Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Butterworth and Chiang Mai

For one person, living costs are similar in Butterworth and in Chiang Mai: $913 and $936 a month, rent and utilities included.

44

Cost of Living Index in Butterworth
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Butterworth Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Butterworth

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$913

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $913 per month in Butterworth vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Butterworth $913
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,408 per month in Butterworth vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Butterworth $1,408
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,902 per month in Butterworth vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Butterworth $1,902
Chiang Mai $1,979

Butterworth and Chiang Mai have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Butterworth and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Butterworth 33% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.72 MYR 15.11

$2.24 ฿75.6

66.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.36 MYR 78.5

$19.00 ฿641

1.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.77 MYR 19.37

$5.55 ฿187

-14.05%

Cappuccino

$2.89 MYR 11.72

$1.67 ฿56.5

73.05%

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

$0.73 MYR 2.95

$0.64 ฿21.54

14.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 MYR 1.48

$0.31 ฿10.31

16.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.12 MYR 16.72

$2.36 ฿79.5

74.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 MYR 17.76

$3.66 ฿124

19.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.12 MYR 8.58

$1.95 ฿65.7

8.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 MYR 4.47

$1.44 ฿48.46

-23.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 MYR 6.86

$1.33 ฿45.03

27.07%

Eggs

$2.24 MYR 9.10

$2.28 ฿77.1

-1.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.69 MYR 55.5

$16.45 ฿555

-16.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.49 MYR 18.20

$2.78 ฿93.9

61.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.64 MYR 35.06

$9.31 ฿314

-7.20%

Apples (1kg)

$3.06 MYR 12.43

$2.35 ฿79.4

30.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 MYR 6.92

$0.97 ฿32.79

76.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.23 MYR 9.04

$1.60 ฿53.9

39.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.47 MYR 5.96

$1.50 ฿50.6

-2.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 MYR 4.31

$1.28 ฿43.11

-17.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 MYR 4.40

$1.10 ฿37.18

-0.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 MYR 4.41

$0.71 ฿23.82

53.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 MYR 2.37

$0.49 ฿16.36

18.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.36 MYR 17.70

$4.14 ฿140

5.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.00 MYR 77.1

$17.52 ฿591

8.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.93 MYR 11.87

$1.61 ฿54.5

81.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.98 MYR 20.20

$2.78 ฿93.9

79.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 MYR 2.83

$0.87 ฿29.30

-19.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.85 MYR 44.03

$54.1 ฿1,825

-79.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 MYR 4.81

$1.16 ฿39.04

2.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.38 MYR 1.52

$0.53 ฿17.80

-28.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.85 MYR 19.66

$2.42 ฿81.7

100.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.89 MYR 3.59

$1.45 ฿48.88

-38.62%

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

$43.5K MYR 176.4K

$21.1K ฿710.5K

106.48%

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

$35.5K MYR 143.9K

$26.9K ฿909.0K

31.65%

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

$36.81 MYR 149

$62.2 ฿2,098

-40.79%

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

$8.61 MYR 34.91

$12.17 ฿411

-29.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.45 MYR 107

$20.12 ฿679

31.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.93 MYR 134

$37.31 ฿1,259

-11.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.90 MYR 23.92

$3.77 ฿127

56.50%

Cinema Ticket

$4.79 MYR 19.45

$6.49 ฿219

-26.19%

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

$240 MYR 974

$736 ฿24.8K

-67.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K MYR 44.2K

$14.8K ฿498.2K

-26.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.8 MYR 243

$53.4 ฿1,801

12.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.01 MYR 142

$24.64 ฿831

42.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.5 MYR 335

$91.5 ฿3,087

-9.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.5 MYR 282

$71.9 ฿2,427

-3.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$412 MYR 1,672

$482 ฿16.3K

-14.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$300 MYR 1,218

$309 ฿10.4K

-2.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$813 MYR 3,298

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-19.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$563 MYR 2,285

$633 ฿21.4K

-11.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,966 MYR 7,975

$2,363 ฿79.7K

-16.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,205 MYR 4,889

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-24.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.04

5.57

-27.47%

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

Last update for Butterworth: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Butterworth

$300 32.9%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 2.9% $8.6

Groceries & Markets

Butterworth

$258 28.3%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 9.3% $24

Eating Out

Butterworth

$113 12.3%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 31% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Butterworth

$111 12.2%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 2.2% $2.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Butterworth

$72 7.9%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 31.4% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Butterworth

$43 4.7%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 18.3% $7.8

Getting Around

Butterworth

$17 1.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 267% $45

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $412 in Butterworth versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Butterworth versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Butterworth vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Chiang Mai wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Butterworth

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

00:08 12:08 AM

23:08 11:08 PM

1 h behind Butterworth

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

339,132

127,240

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Butterworth Chiang Mai 1,500 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Butterworth
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

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

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,370 per month in Butterworth and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Butterworth, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $412 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $240 per month in Butterworth and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 9% cheaper in Chiang Mai – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $913 in Butterworth and $936 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Butterworth – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.