Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Al-`awabi

For one person, living costs are similar in Chiang Mai and in Al-`awabi: $938 and $953 a month, rent and utilities included.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Al-`awabi
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Al-`awabi Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Al-`awabi

🇴🇲 Oman

$953

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Al-`awabi

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 Al-`awabi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $938 per month in Chiang Mai vs $953 in Al-`awabi, rent included.

Chiang Mai $938
Al-`awabi $953

A couple spends around $1,426 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,431 in Al-`awabi, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,426
Al-`awabi $1,431

A family of three spends $1,914 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,909 in Al-`awabi, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,914
Al-`awabi $1,909

Chiang Mai is about 2% cheaper than Al-`awabi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Al-`awabi are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 30% lower, Al-`awabi 29% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.26 ฿75.4

$5.06 OMR 1.95

-55.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.18 ฿641

$38.93 OMR 14.99

-50.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.59 ฿187

$7.61 OMR 2.93

-26.54%

Cappuccino

$1.72 ฿57.6

$5.06 OMR 1.95

-66.01%

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

$0.64 ฿21.54

$0.89 OMR 0.34

-28.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ฿11.18

$0.27 OMR 0.10

22.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿78.7

$12.94 OMR 4.98

-81.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.90 ฿130

$13.19 OMR 5.08

-70.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 ฿68.6

$2.27 OMR 0.87

-9.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.40 ฿46.70

$1.23 OMR 0.47

13.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 ฿42.89

$1.88 OMR 0.72

-31.91%

Eggs

$2.25 ฿75.3

$2.96 OMR 1.14

-23.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.94 ฿566

$7.29 OMR 2.81

132.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.74 ฿91.6

$7.17 OMR 2.76

-61.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.36 ฿313

$10.59 OMR 4.08

-11.61%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.3

$3.56 OMR 1.37

-32.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.01 ฿33.92

$1.92 OMR 0.74

-47.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.61 ฿53.9

$2.33 OMR 0.90

-30.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 ฿50.7

$1.28 OMR 0.49

18.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿42.90

$1.22 OMR 0.47

4.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.22

$1.25 OMR 0.48

-11.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.09

$1.87 OMR 0.72

-61.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.54

$0.66 OMR 0.25

-21.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.33 ฿145

$6.41 OMR 2.47

-32.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.73 ฿593

$15.72 OMR 6.05

12.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ฿54.4

$6.06 OMR 2.33

-73.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.3

$10.33 OMR 3.98

-72.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 ฿28.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.9 ฿1,801

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.17 ฿39.18

$3.29 OMR 1.27

-64.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿19.00

$2.55 OMR 0.98

-77.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.37 ฿79.2

$7.72 OMR 2.97

-69.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.32

$0.65 OMR 0.25

123.08%

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

$20.5K ฿684.3K

$25.4K OMR 9,791

-19.49%

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

$26.5K ฿886.1K

$23.0K OMR 8,858

15.24%

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

$62.3 ฿2,083

$177 OMR 68.2

-64.81%

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

$12.27 ฿410

$31.35 OMR 12.07

-60.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.97 ฿668

$71.0 OMR 27.33

-71.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.91 ฿1,267

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$6.71 ฿224

$10.34 OMR 3.98

-35.11%

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

$797 ฿26.6K

$286 OMR 110

178.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿495.7K

$10.5K OMR 4,032

41.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ฿1,780

$55.6 OMR 21.42

-4.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.05 ฿837

$43.72 OMR 16.83

-42.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.6 ฿3,062

$90.5 OMR 34.83

1.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.5 ฿2,455

$86.8 OMR 33.41

-15.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$464 ฿15.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$305 ฿10.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$915 ฿30.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 ฿18.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,912 ฿63.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,438 ฿48.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

5.25

6.10%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Last update for Al-`awabi: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5%

Al-`awabi

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4%

Al-`awabi

$293 30.7% 23.1% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7%

Al-`awabi

$124 13.1% 13.6% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1%

Al-`awabi

$279 29.3% 196% $185

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4%

Al-`awabi

$220 23.1% 178% $141

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5%

Al-`awabi

$16 * 1.7% 73.8% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5%

Al-`awabi

$21 * 2.2% 59.7% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19.00 in Chiang Mai versus $39.00 in Al-`awabi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $238 vs $293 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇴🇲 Al-`awabi

🕒 Local time

14:40 2:40 PM

11:40 11:40 AM

3 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

10,711

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.31 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

OMR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

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).

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.433 OMR (1 OMR = 2.31 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Al-`awabi 4,320 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Al-`awabi

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 Al-`awabi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Al-`awabi is pricier by about 2%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,408 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,430 in Al-`awabi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $938 in Chiang Mai and $953 in Al-`awabi. That's a gap of about 2%.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Chiang Mai and $286 in Al-`awabi. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $938, than in Al-`awabi at $953. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Al-`awabi it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Chiang Mai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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