Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Bagamoyo

For one person, living is cheaper in Bagamoyo: $383 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index
18

Cost of Living Index in Bagamoyo
Learn more

Bagamoyo Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Bagamoyo

🇹🇿 Tanzania

$383

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai versus $383 in Bagamoyo.

Chiang Mai $936
Bagamoyo $383

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,457 in Chiang Mai versus $643 in Bagamoyo.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Bagamoyo $643

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Chiang Mai versus $904 in Bagamoyo.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Bagamoyo $904

Living in Chiang Mai is roughly 145% more expensive than in Bagamoyo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Chiang Mai 31% lower, Bagamoyo 72% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$1.84 TZS 4,831

21.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$11.34 TZS 29.7K

67.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$7.69 TZS 20.1K

-27.83%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$1.90 TZS 4,985

-12.11%

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

$0.64 ฿21.55

$0.33 TZS 856

93.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.31

$0.19 TZS 486

63.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$0.95 TZS 2,487

148.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$1.91 TZS 5,011

91.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$0.76 TZS 1,993

156.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.48

$0.57 TZS 1,490

152.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.04

$0.36 TZS 956

269.44%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$2.02 TZS 5,301

12.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$9.14 TZS 23.9K

79.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$4.85 TZS 12.7K

-42.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$3.96 TZS 10.4K

135.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$2.53 TZS 6,613

-7.11%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.80

$0.92 TZS 2,411

5.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.03 TZS 2,686

55.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$0.59 TZS 1,544

154.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.12

$0.31 TZS 816

312.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.19

$0.29 TZS 754

279.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.82

$0.85 TZS 2,230

-16.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.37

$0.37 TZS 969

32.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$2.14 TZS 5,596

93.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$7.00 TZS 18.3K

150.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$0.94 TZS 2,468

71.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$1.57 TZS 4,111

77.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,826

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.06

$1.64 TZS 4,295

-29.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

$1.48 TZS 3,885

-64.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$13.09 TZS 34.3K

-81.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.90

$1.37 TZS 3,596

5.84%

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

$21.1K ฿710.7K

$16.4K TZS 43.0M

28.24%

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

$26.9K ฿909.3K

$26.2K TZS 68.5M

2.96%

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

$62.2 ฿2,098

$56.4 TZS 147.7K

10.21%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$4.77 TZS 12.5K

155.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$22.90 TZS 60.0K

-12.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$4.96 TZS 13.0K

30.85%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$560 TZS 1.5M

31.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.3K

$13.2K TZS 34.5M

11.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,801

$15.73 TZS 41.2K

239.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$25.76 TZS 67.5K

-4.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,087

$44.02 TZS 115.3K

107.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,428

$60.0 TZS 157.0K

20.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$57.3 TZS 150.1K

741.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$231 TZS 604.3K

335.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$111 TZS 290.7K

470.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

18.25

-69.48%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Bagamoyo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Bagamoyo

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Bagamoyo

$143 37.3% 39.1% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Bagamoyo

$65 17.1% 39.7% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Bagamoyo

$84 22% 11% $10

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Bagamoyo

$71 18.6% 8.1% $6.3

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Bagamoyo

$9.1 * 2.4% 85.2% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Bagamoyo

$9.9 * 2.6% 80.3% $40

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 $57 in Bagamoyo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $11 in Bagamoyo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $143 per month, with Bagamoyo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇹🇿 Bagamoyo

🕒 Local time

11:39 11:39 AM

07:39 7:39 AM

4 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

55,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Tanzanian Shilling TZS Sh

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD

10,000 TZS = 3.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TZS, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Tanzanian Shilling exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 2,619 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD). 1 EUR = 2,924 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.42 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Bagamoyo 7,150 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Bagamoyo

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 Bagamoyo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bagamoyo wins on cost – living expenses run 59% lower than in Chiang Mai. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bagamoyo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,403 in Chiang Mai and $574 in Bagamoyo to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $482 in Chiang Mai versus $57 in Bagamoyo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $736 in Chiang Mai versus $560 in Bagamoyo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Bagamoyo – a meal for two runs $11 versus $19 in Chiang Mai. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $383 in Bagamoyo versus $936 in Chiang Mai, a $800 budget is realistic in Bagamoyo but tight or insufficient in Chiang Mai. The gap between the two cities makes Bagamoyo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 Bagamoyo are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.