Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Chiang Mai Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Chiang Mai

😐 Solo nomad: Cape Town is 19.5% more expensive than Chiang Mai without rent, and 46.5% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Cape Town is 23.2% more expensive than Chiang Mai without rent, and 48.9% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.02 R 196
$2.02 ฿65.3
445.54%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.54 R 792
$18.78 ฿608
137.17%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$4.96 R 88.2
$7.67 ฿248
-35.33%
Cappuccino
$1.98 R 35.25
$1.98 ฿64.2
-
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.16 R 20.6
$0.82 ฿26.64
41.46%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 R 15.46
$0.33 ฿10.58
163.64%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.82 R 50.1
$2.12 ฿68.6
33.02%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.47 R 43.97
$3.73 ฿121
-33.78%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.16 R 20.62
$1.64 ฿53.2
-29.27%
White Bread (500g)
$1.1 R 19.49
$1.57 ฿50.9
-29.94%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.83 R 32.49
$1.19 ฿38.62
53.78%
Eggs
$2.39 R 42.45
$1.98 ฿64.1
20.71%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.28 R 147
$15.99 ฿517
-48.22%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.22 R 92.8
$3.12 ฿101
67.31%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.46 R 133
$11.16 ฿361
-33.15%
Apples (1kg)
$1.55 R 27.64
$2.76 ฿89.2
-43.84%
Banana (1kg)
$1.41 R 25.08
$1.22 ฿39.5
15.57%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.45 R 25.83
$1.71 ฿55.4
-15.20%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.52 R 26.99
$1.55 ฿50.2
-1.94%
Potato (1kg)
$1.08 R 19.21
$1.34 ฿43.21
-19.40%
Onion (1kg)
$1.24 R 22.05
$1.21 ฿39.23
2.48%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.09 R 19.32
$0.72 ฿23.2
51.39%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.98 R 17.46
$0.53 ฿17.05
84.91%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.04 R 54
$4.72 ฿153
-35.59%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.68 R 101
$18.39 ฿595
-69.11%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.42 R 25.18
$1.79 ฿57.9
-20.67%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.68 R 29.94
$3.21 ฿104
-47.66%
🚌 Getting Around
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.91 R 16.22
$0.94 ฿30.44
-3.19%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$47.53 R 845
$18.9 ฿612
151.48%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.38 R 24.59
$1.42 ฿46.08
-2.82%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.95 R 16.94
$1.35 ฿43.53
-29.63%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.54 R 80.8
$7.85 ฿254
-42.17%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.23 R 21.88
$1.25 ฿40.4
-1.60%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21K R 373K
$21.2K ฿684.9K
-0.91%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$24.5K R 434.9K
$21.8K ฿706.8K
11.96%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$99.2 R 1,764
$70.6 ฿2,285
40.49%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$33.54 R 597
$13.72 ฿444
144.46%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$40.65 R 723
$17.56 ฿568
131.49%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$42.61 R 758
$41.64 ฿1,347
2.33%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$8.17 R 145
$6.9 ฿223
18.41%
Cinema Ticket
$6.85 R 122
$5.8 ฿188
18.10%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$209 R 3,720
$308 ฿9,963
-32.05%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,202 R 92.5K
$14.7K ฿475.8K
-64.62%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$55.1 R 980
$55.4 ฿1,793
-0.51%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$33.11 R 589
$26.4 ฿854
25.42%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$111 R 1,974
$85.1 ฿2,755
30.41%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$85.5 R 1,520
$71.8 ฿2,323
19.06%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$766 R 13.6K
$434 ฿14K
76.38%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$522 R 9,280
$235 ฿7,610
121.89%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,434 R 25.5K
$821 ฿26.6K
74.61%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,029 R 18.3K
$498 ฿16.1K
106.53%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,000 R 35.6K
$2,180 ฿70.6K
-8.25%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,318 R 23.4K
$1,543 ฿49.9K
-14.55%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cape Town
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,641 R 29.2K
$703 ฿22.8K
133.29%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.77
5
135.40%

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

Last update for Cape Town: October 29, 2025

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 29, 2025

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