Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chesterfield and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $2,085 in Chesterfield, rent and utilities included – about $13,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Chesterfield
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Chesterfield Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Chesterfield

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,085

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,085 per month in Chesterfield vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Chesterfield $2,085
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $3,017 per month in Chesterfield vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Chesterfield $3,017
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $3,949 per month in Chesterfield vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Chesterfield $3,949
Chiang Mai $1,914

Chesterfield costs about 122% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chesterfield sits 54% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.94 £16.46

$2.26 ฿75.4

870.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.8 £59.9

$19.18 ฿641

316.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.53 £7.90

$5.59 ฿187

88.37%

Cappuccino

$4.49 £3.37

$1.72 ฿57.6

161.05%

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

$2.33 £1.75

$0.64 ฿21.54

264.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 £0.98

$0.33 ฿11.18

293.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.09 £4.57

$2.36 ฿78.7

158.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.22 £3.91

$3.90 ฿130

33.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.29

$2.05 ฿68.6

-16.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.70 £1.27

$1.40 ฿46.70

21.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.14 £1.61

$1.28 ฿42.89

67.19%

Eggs

$4.07 £3.05

$2.25 ฿75.3

80.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.61 £7.21

$16.94 ฿566

-43.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.72 £6.55

$2.74 ฿91.6

218.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.11 £10.59

$9.36 ฿313

50.75%

Apples (1kg)

$3.06 £2.29

$2.40 ฿80.3

27.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.35 £1.01

$1.01 ฿33.92

33.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 £1.96

$1.61 ฿53.9

62.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.46 £2.60

$1.52 ฿50.7

127.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 £1.11

$1.28 ฿42.90

15.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.56 £1.17

$1.11 ฿37.22

40.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 £0.90

$0.72 ฿24.09

65.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 £1.08

$0.52 ฿17.54

176.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.36 £15.27

$4.33 ฿145

370.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.12 £8.35

$17.73 ฿593

-37.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.29 £2.47

$1.63 ฿54.4

101.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.38

$2.85 ฿95.3

11.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.93 £2.95

$0.85 ฿28.31

362.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.3 £57.3

$53.9 ฿1,801

41.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.88 £3.66

$1.17 ฿39.18

317.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 £0.97

$0.57 ฿19.00

128.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.51 £14.64

$2.37 ฿79.2

723.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 £1.58

$1.45 ฿48.32

45.52%

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

$38.1K £28.6K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

86.24%

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

$41.2K £30.9K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

55.33%

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

$311 £233

$62.3 ฿2,083

399.12%

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

$20.10 £15.08

$12.27 ฿410

63.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.66 £32.75

$19.97 ฿668

118.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.19 £34.66

$37.91 ฿1,267

21.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$12.52 £9.39

$6.71 ฿224

86.59%

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

$1,203 £903

$797 ฿26.6K

50.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K £18.1K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

62.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.9 £64.4

$53.3 ฿1,780

61.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.05 £30.80

$25.05 ฿837

63.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £81.3

$91.6 ฿3,062

18.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 £81.5

$73.5 ฿2,455

47.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$857 £643

$464 ฿15.5K

84.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$764 £573

$305 ฿10.2K

150.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,530 £1,148

$915 ฿30.6K

67.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 £842

$552 ฿18.5K

103.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,971 £3,729

$1,912 ฿63.9K

159.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,925 £2,945

$1,438 ฿48.1K

172.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,940 £1,455

$595 ฿19.9K

225.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.33

5.57

-4.31%

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

Last update for Chesterfield: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chesterfield

$764 36.7%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 60.1% $460

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chesterfield

$375 18%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 74.8% $280

Eating Out

Chesterfield

$316 15.2%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 75% $237

Groceries & Markets

Chesterfield

$300 14.4%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 20.6% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Chesterfield

$155 7.4%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 29.2% $45

Getting Around

Chesterfield

$103 5%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 40.7% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Chesterfield

$71 3.4%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 27.9% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $857 in Chesterfield versus $464 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 226% higher in Chesterfield, 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 $80.0 in Chesterfield versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $300 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Chesterfield

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

12:36 12:36 PM

18:36 6:36 PM

6 h ahead of Chesterfield

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

103,800

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chesterfield Chiang Mai 9,010 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Chesterfield
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $2,085 in Chesterfield, $938 in Chiang Mai – roughly 122% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,127 per month in Chesterfield and $1,408 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.

Groceries cost about 26% more in Chesterfield, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $80.0 in Chesterfield and $19.00 in Chiang Mai. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $938, than in Chesterfield at $2,085. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chesterfield it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $938 in Chiang Mai to $2,085 in Chesterfield. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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, Chesterfield makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.