Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Cambridge Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,251 in Cambridge Bay, rent and utilities included – about $15,800 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
111

Cost of Living Index in Cambridge Bay
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Cambridge Bay Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Cambridge Bay

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,251

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Cambridge Bay

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai versus $2,251 in Cambridge Bay.

Chiang Mai $936
Cambridge Bay $2,251

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,457 in Chiang Mai versus $3,293 in Cambridge Bay.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Cambridge Bay $3,293

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Chiang Mai versus $4,335 in Cambridge Bay.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Cambridge Bay $4,335

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 58% less than in Cambridge Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 31% below, Cambridge Bay is 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.5

$22.62 CA$31.64

-90.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿640

$65.0 CA$90.9

-70.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$11.52 CA$16.11

-51.82%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.4

$3.80 CA$5.32

-56.05%

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

$0.64 ฿21.51

$2.00 CA$2.80

-68.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.29

$1.61 CA$2.26

-80.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$4.79 CA$6.69

-50.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿123

$4.96 CA$6.94

-26.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$2.11 CA$2.95

-7.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.41

$2.52 CA$3.53

-42.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.97

$2.99 CA$4.19

-55.52%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$3.42 CA$4.79

-33.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿554

$9.98 CA$13.95

64.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$12.86 CA$17.98

-78.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$13.94 CA$19.50

-33.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.3

$3.76 CA$5.26

-37.50%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.75

$1.32 CA$1.85

-26.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.8

$3.15 CA$4.40

-49.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$3.84 CA$5.37

-60.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.06

$2.72 CA$3.80

-52.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.14

$2.22 CA$3.10

-50.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.79

$2.67 CA$3.74

-73.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.34

$1.74 CA$2.43

-71.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$14.67 CA$20.52

-71.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿590

$14.54 CA$20.33

20.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.4

$2.41 CA$3.37

-33.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$2.79 CA$3.90

-0.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.27

$2.32 CA$3.25

-62.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

$64.0 CA$89.5

-15.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.00

$3.00 CA$4.19

-61.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.78

$1.46 CA$2.04

-63.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.6

$20.90 CA$29.23

-88.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.82

$1.17 CA$1.64

23.93%

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

$21.1K ฿709.7K

$26.3K CA$36.8K

-20.03%

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

$26.9K ฿907.9K

$18.6K CA$26.0K

44.92%

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

$62.2 ฿2,095

$129 CA$181

-51.85%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$38.55 CA$53.9

-68.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿678

$54.1 CA$75.7

-62.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,257

$42.99 CA$60.1

-13.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$16.17 CA$22.61

-76.69%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$9.48 CA$13.26

-31.54%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$558 CA$781

31.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿497.6K

$14.9K CA$20.8K

-0.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,799

$52.0 CA$72.8

2.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿830

$42.63 CA$59.6

-42.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,083

$79.4 CA$111

15.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,424

$92.6 CA$129

-22.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$1,153 CA$1,613

-58.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$1,097 CA$1,534

-71.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$1,867 CA$2,611

-46.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.3K

$1,722 CA$2,408

-63.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.6K

$4,906 CA$6,862

-51.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$3,094 CA$4,327

-48.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

4.68

19.02%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Cambridge Bay: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Cambridge Bay

$1.1K 48.7% 255% $788

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Cambridge Bay

$357 15.9% 52.5% $123

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Cambridge Bay

$120 5.3% 10.4% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Cambridge Bay

$222 9.9% 135% $127

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Cambridge Bay

$310 13.8% 299% $232

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Cambridge Bay

$84 3.7% 36.1% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Cambridge Bay

$62 2.8% 23.2% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $482 in Chiang Mai and $1,153 in Cambridge Bay. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $65 in Cambridge Bay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $357 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇨🇦 Cambridge Bay

🕒 Local time

18:07 6:07 PM

05:07 5:07 AM

13 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

1,800

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 CAD = 0.715 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.61 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.715 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Cambridge Bay 10,050 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Cambridge Bay

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 Cambridge Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $936 in Chiang Mai and $2,251 in Cambridge Bay, so Chiang Mai is about 58% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,403 in Chiang Mai and $3,376 in Cambridge Bay 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: $482 in Chiang Mai versus $1,153 in Cambridge Bay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $936 per month in Chiang Mai versus $2,251 in Cambridge Bay – Chiang Mai is about 58% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Chiang Mai runs roughly 15% less than in Cambridge Bay. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Chiang Mai is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Expats usually find Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 58% less than in Cambridge Bay. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.