Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Celaya

For one person, living is cheaper in Celaya: $903 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Chiang Mai outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Celaya
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Celaya Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Celaya

🇲🇽 Mexico

$903

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai versus $903 in Celaya.

Chiang Mai $936
Celaya $903

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,457 in Chiang Mai versus $1,423 in Celaya.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Celaya $1,423

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Chiang Mai versus $1,944 in Celaya.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Celaya $1,944

Living in Chiang Mai is roughly 4% more expensive than in Celaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Chiang Mai 31% lower, Celaya 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$12.40 MX$233

-81.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$43.66 MX$820

-56.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$6.98 MX$131

-20.49%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$3.18 MX$59.7

-47.48%

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

$0.64 ฿21.55

$1.17 MX$22.02

-45.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.31

$1.09 MX$20.52

-71.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$2.11 MX$39.70

11.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.14 MX$59.0

16.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.42 MX$26.60

37.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.48

$2.13 MX$40.11

-32.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.04

$1.50 MX$28.17

-11.33%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$2.16 MX$40.66

5.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$7.94 MX$149

107.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$8.13 MX$153

-65.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$11.44 MX$215

-18.62%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$2.17 MX$40.82

8.29%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.80

$1.07 MX$20.05

-9.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.45 MX$27.34

10.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$1.07 MX$20.08

40.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.12

$1.57 MX$29.58

-18.47%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.19

$1.37 MX$25.69

-19.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.82

$1.01 MX$19.03

-29.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.37

$0.77 MX$14.56

-36.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$4.26 MX$80.0

-2.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$8.56 MX$161

104.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.77 MX$33.35

-9.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$3.35 MX$63.1

-17.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.31

$0.62 MX$11.61

40.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,826

$27.20 MX$511

98.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.06

$1.23 MX$23.06

-5.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

$1.07 MX$20.20

-50.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$10.98 MX$206

-77.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.90

$1.45 MX$27.29

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

$21.1K ฿710.7K

$23.9K MX$449.7K

-12.00%

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

$26.9K ฿909.3K

$23.6K MX$442.6K

14.40%

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

$62.2 ฿2,098

$35.91 MX$675

73.13%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$18.80 MX$353

-35.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$18.77 MX$353

7.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$31.68 MX$595

17.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$27.10 MX$509

-86.09%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$4.88 MX$91.7

32.99%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$213 MX$3,999

245.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.3K

$2,823 MX$53.1K

422.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,801

$53.2 MX$1,001

0.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$38.46 MX$723

-35.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,087

$101 MX$1,896

-9.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,428

$70.5 MX$1,326

1.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$247 MX$4,635

95.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$219 MX$4,109

41.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$376 MX$7,064

167.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$278 MX$5,226

127.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$806 MX$15.1K

-26.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.2

-50.27%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Celaya: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Celaya

$219 24.2% 29.2% $90

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Celaya

$231 25.6% 1.5% $3.5

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Celaya

$118 13.1% 9% $9.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Celaya

$73 8.1% 22.2% $21

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Celaya

$184 20.4% 137% $107

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Celaya

$36 4% 40.9% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Celaya

$41 4.6% 17.6% $8.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $482 in Chiang Mai and $247 in Celaya. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Celaya pays 37% 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 $44 in Celaya. Groceries flip the comparison at $234 vs $231, with Celaya cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇲🇽 Celaya

🕒 Local time

10:23 10:23 AM

21:23 9:23 PM

13 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

378,143

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Celaya 15,140 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Celaya

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 Celaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $936 in Chiang Mai and $903 in Celaya, so Celaya is about 3% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 27% 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: $482 in Chiang Mai versus $247 in Celaya. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Celaya runs roughly 50% less than in Chiang Mai. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

All in, you’ll spend $936 per month in Chiang Mai versus $903 in Celaya – Celaya is about 3% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Celaya 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.