2.40 ฿80.2

-61.67%

Banana (1kg)

$0.91 IQD 1,375

$1.01 ฿33.90

-9.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.77 IQD 1,161

$1.61 ฿53.9

-52.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.66 IQD 990

$1.52 ฿50.7

-56.58%

Potato (1kg)

$0.54 IQD 809

$1.28 ฿42.87

-57.81%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 IQD 965

$1.11 ฿37.20

-42.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.51 IQD 776

$0.72 ฿24.08

-29.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 IQD 756

$0.52 ฿17.53

-3.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.57 IQD 2,368

$4.33 ฿145

-63.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.92 IQD 16.5K

$17.73 ฿592

-38.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 IQD 2,003

$1.63 ฿54.4

-18.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 IQD 2,800

$2.85 ฿95.3

-35.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.45 IQD 679

$0.85 ฿28.29

-47.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.50 IQD 26.4K

$53.9 ฿1,800

-67.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.89 IQD 2,859

$1.17 ฿39.15

61.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.39 IQD 2,099

$0.57 ฿18.99

143.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.15 IQD 7,788

$2.37 ฿79.1

117.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.48 IQD 727

$1.45 ฿48.29

-66.90%

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

$16.9K IQD 25.5M

$20.5K ฿683.9K

-17.52%

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

$19.4K IQD 29.3M

$26.5K ฿885.5K

-26.87%

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

$80.2 IQD 121.1K

$62.3 ฿2,082

28.59%

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

$13.58 IQD 20.5K

$12.27 ฿410

10.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.25 IQD 41.2K

$19.97 ฿667

36.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.01 IQD 55.9K

$37.91 ฿1,266

-2.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿125

Cinema Ticket

$8.39 IQD 12.7K

$6.71 ฿224

25.04%

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

$142 IQD 213.9K

$797 ฿26.6K

-82.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,656 IQD 4.0M

$14.8K ฿495.4K

-82.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.08 IQD 33.4K

$53.3 ฿1,779

-58.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.85 IQD 36.0K

$25.05 ฿837

-4.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$47.26 IQD 71.4K

$91.6 ฿3,060

-48.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$31.06 IQD 46.9K

$73.5 ฿2,454

-57.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$184 IQD 277.8K

$464 ฿15.5K

-60.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$141 IQD 213.2K

$305 ฿10.2K

-53.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$358 IQD 541.4K

$915 ฿30.6K

-60.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$278 IQD 419.4K

$552 ฿18.4K

-49.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$779 IQD 1.2M

$1,912 ฿63.9K

-59.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$642 IQD 970.8K

$1,438 ฿48.0K

-55.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.33

5.57

-40.22%

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

Last update for 'aqrah: October 13, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

'aqrah

$160 24.2%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 48.8% $78

Accommodation & Living

'aqrah

$141 21.4%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 116% $164

Monthly Utilities & Internet

'aqrah

$121 18.3%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 21.8% $26

Eating Out

'aqrah

$101 15.3%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 21.6% $22

Clothing & Footwear

'aqrah

$56 8.5%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 95.9% $54

Sport & Entertainment

'aqrah

$54 8.1%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 4.6% $2.4

Getting Around

'aqrah

$28 4.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 118% $33

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $184 in 'aqrah and $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $22.00 in 'aqrah vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Groceries flip the comparison at $160 vs $238, with 'aqrah cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇶 'aqrah

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

05:39 5:39 AM

09:39 9:39 AM

4 h ahead of 'aqrah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

68,100

127,240

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.88 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,701 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.88 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.4 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.61 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

'aqrah Chiang Mai 5,690 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

'aqrah
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

'aqrah vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

'aqrah wins on cost – living expenses run 42% lower than in Chiang Mai. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making 'aqrah the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $991 in 'aqrah and $1,408 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: $184 in 'aqrah versus $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $661 per month in 'aqrah versus $938 in Chiang Mai – a 42% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in 'aqrah runs roughly 208% less than in Chiang Mai. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $661 in 'aqrah versus $938 in Chiang Mai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in 'aqrah but tight or insufficient in Chiang Mai. The gap between the two cities makes 'aqrah the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but 'aqrah delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $661 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes 'aqrah hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, 'aqrah and Chiang Mai are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find 'aqrah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 42% less than in Chiang Mai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.