Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Acosta

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,712 in Acosta, rent and utilities included – about $9,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Acosta
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Acosta Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Acosta

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,712

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Acosta

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Chiang Mai and in Acosta actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai versus $1,712 in Acosta.

Chiang Mai $936
Acosta $1,712

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,457 in Chiang Mai versus $2,673 in Acosta.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Acosta $2,673

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Chiang Mai versus $3,633 in Acosta.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Acosta $3,633

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 45% less than in Acosta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 31% below, Acosta is 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$12.26 ₡5,531

-81.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$57.1 ₡25.8K

-66.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$11.80 ₡5,325

-52.97%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$4.16 ₡1,875

-59.86%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$2.64 ₡1,193

-75.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$1.86 ₡838

-83.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$3.37 ₡1,521

-29.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$4.50 ₡2,029

-18.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$2.40 ₡1,083

-18.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$2.84 ₡1,283

-49.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$2.68 ₡1,208

-50.37%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$3.16 ₡1,428

-27.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$11.58 ₡5,226

42.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$11.34 ₡5,117

-75.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$14.80 ₡6,677

-37.09%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$4.67 ₡2,107

-49.68%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$1.75 ₡790

-44.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$3.77 ₡1,701

-57.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$3.89 ₡1,756

-61.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$3.21 ₡1,450

-60.12%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$2.68 ₡1,208

-58.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$1.05 ₡474

-32.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$3.02 ₡1,362

-83.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$5.50 ₡2,484

-24.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$17.96 ₡8,105

-2.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$2.33 ₡1,053

-30.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.80 ₡1,264

-0.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$1.29 ₡580

-32.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$2.49 ₡1,123

-53.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$1.37 ₡618

-61.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$9.86 ₡4,448

-75.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.62 ₡731

-10.49%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$37.4K ₡16.9M

-43.62%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$42.0K ₡19.0M

-35.93%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$100 ₡45.2K

-37.96%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$30.43 ₡13.7K

-60.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$52.6 ₡23.7K

-61.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$58.8 ₡26.5K

-36.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$7.48 ₡3,374

-13.24%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$778 ₡350.9K

-5.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$17.2K ₡7.8M

-14.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$64.4 ₡29.1K

-17.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$63.7 ₡28.7K

-61.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$135 ₡61.1K

-32.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$148 ₡66.8K

-51.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$905 ₡408.5K

-46.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$640 ₡288.8K

-51.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$2,161 ₡975.1K

-53.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,210 ₡545.9K

-47.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$1,959 ₡883.9K

20.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$1,479 ₡667.4K

-60.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

8.62

-35.38%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Acosta: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Acosta

$640 37.4% 107% $331

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Acosta

$389 22.7% 65.8% $154

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Acosta

$185 10.8% 70.4% $77

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Acosta

$183 10.7% 94% $89

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Acosta

$227 13.3% 193% $150

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Acosta

$14 * 0.9% 76.4% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Acosta

$74 4.3% 46.7% $23

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $482 in Chiang Mai and $905 in Acosta. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Acosta pays about 2.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $57 in Acosta for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $389 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇨🇷 Acosta

🕒 Local time

23:07 11:07 PM

10:07 10:07 AM

13 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

3,072

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Acosta 16,820 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Acosta

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

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

Chiang Mai and Acosta differ by about 83% in total monthly costs ($936 vs $1,712 including rent). Chiang Mai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 60% lower in Chiang Mai. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $482 in Chiang Mai versus $905 in Acosta. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 66% higher in Acosta. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $936 per month in Chiang Mai versus $1,712 in Acosta – a 83% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Chiang Mai is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Chiang Mai and Acosta are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

It comes down to priorities – Chiang Mai wins on affordability, Acosta on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.