Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Carthage

For one person, living is cheaper in Carthage: $693 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Carthage
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Carthage Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Carthage

🇹🇳 Tunisia

$693

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai versus $693 in Carthage.

Chiang Mai $936
Carthage $693

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,457 in Chiang Mai versus $1,103 in Carthage.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Carthage $1,103

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Chiang Mai versus $1,513 in Carthage.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Carthage $1,513

Living in Chiang Mai is roughly 35% more expensive than in Carthage, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Chiang Mai 31% lower, Carthage 49% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$4.56 TND 13.69

-50.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$22.10 TND 66.4

-14.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$5.84 TND 17.54

-4.97%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$1.12 TND 3.36

49.11%

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

$0.64 ฿21.54

$0.74 TND 2.21

-13.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.31

$0.29 TND 0.88

6.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$1.71 TND 5.15

38.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$1.96 TND 5.88

86.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$0.48 TND 1.45

306.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.46

$0.26 TND 0.78

453.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.03

$1.71 TND 5.13

-22.22%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$1.73 TND 5.20

31.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$10.21 TND 30.66

61.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$5.92 TND 17.79

-53.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$14.61 TND 43.90

-36.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$1.36 TND 4.07

72.79%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.79

$3.61 TND 10.84

-73.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.16 TND 3.48

37.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$0.77 TND 2.32

94.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.11

$0.83 TND 2.50

54.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.18

$0.69 TND 2.07

59.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.82

$0.53 TND 1.58

33.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$0.31 TND 0.93

58.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$3.75 TND 11.28

10.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$6.67 TND 20.04

162.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.22 TND 3.68

31.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$1.30 TND 3.90

113.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.30

$0.41 TND 1.22

112.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

$13.59 TND 40.83

298.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.04

$0.33 TND 0.99

251.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

$0.35 TND 1.06

51.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$1.79 TND 5.37

35.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.88

$0.84 TND 2.52

72.62%

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

$21.1K ฿710.5K

$39.0K TND 117.3K

-46.07%

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

$26.9K ฿909.0K

$35.8K TND 107.5K

-24.70%

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

$62.2 ฿2,098

$45.26 TND 136

37.36%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$8.90 TND 26.74

36.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$20.82 TND 62.6

-3.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$31.89 TND 95.8

17.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$13.15 TND 39.51

-71.33%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$4.95 TND 14.87

31.11%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$107 TND 321

589.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.2K

$3,149 TND 9,462

368.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,801

$43.81 TND 132

21.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$60.7 TND 182

-59.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,087

$113 TND 338

-18.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,427

$67.8 TND 204

6.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$204 TND 613

136.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$153 TND 460

101.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$206 TND 620

387.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$276 TND 830

129.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

$972 TND 2,922

143.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$616 TND 1,851

157.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$264 TND 793

123.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.65

-47.70%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Carthage: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Carthage

$153 22.1% 50.5% $156

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Carthage

$194 28% 17.3% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Carthage

$128 18.5% 18% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Carthage

$75 10.8% 20.6% $19

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Carthage

$84 12.1% 8.3% $6.4

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Carthage

$17 2.5% 71.8% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Carthage

$42 6% 16.9% $8.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $482 in Chiang Mai and $204 in Carthage. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chiang Mai pays about 2.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $22 in Carthage. Groceries flip the comparison at $234 vs $194, with Carthage cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇹🇳 Carthage

🕒 Local time

10:37 10:37 AM

04:37 4:37 AM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

21,276

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Tunisian Dinar TND د.ت

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 TND = 0.333 USD

1 TND = 0.298 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TND, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Tunisian Dinar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 3 TND (1 TND = 0.333 USD). 1 EUR = 3.35 TND (1 TND = 0.298 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Carthage 8,650 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Carthage

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 Carthage: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $936 in Chiang Mai and $693 in Carthage, so Carthage is about 26% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Chiang Mai is about 2.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $482 in Chiang Mai versus $204 in Carthage. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% higher in Chiang Mai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $19 versus $22 in Carthage. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Carthage gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Carthage wins on affordability, Chiang Mai on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.