Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Busselton and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $2,623 in Busselton, rent and utilities included – about $20,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Busselton
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Busselton Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Busselton

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,623

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,623 in Busselton versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

Busselton $2,623
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,698 in Busselton versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

Busselton $3,698
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,773 in Busselton versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

Busselton $4,773
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in Busselton is roughly 179% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Busselton is 94% above, Chiang Mai is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.42 A$24.95

$2.26 ฿75.7

670.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.1 A$120

$19.18 ฿644

338.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.59 A$15.17

$5.59 ฿188

89.45%

Cappuccino

$4.42 A$6.33

$1.72 ฿57.9

156.98%

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

$2.06 A$2.95

$0.64 ฿21.63

221.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 A$2.91

$0.33 ฿11.23

515.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.49 A$12.16

$2.36 ฿79.1

259.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.15 A$11.68

$3.90 ฿131

108.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 A$2.46

$2.05 ฿68.9

-16.10%

White Bread (500g)

$3.11 A$4.45

$1.40 ฿46.90

122.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.04 A$2.92

$1.28 ฿43.07

59.38%

Eggs

$5.14 A$7.36

$2.25 ฿75.6

128.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.23 A$13.22

$16.94 ฿569

-45.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.18 A$13.16

$2.74 ฿92.0

235.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.90 A$19.92

$9.36 ฿314

48.50%

Apples (1kg)

$4.57 A$6.54

$2.40 ฿80.6

90.42%

Banana (1kg)

$3.08 A$4.41

$1.01 ฿34.06

204.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.31 A$4.74

$1.61 ฿54.1

105.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.94 A$7.07

$1.52 ฿51.0

225.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.90 A$4.15

$1.28 ฿43.08

126.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 A$2.82

$1.11 ฿37.38

77.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.28 A$3.27

$0.72 ฿24.19

216.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 A$1.96

$0.52 ฿17.61

163.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$41.72 A$59.8

$4.33 ฿145

863.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.65 A$18.12

$17.73 ฿595

-28.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.35 A$6.24

$1.63 ฿54.7

166.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 A$4.85

$2.85 ฿95.7

18.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.48 A$3.55

$0.85 ฿28.43

191.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$82.6 A$118

$53.9 ฿1,809

53.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.55 A$5.09

$1.17 ฿39.34

203.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.38 A$1.98

$0.57 ฿19.08

142.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.16 A$59.0

$2.37 ฿79.5

1636.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.45 ฿48.52

-3.45%

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

$27.7K A$39.7K

$20.5K ฿687.1K

35.32%

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

$29.6K A$42.4K

$26.5K ฿889.8K

11.73%

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

$195 A$279

$62.3 ฿2,092

212.31%

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

$32.93 A$47.18

$12.27 ฿412

168.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$64.4 A$92.2

$19.97 ฿670

222.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.68 A$71.2

$37.91 ฿1,272

31.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.07 A$23.02

$3.76 ฿126

327.39%

Cinema Ticket

$17.71 A$25.37

$6.71 ฿225

163.93%

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

$2,274 A$3,258

$797 ฿26.8K

185.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K A$33.0K

$14.8K ฿497.8K

55.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.8 A$113

$53.3 ฿1,787

48.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$64.5 A$92.4

$25.05 ฿841

157.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 A$172

$91.6 ฿3,075

31.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$162 A$232

$73.5 ฿2,465

120.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,247 A$1,786

$464 ฿15.6K

168.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,288 A$1,846

$305 ฿10.2K

322.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,204 A$3,158

$915 ฿30.7K

140.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,776 A$2,544

$552 ฿18.5K

221.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,785 A$8,287

$1,912 ฿64.2K

202.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,348 A$6,228

$1,438 ฿48.3K

202.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.91

5.57

6.10%

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

Last update for Busselton: 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

Busselton

$1.3K 49.1%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 76.4% $984

Groceries & Markets

Busselton

$364 13.9%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 34.5% $126

Eating Out

Busselton

$299 11.4%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 73.6% $220

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Busselton

$292 11.1%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 67.6% $197

Clothing & Footwear

Busselton

$192 7.3%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 42.8% $82

Getting Around

Busselton

$103 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 40.5% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Busselton

$85 3.2%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 39.7% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,247 in Busselton and $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $84.0 in Busselton vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $364 vs $238 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Busselton

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

02:12 2:12 AM

01:12 1:12 AM

1 h behind Busselton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

27,233

127,240

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.625 EUR

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.625 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 33.56 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.46 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Busselton Chiang Mai 6,080 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

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Busselton
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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

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

Busselton and Chiang Mai differ by about 179% in total monthly costs ($2,623 vs $938 including rent). Chiang Mai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,934 in Busselton 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: $1,247 in Busselton versus $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,274 in Busselton versus $797 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 53% higher in Busselton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $2,623 in Busselton, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Busselton. 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, Busselton 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 179% less than in Busselton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.