Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and China

Name: China
Address: CN

For one person, living is cheaper in China: $784 a month against $906 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in China
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China Living Index

Jump to prices

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$906

/mo nomad

🇨🇳 China

$784

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Chiang Mai is 13.5% more expensive than China without rent, and 15.6% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Chiang Mai is 7.9% more expensive than China without rent, and 6.4% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.4

$2.90 ¥19.39

-26.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.40 ฿649

$22.02 ¥147

-11.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.47 ฿183

$5.20 ¥34.74

5.19%

Cappuccino

$1.68 ฿56.4

$3.04 ¥20.31

-44.74%

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

$0.66 ฿22.10

$0.52 ¥3.45

26.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ฿11.52

$0.28 ¥1.85

21.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.42 ฿81.0

$1.01 ¥6.75

139.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 ฿125

$2.19 ¥14.64

70.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 ฿68.9

$1.75 ¥11.71

17.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿48.78

$1.64 ¥10.96

-10.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 ฿45.09

$0.92 ¥6.12

46.74%

Eggs

$2.27 ฿76.0

$1.59 ¥10.66

42.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.31 ฿546

$12.99 ¥86.8

25.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.70 ฿90.3

$3.35 ¥22.38

-19.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.20 ฿308

$11.18 ¥74.7

-17.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.1

$1.80 ¥12.02

32.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿34.66

$1.31 ¥8.78

-20.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.7

$1.47 ¥9.80

8.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 ฿48.37

$1.32 ¥8.79

9.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 ฿43.59

$0.76 ¥5.07

71.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.29

$0.92 ¥6.15

20.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.70 ฿23.55

$0.59 ¥3.94

18.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.99

$0.54 ¥3.63

-5.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.13 ฿138

$3.79 ¥25.34

8.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.78 ฿595

$12.14 ¥81.1

46.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ฿54.7

$0.82 ¥5.48

98.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 ฿96.0

$1.63 ¥10.92

76.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.76

$0.29 ¥1.93

196.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.2 ฿1,780

$22.33 ¥149

138.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 ฿40.81

$1.53 ¥10.24

-20.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.56 ฿18.81

$0.35 ¥2.31

60.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.31 ฿77.5

$7.00 ¥46.79

-67.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ฿50.2

$1.31 ¥8.77

14.50%

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

$20.9K ฿698.3K

$19.0K ¥127.1K

9.65%

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

$26.7K ฿895.0K

$17.0K ¥113.7K

57.11%

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

$61.3 ฿2,051

$54.1 ¥362

13.17%

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

$12.50 ฿419

$8.42 ¥56.3

48.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.36 ฿682

$10.72 ¥71.6

89.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.94 ฿1,270

$40.72 ¥272

-6.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿126

$14.58 ¥97.4

-74.14%

Cinema Ticket

$6.60 ฿221

$6.76 ¥45.15

-2.37%

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

$774 ฿25.9K

$462 ¥3,089

67.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K ฿483.2K

$19.6K ¥131.0K

-26.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.8 ฿1,835

$45.57 ¥305

20.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.26 ฿846

$36.05 ¥241

-29.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 ฿3,032

$75.4 ¥504

20.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.3 ฿2,453

$79.0 ¥528

-7.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$459 ฿15.4K

$386 ¥2,577

18.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$294 ฿9,835

$240 ¥1,601

22.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$919 ฿30.8K

$843 ¥5,637

8.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 ฿18.5K

$461 ¥3,083

19.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,917 ฿64.2K

$4,590 ¥30.7K

-58.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.4K

$2,279 ¥15.2K

-36.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$592 ฿19.8K

$1,060 ¥7,082

-44.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.46

60.98%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 5, 2026

Last update for China: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$294 31.8%

China

$240 30.1% 18.4% $54

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$236 25.6%

China

$207 26.1% 12.2% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$110 11.9%

China

$106 13.4% 3.2% $3.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

China

$73 9.2% 22.2% $21

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.4%

China

$88 11.1% 13.8% $11

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

China

$27 3.4% 55.9% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5%

China

$54 6.8% 6.1% $3.1

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇨🇳 China

🕒 Local time

15:42 3:42 PM

16:42 4:42 PM

1 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

1,442,965,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

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Between locations

Chiang Mai China 2,880 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
China

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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