Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Burnaby and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,678 in Burnaby, rent and utilities included – about $20,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Burnaby
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Burnaby Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Burnaby

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,678

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,678 in Burnaby versus $936 in Chiang Mai.

Burnaby $2,678
Chiang Mai $936

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,827 in Burnaby versus $1,457 in Chiang Mai.

Burnaby $3,827
Chiang Mai $1,457

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,976 in Burnaby versus $1,979 in Chiang Mai.

Burnaby $4,976
Chiang Mai $1,979

Living in Burnaby is roughly 186% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Burnaby is 97% above, Chiang Mai is 31% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.23 CA$29.79

$2.24 ฿75.7

847.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$86.5 CA$121

$19.00 ฿642

355.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.53 CA$13.37

$5.55 ฿188

71.71%

Cappuccino

$4.67 CA$6.56

$1.67 ฿56.6

179.64%

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

$2.45 CA$3.44

$0.64 ฿21.56

282.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 CA$2.52

$0.31 ฿10.32

480.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.57 CA$12.03

$2.36 ฿79.6

263.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.18 CA$8.67

$3.66 ฿124

68.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.34 CA$3.28

$1.95 ฿65.8

20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.76 CA$3.88

$1.44 ฿48.51

91.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.52 CA$4.95

$1.33 ฿45.07

164.66%

Eggs

$3.17 CA$4.45

$2.28 ฿77.1

39.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.05 CA$19.72

$16.45 ฿556

-14.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.07 CA$19.75

$2.78 ฿94.0

406.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.31 CA$35.52

$9.31 ฿314

171.86%

Apples (1kg)

$4.42 CA$6.20

$2.35 ฿79.5

88.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 CA$1.80

$0.97 ฿32.82

31.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.61 CA$6.47

$1.60 ฿53.9

188.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.61 CA$6.48

$1.50 ฿50.7

207.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.81 CA$3.95

$1.28 ฿43.15

119.53%

Onion (1kg)

$3.54 CA$4.96

$1.10 ฿37.22

221.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.74 CA$3.84

$0.71 ฿23.84

285.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 CA$2.95

$0.49 ฿16.38

328.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.23 CA$19.96

$4.14 ฿140

243.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.39 CA$18.79

$17.52 ฿592

-23.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.05 CA$2.88

$1.61 ฿54.5

27.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 CA$3.27

$2.78 ฿94.0

-16.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.54 CA$3.56

$0.87 ฿29.33

191.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$81.6 CA$115

$54.1 ฿1,827

50.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.88 CA$4.04

$1.16 ฿39.08

148.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.51 CA$2.12

$0.53 ฿17.82

184.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.45 CA$37.12

$2.42 ฿81.8

992.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 CA$1.92

$1.45 ฿48.93

-5.52%

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

$28.5K CA$40.1K

$21.1K ฿711.2K

35.55%

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

$20.9K CA$29.4K

$26.9K ฿909.8K

-22.25%

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

$126 CA$177

$62.2 ฿2,100

103.09%

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

$44.96 CA$63.1

$12.17 ฿411

269.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.7 CA$74.0

$20.12 ฿680

162.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.23 CA$43.83

$37.31 ฿1,260

-16.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.52 CA$14.77

$3.77 ฿127

179.05%

Cinema Ticket

$14.23 CA$19.97

$6.49 ฿219

119.26%

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

$649 CA$910

$736 ฿24.9K

-11.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.2 CA$73.3

$53.4 ฿1,802

-2.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.4 CA$72.1

$24.64 ฿832

108.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 CA$145

$91.5 ฿3,089

13.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.0 CA$111

$71.9 ฿2,429

9.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,693 CA$2,376

$482 ฿16.3K

251.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 CA$1,973

$309 ฿10.4K

355.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,623 CA$3,681

$1,006 ฿34.0K

160.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,985 CA$2,786

$633 ฿21.4K

213.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,886 CA$9,663

$2,363 ฿79.8K

191.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,338 CA$7,491

$1,589 ฿53.7K

235.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,149 CA$4,419

$590 ฿19.9K

433.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.76

5.57

-14.54%

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

Last update for Burnaby: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Burnaby

$1.4K 52.5%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 78% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Burnaby

$431 16.1%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 45.6% $197

Eating Out

Burnaby

$327 12.2%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 76.3% $249

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Burnaby

$224 8.4%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 57.8% $129

Clothing & Footwear

Burnaby

$129 4.8%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 15.6% $20

Getting Around

Burnaby

$102 3.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 40% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Burnaby

$60 2.2%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 15.8% $9.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,693 in Burnaby and $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Burnaby pays about 5.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $87 in Burnaby vs $19 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $431 vs $234 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Burnaby

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

13:49 1:49 PM

03:49 3:49 AM

14 h ahead of Burnaby

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

249,125

127,240

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.64 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.64 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Burnaby Chiang Mai 11,390 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Burnaby
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

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,678 in Burnaby and $936 in Chiang Mai, so Chiang Mai is about 65% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Burnaby is about 5.3 times higher, 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: $1,693 in Burnaby versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $649 in Burnaby versus $736 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 84% higher in Burnaby. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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

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 Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 65% less than in Burnaby. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.