Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Baniyas

For one person, living is cheaper in Baniyas: $384 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 Baniyas
Learn more

Baniyas Living Index

Jump to prices

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Baniyas

🇸🇾 Syria

$384

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai versus $384 in Baniyas.

Chiang Mai $936
Baniyas $384

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,457 in Chiang Mai versus $678 in Baniyas.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Baniyas $678

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Chiang Mai versus $971 in Baniyas.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Baniyas $971

Living in Chiang Mai is roughly 143% more expensive than in Baniyas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$2.04 SYP 248

9.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$42.17 SYP 5,124

-54.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$6.82 SYP 829

-18.62%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$0.48 SYP 58.3

247.92%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$0.97 SYP 118

-34.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$0.31 SYP 38.09

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$1.46 SYP 178

61.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.98 SYP 484

-8.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$0.78 SYP 95.2

150.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$0.39 SYP 46.99

269.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$1.02 SYP 124

30.39%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$1.22 SYP 148

86.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$3.41 SYP 414

382.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$5.86 SYP 712

-52.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$13.83 SYP 1,680

-32.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$0.51 SYP 62.1

360.78%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$0.98 SYP 119

-1.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$0.29 SYP 35.15

451.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$0.52 SYP 63.2

188.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$0.31 SYP 38.20

312.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$0.42 SYP 50.6

161.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$0.41 SYP 49.80

73.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$0.62 SYP 75.0

-20.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$2.72 SYP 330

52.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$5.07 SYP 616

245.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.09 SYP 133

47.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.95 SYP 359

-5.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$0.22 SYP 26.99

295.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

$8.12 SYP 987

566.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$0.98 SYP 119

18.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$1.56 SYP 190

-66.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$7.56 SYP 918

-67.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.48 SYP 180

-2.03%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$15.3K SYP 1.9M

37.85%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$19.4K SYP 2.4M

39.18%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$20.11 SYP 2,443

209.15%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$4.10 SYP 498

196.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$46.75 SYP 5,681

-56.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$5.44 SYP 662

19.30%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$65.6 SYP 7,974

1021.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$1,775 SYP 215.7K

731.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$8.22 SYP 998

549.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$40.31 SYP 4,897

-38.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$61.1 SYP 7,420

49.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$58.4 SYP 7,100

23.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

14.25

-60.91%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Baniyas: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Baniyas

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Baniyas

$146 38% 37.6% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Baniyas

$76 19.7% 30.4% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Baniyas

$71 18.5% 24.9% $23

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Baniyas

$63 16.4% 18.9% $15

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Baniyas

$18 4.6% 71% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Baniyas

$11 * 2.8% 78.3% $39

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $42 in Baniyas. Groceries flip the comparison at $234 vs $146, with Baniyas cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇸🇾 Baniyas

🕒 Local time

04:22 4:22 AM

00:22 12:22 AM

4 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

41,632

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Syrian Pound SYP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD

1,000 SYP = 7.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SYP, 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 = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Syrian Pound exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 122 SYP (1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD). 1 EUR = 135 SYP (1,000 SYP = 7.39 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Baniyas 6,400 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Baniyas

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 Baniyas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Baniyas is about 59% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,403 in Chiang Mai and $577 in Baniyas 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.

Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $19 versus $42 in Baniyas. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $936 per month in Chiang Mai versus $384 in Baniyas – Baniyas is about 59% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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.