Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Edenvale

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,390 in Edenvale, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 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
67

Cost of Living Index in Edenvale
Learn more

Edenvale Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Edenvale

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,390

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,390 in Edenvale, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Edenvale $1,390

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,067 in Edenvale, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Edenvale $2,067

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,744 in Edenvale, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Edenvale $2,744

Chiang Mai is about 33% cheaper than Edenvale, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Edenvale is 2% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$9.28 R 155

-75.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$42.46 R 709

-55.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$5.83 R 97.4

-4.80%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$2.31 R 38.59

-27.71%

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

$0.64 ฿21.55

$1.08 R 17.97

-40.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.31

$0.79 R 13.23

-60.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$2.58 R 43.11

-8.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.30 R 55.1

10.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.26 R 20.98

54.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.48

$1.12 R 18.66

28.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.04

$1.73 R 28.81

-23.12%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$2.45 R 40.91

-6.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$8.54 R 143

92.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$5.44 R 90.9

-48.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$7.19 R 120

29.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$1.80 R 30.09

30.56%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.80

$1.91 R 31.90

-49.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.77 R 29.59

-9.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$1.81 R 30.15

-17.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.12

$1.43 R 23.79

-10.49%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.19

$1.77 R 29.51

-37.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.82

$1.17 R 19.48

-39.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.37

$1.23 R 20.58

-60.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$3.23 R 53.9

28.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$5.23 R 87.4

234.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.60 R 26.71

0.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$1.91 R 31.84

45.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,826

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.06

$0.29 R 4.76

300.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

$0.79 R 13.20

-32.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$14.23 R 238

-82.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.90

$1.50 R 25.05

-3.33%

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

$21.1K ฿710.7K

$35.3K R 589.9K

-40.41%

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

$26.9K ฿909.3K

$34.1K R 569.6K

-21.04%

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

$62.2 ฿2,098

$148 R 2,477

-58.10%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$38.93 R 650

-68.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$37.28 R 622

-46.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$48.86 R 816

-23.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$26.81 R 448

-85.94%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$7.00 R 117

-7.29%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$241 R 4,030

204.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.3K

$7,787 R 130.0K

89.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,801

$58.1 R 970

-8.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$45.37 R 757

-45.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,087

$112 R 1,867

-18.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,428

$106 R 1,768

-32.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$716 R 12.0K

-32.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$606 R 10.1K

-49.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$1,061 R 17.7K

-5.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,025 R 17.1K

-38.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$1,045 R 17.4K

52.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.91

-48.95%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Edenvale: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Edenvale

$606 43.6% 96.2% $297

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Edenvale

$201 14.5% 14.2% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Edenvale

$145 10.4% 33.1% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Edenvale

$225 16.2% 138% $130

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Edenvale

$147 10.5% 88.8% $69

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Edenvale

$4.2 * 0.3% 93.1% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Edenvale

$63 4.5% 25% $13

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 $716 in Edenvale. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $42 in Edenvale. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $201 in Edenvale – so Edenvale wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇿🇦 Edenvale

🕒 Local time

14:56 2:56 PM

09:56 9:56 AM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

60,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 ZAR = 5.99 USD

100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, 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 = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 16.69 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.99 USD). 1 EUR = 18.63 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Edenvale 9,130 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Edenvale

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 Edenvale: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Edenvale costs about 49% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. 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 $2,085 in Edenvale. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $716 in Edenvale.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $42 in Edenvale. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 14% cheaper in Edenvale – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,390 in Edenvale. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $936 versus $1,390 in Edenvale. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.