Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Al Fujayrah

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $3,206 in Al Fujayrah, rent and utilities included – about $27,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
155

Cost of Living Index in Al Fujayrah
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Al Fujayrah Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Al Fujayrah

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$3,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Al Fujayrah

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 Fujayrah actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $3,206 in Al Fujayrah, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Al Fujayrah $3,206

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $4,790 in Al Fujayrah, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Al Fujayrah $4,790

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $6,373 in Al Fujayrah, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Al Fujayrah $6,373

Chiang Mai is about 71% cheaper than Al Fujayrah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Al Fujayrah is 136% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$7.96 AED 29.22

-71.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$59.9 AED 220

-68.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$9.74 AED 35.76

-43.02%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$5.81 AED 21.34

-71.26%

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

$0.64 ฿21.53

$1.42 AED 5.20

-54.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.30

$0.60 AED 2.21

-48.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$13.72 AED 50.4

-82.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$13.88 AED 51.0

-73.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.84 AED 6.76

5.98%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.45

$1.16 AED 4.27

24.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.01

$2.52 AED 9.24

-47.22%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$3.52 AED 12.93

-35.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$5.50 AED 20.19

199.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$5.22 AED 19.19

-46.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$7.78 AED 28.57

19.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$1.73 AED 6.34

35.84%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.78

$1.33 AED 4.90

-27.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.30 AED 4.76

23.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$1.42 AED 5.20

5.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.10

$0.99 AED 3.62

29.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.17

$1.05 AED 3.84

4.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.81

$1.10 AED 4.05

-35.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$0.66 AED 2.43

-25.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$6.39 AED 23.46

-35.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$16.41 AED 60.3

6.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$2.62 AED 9.63

-38.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$3.00 AED 11.03

-7.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.29

$2.88 AED 10.57

-69.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

$16.16 AED 59.3

234.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.03

$2.77 AED 10.19

-58.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.79

$0.28 AED 1.04

89.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$2.69 AED 9.90

-10.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.87

$0.78 AED 2.86

85.90%

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

$21.1K ฿710.3K

$26.3K AED 96.7K

-20.06%

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

$26.9K ฿908.7K

$22.0K AED 80.7K

22.65%

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

$62.2 ฿2,097

$239 AED 878

-74.01%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$44.28 AED 163

-72.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$91.6 AED 336

-78.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$96.6 AED 355

-61.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$29.57 AED 109

-87.25%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$9.95 AED 36.55

-34.77%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$275 AED 1,009

168.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.0K

$4,443 AED 16.3K

232.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,800

$29.39 AED 108

81.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$55.0 AED 202

-55.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,086

$103 AED 378

-11.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,426

$80.9 AED 297

-11.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$2,379 AED 8,739

-79.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$2,077 AED 7,629

-85.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$5,048 AED 18.5K

-80.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$4,064 AED 14.9K

-84.41%

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)

$590 ฿19.9K

$3,673 AED 13.5K

-83.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

178.50%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Al Fujayrah: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Al Fujayrah

$2.1K 64.8% 572% $1.8K

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Al Fujayrah

$218 6.8% 6.8% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Al Fujayrah

$121 3.8% 11.1% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Al Fujayrah

$375 11.7% 297% $281

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Al Fujayrah

$267 8.3% 244% $189

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Al Fujayrah

$32 1% 48.1% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Al Fujayrah

$116 3.6% 132% $66

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $2,379 in Al Fujayrah. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Al Fujayrah are about 6.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $60 in Al Fujayrah. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $218 in Al Fujayrah – so Al Fujayrah wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇦🇪 Al Fujayrah

🕒 Local time

21:39 9:39 PM

18:39 6:39 PM

3 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

118,933

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.244 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.1 AED (1 AED = 0.244 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Al Fujayrah 4,450 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Al Fujayrah

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 Fujayrah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al Fujayrah costs about 243% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,403 per month in Chiang Mai and $4,810 in Al Fujayrah. 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 $2,379 in Al Fujayrah.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $275 in Al Fujayrah. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 7% cheaper in Al Fujayrah – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $3,206 in Al Fujayrah. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Al Fujayrah makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.