Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Dagupan

For one person, living is cheaper in Dagupan: $730 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Dagupan
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Dagupan Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Dagupan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$730

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $730 in Dagupan, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Dagupan $730

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,083 in Dagupan, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Dagupan $1,083

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,435 in Dagupan, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Dagupan $1,435

Chiang Mai costs about 28% more than Dagupan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Chiang Mai and Dagupan are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Dagupan 46% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$2.76 ₱176

-18.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$11.82 ₱755

60.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$4.25 ₱271

30.59%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$2.39 ₱153

-30.13%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$0.49 ₱31.45

30.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$0.22 ₱14.01

40.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$1.20 ₱76.6

96.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$2.67 ₱171

37.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.71 ₱109

14.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$1.27 ₱80.9

13.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$0.93 ₱59.2

43.01%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$1.92 ₱122

18.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$5.68 ₱363

189.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$4.73 ₱302

-41.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$6.66 ₱426

39.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$3.91 ₱250

-39.90%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$1.91 ₱122

-49.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$2.76 ₱176

-42.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$1.12 ₱71.7

33.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$2.78 ₱178

-53.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$3.38 ₱216

-67.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$1.04 ₱66.7

-31.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$0.53 ₱33.79

-7.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$2.30 ₱147

80.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$5.36 ₱342

226.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$0.82 ₱52.5

96.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$1.86 ₱119

49.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$0.20 ₱12.66

335.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$0.60 ₱38.49

93.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$0.23 ₱14.71

130.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$1.90 ₱122

27.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.10 ₱70.3

31.82%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$20.9K ₱1.3M

0.56%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$18.7K ₱1.2M

43.86%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$103 ₱6,570

-39.54%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$15.47 ₱988

-21.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$25.08 ₱1,602

-19.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$32.41 ₱2,071

15.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$5.03 ₱321

29.03%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$767 ₱49.0K

-4.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$7,158 ₱457.3K

106.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$59.9 ₱3,828

-10.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$7.65 ₱489

222.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$78.4 ₱5,010

16.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$102 ₱6,541

-29.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$189 ₱12.1K

155.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$159 ₱10.2K

94.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$351 ₱22.4K

186.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$262 ₱16.8K

141.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

$463 ₱29.6K

243.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$231 ₱14.8K

155.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

7.5

-25.73%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Dagupan: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Dagupan

$159 21.8% 48.5% $150

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Dagupan

$194 26.5% 17.4% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Dagupan

$112 15.3% 2.9% $3.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Dagupan

$143 19.6% 51.8% $49

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Dagupan

$78 10.6% 0.1% $0.1

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Dagupan

$2.6 * 0.4% 95.8% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Dagupan

$42 5.8% 15.6% $7.8

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $189 in Dagupan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Chiang Mai are about 2.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $12 in Dagupan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $194 – making Dagupan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇵🇭 Dagupan

🕒 Local time

05:20 5:20 AM

06:20 6:20 AM

1 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

174,302

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 63.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.13 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Dagupan 2,280 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Dagupan

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 Dagupan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 28% more than Dagupan, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,403 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,096 in Dagupan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Dagupan, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $189 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $12 in Dagupan. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 21% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $730 in Dagupan to $936 in Chiang Mai. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Dagupan. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chiang Mai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.