Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Canterbury, New Zealand and Chiang Mai

For one person, living costs are similar in Canterbury and in Chiang Mai: $915 and $936 a month, rent and utilities included.

44

Cost of Living Index in Canterbury
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Canterbury Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Canterbury

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$915

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $915 per month in Canterbury vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Canterbury $915
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,521 per month in Canterbury vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Canterbury $1,521
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $2,127 per month in Canterbury vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Canterbury $2,127
Chiang Mai $1,979

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

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.95 NZ$24.76

$2.24 ฿75.6

522.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.7 NZ$113

$19.00 ฿641

235.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.52 NZ$20.45

$5.55 ฿187

107.57%

Cappuccino

$3.06 NZ$5.44

$1.67 ฿56.5

83.23%

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

$2.07 NZ$3.67

$0.64 ฿21.54

223.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 NZ$3.75

$0.31 ฿10.31

580.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.94 NZ$7.00

$2.36 ฿79.5

66.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.09 NZ$10.82

$3.66 ฿124

66.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.22 NZ$3.93

$1.95 ฿65.7

13.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 NZ$3.42

$1.44 ฿48.46

34.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 NZ$3.01

$1.33 ฿45.03

27.07%

Eggs

$5.53 NZ$9.82

$2.28 ฿77.1

142.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.34 NZ$14.81

$16.45 ฿555

-49.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.17 NZ$16.28

$2.78 ฿93.9

229.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.50 NZ$29.30

$9.31 ฿314

77.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.91 NZ$5.16

$2.35 ฿79.4

23.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 NZ$3.93

$0.97 ฿32.79

127.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 NZ$5.85

$1.60 ฿53.9

106.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.19 NZ$9.21

$1.50 ฿50.6

246.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 NZ$3.29

$1.28 ฿43.11

44.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 NZ$3.32

$1.10 ฿37.18

70.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.33 NZ$4.14

$0.71 ฿23.82

228.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 NZ$1.06

$0.49 ฿16.36

20.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.06 NZ$37.39

$4.14 ฿140

408.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.26 NZ$16.44

$17.52 ฿591

-47.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.21 NZ$5.71

$1.61 ฿54.5

99.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 NZ$2.13

$2.78 ฿93.9

-56.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.30

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.73 NZ$10.17

$1.16 ฿39.04

393.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.19 NZ$50.1

$2.42 ฿81.7

1064.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.60 NZ$2.84

$1.45 ฿48.88

10.34%

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

$28.5K NZ$50.6K

$21.1K ฿710.5K

35.32%

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

$23.3K NZ$41.3K

$26.9K ฿909.0K

-13.64%

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

$113 NZ$201

$62.2 ฿2,098

81.87%

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

$29.09 NZ$51.6

$12.17 ฿411

139.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.7 NZ$91.8

$20.12 ฿679

157.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$11.46 NZ$20.34

$6.49 ฿219

76.58%

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

$590 NZ$1,048

$736 ฿24.8K

-19.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.9 NZ$106

$53.4 ฿1,801

12.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.35 NZ$39.69

$24.64 ฿831

-9.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.2 NZ$162

$91.5 ฿3,087

-0.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 NZ$247

$71.9 ฿2,427

93.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$898 NZ$1,595

$482 ฿16.3K

86.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,733 NZ$4,853

$590 ฿19.9K

363.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-28.19%

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

Last update for Canterbury: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Canterbury

$320 35%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 26.9% $86

Eating Out

Canterbury

$232 25.3%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 66.5% $154

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Canterbury

$194 21.2%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 51.3% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Canterbury

$141 15.4%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 22.7% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Canterbury

$23 * 2.5%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 119% $27

Getting Around

Canterbury

$5.7 * 0.6%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 971% $56

Accommodation & Living

Canterbury

- * 0%

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $898 in Canterbury 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.

Salaries in Canterbury are about 4.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64 in Canterbury versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $320 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Canterbury

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

16:53 4:53 PM

10:53 10:53 AM

6 h behind Canterbury

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Canterbury Chiang Mai 10,160 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Canterbury
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

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

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,373 per month in Canterbury 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 Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $898 in Canterbury.

Kindergarten costs $590 per month in Canterbury 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 27% cheaper in Chiang Mai – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $915 in Canterbury and $936 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $915 in Canterbury to $936 in Chiang Mai. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.