Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Calama

For one person, living is cheaper in Calama: $593 a month against $935 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 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
28

Cost of Living Index in Calama
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Calama Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Calama

🇨🇱 Chile

$593

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $935 in Chiang Mai versus $593 in Calama.

Chiang Mai $935
Calama $593

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,467 in Chiang Mai versus $1,202 in Calama.

Chiang Mai $1,467
Calama $1,202

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,999 in Chiang Mai versus $1,812 in Calama.

Chiang Mai $1,999
Calama $1,812

Living in Chiang Mai is roughly 58% more expensive than in Calama, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Chiang Mai 31% lower, Calama 56% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.6

$6.95 CLP 6,809

-69.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.62 ฿624

$31.55 CLP 30.9K

-40.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.60 ฿188

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.8

$2.10 CLP 2,056

-20.95%

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

$0.65 ฿21.69

$0.96 CLP 937

-32.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ฿10.22

$0.91 CLP 890

-67.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.32 ฿77.9

$3.03 CLP 2,962

-23.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 ฿123

$5.14 CLP 5,028

-28.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 ฿67.6

$1.09 CLP 1,066

85.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.21

$0.78 CLP 766

80.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 ฿46.67

$2.70 CLP 2,647

-48.52%

Eggs

$2.37 ฿79.4

$4.85 CLP 4,745

-51.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.52 ฿554

$9.10 CLP 8,913

81.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.67 ฿89.5

$6.14 CLP 6,009

-56.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.02 ฿302

$7.73 CLP 7,565

16.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.4

$1.23 CLP 1,205

95.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿34.91

$1.04 CLP 1,019

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 ฿55.6

$1.58 CLP 1,543

5.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.3

$1.10 CLP 1,081

41.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ฿41.50

$0.89 CLP 870

39.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ฿36.44

$0.93 CLP 914

17.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 ฿25.54

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.24

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.12 ฿138

$5.15 CLP 5,043

-20.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.93 ฿601

$3.96 CLP 3,875

352.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ฿54.4

$1.00 CLP 978

62.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 ฿94.6

$1.25 CLP 1,221

125.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ฿31.33

$0.89 CLP 874

4.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,773

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ฿39.45

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 ฿5.75

$1.43 CLP 1,405

-88.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 ฿60.8

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.38

$1.45 CLP 1,421

1.38%

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

$21.0K ฿704.5K

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

$26.5K ฿889.1K

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

$62.6 ฿2,098

$41.47 CLP 40.6K

50.86%

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

$11.60 ฿389

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.30 ฿681

$13.20 CLP 12.9K

53.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.88 ฿1,270

$50.4 CLP 49.4K

-24.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿124

$20.09 CLP 19.7K

-81.58%

Cinema Ticket

$6.51 ฿218

$4.47 CLP 4,374

45.64%

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

$727 ฿24.4K

$303 CLP 296.7K

139.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ฿555.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ฿1,795

$35.44 CLP 34.7K

51.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.80 ฿832

$28.01 CLP 27.4K

-11.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.4 ฿3,031

$45.68 CLP 44.7K

97.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.0 ฿2,413

$60.1 CLP 58.9K

19.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$481 ฿16.1K

$336 CLP 328.6K

43.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 ฿10.4K

$104 CLP 101.7K

198.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 ฿35.5K

$808 CLP 791.6K

30.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$659 ฿22.1K

$619 CLP 605.8K

6.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,418 ฿81.1K

$1,401 CLP 1.4M

72.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿53.9K

$1,217 CLP 1.2M

32.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

$1,133 CLP 1.1M

-47.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.40%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Last update for Calama: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1%

Calama

$104 17.5% 66.5% $206

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3%

Calama

$174 * 29.4% 26.4% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6%

Calama

$76 12.9% 29.7% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Calama

$55 * 9.2% 42.1% $40

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2%

Calama

$114 * 19.2% 48.5% $37

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3%

Calama

$11 * 1.8% 81.7% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4%

Calama

$59 10% 16.6% $8.4

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 $481 in Chiang Mai and $336 in Calama. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Calama pays 90% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $32 in Calama. Groceries flip the comparison at $237 vs $174, with Calama cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇨🇱 Calama

🕒 Local time

04:11 4:11 AM

18:11 6:11 PM

10 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

157,575

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.21 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.14 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 33.53 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.47 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 979 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,094 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.14 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Calama 18,690 km ≈ 24 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Calama

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 Calama: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Calama wins on cost – living expenses run 37% lower than in Chiang Mai. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Calama the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 48% lower in Chiang Mai. 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: $481 in Chiang Mai versus $336 in Calama. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Chiang Mai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $935 per month in Chiang Mai versus $593 in Calama – Calama is about 37% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $593 in Calama versus $935 in Chiang Mai, a $800 budget is realistic in Calama but tight or insufficient in Chiang Mai. The gap between the two cities makes Calama 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.