Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,214 in Bali, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Bali outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Bali
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Bali Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,214

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,214 in Bali, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Bali $1,214

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,047 in Bali, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Bali $2,047

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,880 in Bali, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Bali $2,880

Chiang Mai is about 23% cheaper than Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chiang Mai and Bali are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Bali 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$2.73 Rp 49.2K

-17.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$28.91 Rp 521.1K

-34.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$4.56 Rp 82.2K

21.71%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$2.26 Rp 40.8K

-26.11%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$1.43 Rp 25.7K

-55.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$0.68 Rp 12.3K

-54.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$2.23 Rp 40.1K

5.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.68 Rp 66.4K

-0.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.49 Rp 26.8K

30.87%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$2.18 Rp 39.3K

-33.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$1.14 Rp 20.5K

16.67%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$2.02 Rp 36.4K

12.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$16.81 Rp 302.9K

-2.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$3.57 Rp 64.4K

-22.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$11.31 Rp 203.8K

-17.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$3.44 Rp 62.1K

-31.69%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$1.51 Rp 27.3K

-35.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$2.19 Rp 39.5K

-26.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$1.88 Rp 33.9K

-20.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$1.71 Rp 30.8K

-25.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$2.32 Rp 41.7K

-52.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$0.99 Rp 17.9K

-28.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$0.50 Rp 9,010

-2.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$2.03 Rp 36.6K

103.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$21.49 Rp 387.4K

-18.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$2.14 Rp 38.5K

-24.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.87 Rp 51.7K

-3.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$0.25 Rp 4,533

248.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

$8.82 Rp 159.0K

513.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$0.45 Rp 8,102

157.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$0.44 Rp 7,925

20.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$5.48 Rp 98.8K

-55.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$0.89 Rp 16.0K

62.92%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$24.3K Rp 438.0M

-13.33%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$31.9K Rp 575.8M

-15.66%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$79.9 Rp 1.4M

-22.14%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$6.55 Rp 118.1K

85.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$18.48 Rp 333.1K

8.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$40.66 Rp 732.9K

-8.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$14.93 Rp 269.0K

-74.75%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$3.67 Rp 66.1K

76.84%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$437 Rp 7.9M

68.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$5,063 Rp 91.3M

191.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$43.62 Rp 786.3K

22.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$32.69 Rp 589.3K

-24.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$73.6 Rp 1.3M

24.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$74.3 Rp 1.3M

-3.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$984 Rp 17.7M

-50.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$583 Rp 10.5M

-47.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$3,121 Rp 56.2M

-67.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,475 Rp 26.6M

-57.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$2,447 Rp 44.1M

-3.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

$1,963 Rp 35.4M

-19.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$215 Rp 3.9M

174.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

13.78

-59.58%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Bali: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Bali

$583 48% 88.7% $274

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Bali

$275 22.7% 17.4% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Bali

$101 8.3% 7.1% $7.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Bali

$105 8.6% 11% $10

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Bali

$90 7.4% 15.5% $12

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Bali

$12 1% 79.7% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Bali

$48 4% 4.6% $2.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $984 in Bali. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Chiang Mai are about 2.7 times higher, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $29 in Bali. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $275 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇮🇩 Bali

🕒 Local time

18:05 6:05 PM

19:05 7:05 PM

1 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.55 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, 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).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,025 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.55 USD). 1 EUR = 20,061 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Bali 3,520 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Bali

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 Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bali costs about 30% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. 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 $1,821 in Bali. 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 $984 in Bali.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $29 in Bali. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,214 in Bali. That’s a gap of about 30%.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,214 in Bali. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $936 versus $1,214 in Bali. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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.