Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Caboolture and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,934 in Caboolture, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

93

Cost of Living Index in Caboolture
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Caboolture Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Caboolture

🇦🇺 Australia

$1,934

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,934 per month in Caboolture vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Caboolture $1,934
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $2,804 per month in Caboolture vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Caboolture $2,804
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $3,675 per month in Caboolture vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Caboolture $3,675
Chiang Mai $1,903

Caboolture costs about 109% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Caboolture sits 43% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.98 A$15.80

$2.29 ฿76.5

379.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.03 A$70.6

$19.64 ฿656

149.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.57 A$15.21

$5.61 ฿188

88.41%

Cappuccino

$2.76 A$3.97

$1.66 ฿55.6

66.27%

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

$1.76 A$2.53

$0.70 ฿23.40

151.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 A$2.15

$0.31 ฿10.24

380.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.00 A$10.08

$2.41 ฿80.4

190.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.82 A$11.26

$3.71 ฿124

110.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 A$1.80

$1.95 ฿65.3

-35.90%

White Bread (500g)

$2.08 A$2.99

$1.41 ฿47.03

47.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.99 A$2.86

$1.31 ฿43.62

51.91%

Eggs

$4.16 A$5.98

$2.18 ฿72.9

90.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.61 A$12.38

$16.65 ฿556

-48.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.11 A$13.11

$2.76 ฿92.2

230.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.05 A$17.34

$9.11 ฿304

32.27%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 A$4.45

$2.39 ฿80.0

29.29%

Banana (1kg)

$2.50 A$3.60

$1.03 ฿34.26

142.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.43 A$4.93

$1.63 ฿54.4

110.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.19 A$6.03

$1.50 ฿50.0

179.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 A$2.75

$1.29 ฿43.13

48.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 A$2.62

$1.11 ฿37.03

63.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.06 A$2.97

$0.72 ฿24.08

186.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 A$1.32

$0.53 ฿17.59

73.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$28.93 A$41.62

$4.31 ฿144

571.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.14 A$20.35

$17.95 ฿600

-21.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.99 A$5.74

$1.58 ฿52.9

152.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.78 A$9.76

$2.84 ฿95.0

138.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.59 A$2.28

$0.86 ฿28.86

84.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.4 A$114

$53.3 ฿1,780

48.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.18 A$3.14

$1.21 ฿40.29

80.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 A$1.57

$0.57 ฿18.99

91.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.30 A$47.92

$2.35 ฿78.6

1317.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 A$1.86

$1.44 ฿47.96

-10.42%

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

$24.5K A$35.3K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

18.27%

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

$24.8K A$35.7K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

-7.54%

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

$178 A$256

$62.3 ฿2,083

185.53%

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

$11.74 A$16.89

$12.11 ฿405

-3.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.65 A$70.0

$19.94 ฿666

143.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.87 A$32.91

$37.07 ฿1,239

-38.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.61 A$25.34

$3.78 ฿126

365.87%

Cinema Ticket

$13.85 A$19.93

$6.50 ฿217

113.08%

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

$1,731 A$2,491

$793 ฿26.5K

118.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,196 A$6,038

$14.8K ฿494.9K

-71.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.97 A$48.88

$53.7 ฿1,796

-36.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.9 A$76.1

$24.62 ฿823

114.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.6 A$140

$90.9 ฿3,036

7.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$74.4 A$107

$71.1 ฿2,378

4.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 A$1,558

$455 ฿15.2K

137.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$898 A$1,292

$298 ฿9,954

201.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,521 A$2,189

$908 ฿30.4K

67.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,463 A$2,105

$554 ฿18.5K

164.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,831 A$8,391

$1,931 ฿64.5K

201.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,025 A$7,230

$1,445 ฿48.3K

247.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,845 A$2,656

$591 ฿19.7K

212.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.69

5.57

2.15%

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

Last update for Caboolture: October 20, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Caboolture

$898 46.4%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 66.8% $600

Groceries & Markets

Caboolture

$321 16.6%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 26.6% $85

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Caboolture

$238 12.3%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 60.4% $144

Eating Out

Caboolture

$216 11.2%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 63.7% $138

Clothing & Footwear

Caboolture

$116 6%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 7.1% $8.3

Getting Around

Caboolture

$93 4.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 34.9% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Caboolture

$51 2.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 1% $0.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,083 in Caboolture versus $455 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.

Salaries run about 212% higher in Caboolture, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $49.00 in Caboolture versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $321 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Caboolture

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

22:31 10:31 PM

19:31 7:31 PM

3 h behind Caboolture

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

29,534

127,240

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 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 AUD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Caboolture Chiang Mai 7,730 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Caboolture
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

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

Caboolture costs about 109% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,901 per month in Caboolture and $1,388 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $1,731 per month in Caboolture and $793 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 36% more in Caboolture, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $925, than in Caboolture at $1,934. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Caboolture it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $1,934 in Caboolture. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Caboolture makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.