Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Busselton

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $2,623 in Busselton, rent and utilities included – about $20,200 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
123

Cost of Living Index in Busselton
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Busselton Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Busselton

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,623

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $938 in Chiang Mai versus $2,623 in Busselton.

Chiang Mai $938
Busselton $2,623

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,426 in Chiang Mai versus $3,698 in Busselton.

Chiang Mai $1,426
Busselton $3,698

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,914 in Chiang Mai versus $4,773 in Busselton.

Chiang Mai $1,914
Busselton $4,773

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 64% less than in Busselton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 30% below, Busselton is 94% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.26 ฿75.7

$17.42 A$24.95

-87.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.18 ฿644

$84.1 A$120

-77.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.59 ฿188

$10.59 A$15.17

-47.21%

Cappuccino

$1.72 ฿57.9

$4.42 A$6.33

-61.09%

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

$0.64 ฿21.63

$2.06 A$2.95

-68.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ฿11.23

$2.03 A$2.91

-83.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.1

$8.49 A$12.16

-72.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.90 ฿131

$8.15 A$11.68

-52.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 ฿68.9

$1.72 A$2.46

19.19%

White Bread (500g)

$1.40 ฿46.90

$3.11 A$4.45

-54.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.07

$2.04 A$2.92

-37.25%

Eggs

$2.25 ฿75.6

$5.14 A$7.36

-56.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.94 ฿569

$9.23 A$13.22

83.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.74 ฿92.0

$9.18 A$13.16

-70.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.36 ฿314

$13.90 A$19.92

-32.66%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.6

$4.57 A$6.54

-47.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.01 ฿34.06

$3.08 A$4.41

-67.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.61 ฿54.1

$3.31 A$4.74

-51.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 ฿51.0

$4.94 A$7.07

-69.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.08

$2.90 A$4.15

-55.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.38

$1.97 A$2.82

-43.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.19

$2.28 A$3.27

-68.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.61

$1.37 A$1.96

-62.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.33 ฿145

$41.72 A$59.8

-89.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.73 ฿595

$12.65 A$18.12

40.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ฿54.7

$4.35 A$6.24

-62.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.7

$3.38 A$4.85

-15.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 ฿28.43

$2.48 A$3.55

-65.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.9 ฿1,809

$82.6 A$118

-34.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.17 ฿39.34

$3.55 A$5.09

-67.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿19.08

$1.38 A$1.98

-58.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.37 ฿79.5

$41.16 A$59.0

-94.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.52

$1.40 A$2.01

3.57%

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

$20.5K ฿687.1K

$27.7K A$39.7K

-26.10%

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

$26.5K ฿889.8K

$29.6K A$42.4K

-10.50%

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

$62.3 ฿2,092

$195 A$279

-67.98%

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

$12.27 ฿412

$32.93 A$47.18

-62.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.97 ฿670

$64.4 A$92.2

-68.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.91 ฿1,272

$49.68 A$71.2

-23.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

$16.07 A$23.02

-76.60%

Cinema Ticket

$6.71 ฿225

$17.71 A$25.37

-62.11%

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

$797 ฿26.8K

$2,274 A$3,258

-64.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿497.8K

$23.1K A$33.0K

-35.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ฿1,787

$78.8 A$113

-32.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.05 ฿841

$64.5 A$92.4

-61.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.6 ฿3,075

$120 A$172

-23.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.5 ฿2,465

$162 A$232

-54.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$464 ฿15.6K

$1,247 A$1,786

-62.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$305 ฿10.2K

$1,288 A$1,846

-76.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$915 ฿30.7K

$2,204 A$3,158

-58.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 ฿18.5K

$1,776 A$2,544

-68.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,912 ฿64.2K

$5,785 A$8,287

-66.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,438 ฿48.3K

$4,348 A$6,228

-66.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

5.91

-5.75%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Last update for Busselton: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5%

Busselton

$1.3K 49.1% 323% $984

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4%

Busselton

$364 13.9% 52.7% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7%

Busselton

$192 7.3% 74.9% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1%

Busselton

$292 11.1% 209% $197

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4%

Busselton

$299 11.4% 279% $220

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5%

Busselton

$103 3.9% 67.9% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5%

Busselton

$85 3.2% 65.8% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $464 in Chiang Mai and $1,247 in Busselton. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $19.00 in Chiang Mai vs $84.0 in Busselton for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $238 vs $364 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇦🇺 Busselton

🕒 Local time

02:11 2:11 AM

03:11 3:11 AM

1 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

27,233

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.625 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 13, 2026: 1 USD = 33.56 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.46 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.625 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Busselton 6,080 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Busselton

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 Busselton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai and Busselton differ by about 179% in total monthly costs ($938 vs $2,623 including rent). Chiang Mai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,408 in Chiang Mai and $3,934 in Busselton 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: $464 in Chiang Mai versus $1,247 in Busselton. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $797 in Chiang Mai versus $2,274 in Busselton. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 53% higher in Busselton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $2,623 in Busselton, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Busselton. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai 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 Busselton 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 179% less than in Busselton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.