Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buckingham and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $2,219 in Buckingham, rent and utilities included – about $15,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Buckingham
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Buckingham Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Buckingham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,219

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,219 in Buckingham versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

Buckingham $2,219
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,265 in Buckingham versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

Buckingham $3,265
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,311 in Buckingham versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

Buckingham $4,311
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in Buckingham is roughly 136% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buckingham is 64% above, Chiang Mai is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.03 £15.03

$2.26 ฿75.4

786.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.9 £59.2

$19.18 ฿641

311.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.44 £7.83

$5.59 ฿187

86.76%

Cappuccino

$4.60 £3.45

$1.72 ฿57.6

167.44%

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

$2.05 £1.54

$0.64 ฿21.54

220.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.50 £1.12

$0.33 ฿11.18

354.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 £4.09

$2.36 ฿78.7

130.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.52 £3.39

$3.90 ฿130

15.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 £1.13

$2.05 ฿68.6

-26.34%

White Bread (500g)

$1.77 £1.33

$1.40 ฿46.70

26.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.82 £2.11

$1.28 ฿42.89

120.31%

Eggs

$4.04 £3.03

$2.25 ฿75.3

79.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 £6.82

$16.94 ฿566

-46.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.72 £5.79

$2.74 ฿91.6

181.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.42 £12.32

$9.36 ฿313

75.43%

Apples (1kg)

$3.29 £2.47

$2.40 ฿80.3

37.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 £1.16

$1.01 ฿33.92

52.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.80 £2.10

$1.61 ฿53.9

73.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 £2.40

$1.52 ฿50.7

110.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.16 £0.87

$1.28 ฿42.90

-9.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.30

$1.11 ฿37.22

55.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 £0.97

$0.72 ฿24.09

79.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 £1.01

$0.52 ฿17.54

159.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.66 £17.75

$4.33 ฿145

446.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.10 £7.57

$17.73 ฿593

-43.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.14 £2.36

$1.63 ฿54.4

92.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 £1.71

$2.85 ฿95.3

-20.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.38 £2.53

$0.85 ฿28.31

297.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$94.7 £71.1

$53.9 ฿1,801

75.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.18 £3.14

$1.17 ฿39.18

257.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.69 £2.02

$0.57 ฿19.00

371.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.36 £24.28

$2.37 ฿79.2

1265.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.53

$1.45 ฿48.32

40.69%

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

$38.4K £28.8K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

87.43%

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

$41.3K £31.0K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

55.71%

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

$200 £150

$62.3 ฿2,083

220.82%

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

$17.46 £13.10

$12.27 ฿410

42.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.68 £32.77

$19.97 ฿668

118.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.77 £34.34

$37.91 ฿1,267

20.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$13.38 £10.04

$6.71 ฿224

99.40%

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

$1,464 £1,099

$797 ฿26.6K

83.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.0K £16.5K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

48.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.3 £63.2

$53.3 ฿1,780

58.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.33 £23.50

$25.05 ฿837

25.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.7 £55.3

$91.6 ฿3,062

-19.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.2 £72.9

$73.5 ฿2,455

32.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,462 £1,097

$464 ฿15.5K

215.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 £777

$305 ฿10.2K

240.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,105 £1,579

$915 ฿30.6K

129.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,659 £1,244

$552 ฿18.5K

200.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,081 £3,812

$1,912 ฿63.9K

165.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,819 £2,865

$1,438 ฿48.1K

165.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,447 £3,336

$595 ฿19.9K

647.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.06

5.57

-9.16%

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

Last update for Buckingham: October 10, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buckingham

$1K 46.7%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 70.6% $731

Eating Out

Buckingham

$297 13.4%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 73.4% $218

Groceries & Markets

Buckingham

$297 13.4%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 19.9% $59

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buckingham

$261 11.8%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 63.8% $167

Clothing & Footwear

Buckingham

$129 5.8%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 15% $19

Getting Around

Buckingham

$126 5.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 51.3% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Buckingham

$73 3.3%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 29.2% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,462 in Buckingham and $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buckingham pays 647% 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: $79.0 in Buckingham vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $238 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Buckingham

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

09:42 9:42 AM

15:42 3:42 PM

6 h ahead of Buckingham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,890

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buckingham Chiang Mai 9,030 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Buckingham
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

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

Buckingham and Chiang Mai differ by about 136% in total monthly costs ($2,219 vs $938 including rent). Chiang Mai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 647% higher in Buckingham, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,462 in Buckingham 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 $2,219 per month in Buckingham versus $938 in Chiang Mai – a 136% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Chiang Mai runs roughly 76% less than in Buckingham. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $2,219 in Buckingham, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Buckingham. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Buckingham 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 Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 136% less than in Buckingham. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.