Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Burnie

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $906 a month against $1,614 in Burnie, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Burnie
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Burnie Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$906

/mo nomad

Burnie

🇦🇺 Australia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $906 in Chiang Mai versus $1,614 in Burnie.

Chiang Mai $906
Burnie $1,614

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,385 in Chiang Mai versus $2,472 in Burnie.

Chiang Mai $1,385
Burnie $2,472

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,864 in Chiang Mai versus $3,330 in Burnie.

Chiang Mai $1,864
Burnie $3,330

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 44% less than in Burnie, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 32% below, Burnie is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.4

$18.28 A$26.16

-88.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.40 ฿649

$90.6 A$130

-78.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.47 ฿183

$5.42 A$7.75

0.92%

Cappuccino

$1.68 ฿56.4

$3.96 A$5.66

-57.58%

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

$0.66 ฿22.10

$3.52 A$5.03

-81.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ฿11.52

$1.69 A$2.42

-79.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.42 ฿81.0

$4.17 A$5.97

-41.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 ฿125

$5.97 A$8.54

-37.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 ฿68.9

$1.84 A$2.63

11.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿48.78

$2.50 A$3.57

-41.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 ฿45.09

$1.91 A$2.73

-29.32%

Eggs

$2.27 ฿76.0

$4.88 A$6.98

-53.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.31 ฿546

$9.64 A$13.80

69.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.70 ฿90.3

$6.16 A$8.81

-56.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.20 ฿308

$17.17 A$24.57

-46.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.1

$2.80 A$4.01

-14.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿34.66

$2.80 A$4.01

-62.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.7

$2.07 A$2.97

-22.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 ฿48.37

$2.75 A$3.93

-47.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 ฿43.59

$2.64 A$3.78

-50.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.29

$2.11 A$3.02

-47.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.70 ฿23.55

$2.06 A$2.94

-66.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.99

$1.61 A$2.30

-68.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.13 ฿138

$35.56 A$50.9

-88.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.78 ฿595

$14.28 A$20.44

24.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ฿54.7

$3.46 A$4.95

-52.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 ฿96.0

$5.55 A$7.94

-48.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.76

$1.88 A$2.69

-54.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.2 ฿1,780

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 ฿40.81

$2.67 A$3.82

-54.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.56 ฿18.81

$2.13 A$3.04

-73.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.31 ฿77.5

$42.27 A$60.5

-94.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ฿50.2

$1.29 A$1.85

16.28%

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

$20.9K ฿698.3K

$26.4K A$37.8K

-21.12%

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

$26.7K ฿895.0K

$31.4K A$44.9K

-14.76%

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

$61.3 ฿2,051

$212 A$303

-71.04%

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

$12.50 ฿419

$20.99 A$30.03

-40.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.36 ฿682

$48.19 A$69.0

-57.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.94 ฿1,270

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$6.60 ฿221

$14.01 A$20.06

-52.89%

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

$774 ฿25.9K

$2,000 A$2,862

-61.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K ฿483.2K

$20.8K A$29.8K

-30.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.8 ฿1,835

$78.7 A$113

-30.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.26 ฿846

$24.16 A$34.57

4.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 ฿3,032

$107 A$153

-15.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.3 ฿2,453

$92.8 A$133

-21.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$459 ฿15.4K

$799 A$1,144

-42.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$294 ฿9,835

$575 A$823

-48.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$919 ฿30.8K

$1,128 A$1,614

-18.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 ฿18.5K

$838 A$1,199

-34.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,917 ฿64.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$592 ฿19.8K

$5,051 A$7,229

-88.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

5.6

-0.54%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 5, 2026

Last update for Burnie: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$294 31.8%

Burnie

$575 35.2% 95.8% $282

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$236 25.6%

Burnie

$331 20.2% 40.3% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$110 11.9%

Burnie

$136 8.3% 24% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Burnie

$281 17.2% 198% $187

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.4%

Burnie

$264 16.1% 241% $186

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Burnie

$21 * 1.3% 65.6% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5%

Burnie

$28 * 1.7% 45.2% $23

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 $459 in Chiang Mai and $799 in Burnie. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Burnie pays 753% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $19.00 in Chiang Mai vs $91.0 in Burnie for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $236 vs $331 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇦🇺 Burnie

🕒 Local time

19:16 7:16 PM

23:16 11:16 PM

4 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

20,267

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Burnie 8,230 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Burnie

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 Burnie: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 78% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 753% lower in Burnie. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $459 in Chiang Mai versus $799 in Burnie. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 40% higher in Burnie. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $906 per month in Chiang Mai versus $1,614 in Burnie – a 78% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $906 in Chiang Mai versus $1,614 in Burnie, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Burnie. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Chiang Mai is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Burnie, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Chiang Mai and Burnie are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 78% less than in Burnie. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.