Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budaiya and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Budaiya: $812 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Chiang Mai outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

39

Cost of Living Index in Budaiya
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Budaiya Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Budaiya

🇧🇭 Bahrain

$812

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $812 in Budaiya versus $936 in Chiang Mai.

Budaiya $812
Chiang Mai $936

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,288 in Budaiya versus $1,457 in Chiang Mai.

Budaiya $1,288
Chiang Mai $1,457

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,763 in Budaiya versus $1,979 in Chiang Mai.

Budaiya $1,763
Chiang Mai $1,979

Living in Budaiya costs roughly 13% less than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Budaiya 40% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.44 BHD 2.05

$2.24 ฿75.7

142.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.2 BHD 19.67

$19.00 ฿642

174.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.61 BHD 2.49

$5.55 ฿188

19.10%

Cappuccino

$5.03 BHD 1.90

$1.67 ฿56.6

201.20%

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

$0.84 BHD 0.32

$0.64 ฿21.56

31.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 BHD 0.11

$0.31 ฿10.32

-9.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.78 BHD 2.56

$2.36 ฿79.6

187.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.98 BHD 3.77

$3.66 ฿124

172.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 BHD 0.52

$1.95 ฿65.8

-28.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 BHD 0.40

$1.44 ฿48.51

-27.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 BHD 0.90

$1.33 ฿45.07

79.70%

Eggs

$2.24 BHD 0.84

$2.28 ฿77.1

-1.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.45 BHD 3.19

$16.45 ฿556

-48.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.59 BHD 2.49

$2.78 ฿94.0

137.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.45 BHD 3.19

$9.31 ฿314

-9.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 BHD 0.89

$2.35 ฿79.5

Banana (1kg)

$2.22 BHD 0.84

$0.97 ฿32.82

128.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 BHD 0.73

$1.60 ฿53.9

21.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.45 BHD 0.55

$1.50 ฿50.7

-3.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 BHD 0.38

$1.28 ฿43.15

-20.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.43 BHD 0.54

$1.10 ฿37.22

30.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 BHD 0.58

$0.71 ฿23.84

115.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 BHD 0.30

$0.49 ฿16.38

61.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.37 BHD 2.03

$4.14 ฿140

29.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.20 BHD 6.87

$17.52 ฿592

3.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.68 BHD 1.39

$1.61 ฿54.5

128.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 BHD 0.98

$2.78 ฿94.0

-6.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.22 BHD 1.97

$1.16 ฿39.08

350.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.43 BHD 1.29

$0.53 ฿17.82

547.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.15 BHD 6.09

$2.42 ฿81.8

567.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.69 BHD 0.26

$1.45 ฿48.93

-52.41%

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

$26.5K BHD 9,987

$21.1K ฿711.2K

25.73%

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

$19.9K BHD 7,509

$26.9K ฿909.8K

-26.11%

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

$151 BHD 57.0

$62.2 ฿2,100

142.90%

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

$24.28 BHD 9.16

$12.17 ฿411

99.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.89 BHD 13.16

$20.12 ฿680

73.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$10.40 BHD 3.92

$6.49 ฿219

60.25%

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

$614 BHD 232

$736 ฿24.9K

-16.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K BHD 4,129

$14.8K ฿498.6K

-25.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.6 BHD 19.08

$53.4 ฿1,802

-5.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.2 BHD 21.56

$24.64 ฿832

131.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.5 BHD 33.74

$91.5 ฿3,089

-2.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.8 BHD 33.50

$71.9 ฿2,429

23.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.21

5.57

11.49%

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

Last update for Budaiya: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Budaiya

$248 30.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 5.6% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budaiya

$210 25.9%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 55.1% $116

Eating Out

Budaiya

$182 22.4%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 57.4% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Budaiya

$129 15.8%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 15.6% $20

Getting Around

Budaiya

$22 * 2.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 174% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Budaiya

$21 * 2.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 142% $29

Accommodation & Living

Budaiya

- * 0%

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $52 in Budaiya vs $19 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $248 vs $234 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇭 Budaiya

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

04:03 4:03 AM

08:03 8:03 AM

4 h ahead of Budaiya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,702

127,240

💱 Currency

Bahraini Dinar BHD .د.ب

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 BHD = 2.65 USD

1 BHD = 2.38 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to BHD – Bahraini Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇭 Bahraini Dinar (.د.ب)

Bahraini Dinar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.377 BHD (1 BHD = 2.65 USD). 1 EUR = 0.42 BHD (1 BHD = 2.38 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to BHD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Budaiya Chiang Mai 5,030 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Budaiya
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

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

Budaiya wins on cost – living expenses run 13% lower than in Chiang Mai. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Budaiya the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,219 in Budaiya 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.

Shoppers in Chiang Mai pay roughly 6% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $812 per month in Budaiya versus $936 in Chiang Mai – Budaiya is about 13% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Budaiya is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Safety-wise, Budaiya and Chiang Mai are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.