Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Havana

For one person, living is cheaper in Havana: $860 a month against $938 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $940 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
42

Cost of Living Index in Havana
Learn more

Havana Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Havana

🇨🇺 Cuba

$860

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $938 per month in Chiang Mai vs $860 in Havana, rent included.

Chiang Mai $938
Havana $860

A couple spends around $1,426 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,388 in Havana, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,426
Havana $1,388

A family of three spends $1,914 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,916 in Havana, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,914
Havana $1,916

Chiang Mai costs about 9% more than Havana, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Chiang Mai and Havana are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 30% lower, Havana 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.26 ฿75.4

$3.59 CUP 86.3

-37.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.18 ฿641

$27.63 CUP 663

-30.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.59 ฿187

$4.88 CUP 117

14.55%

Cappuccino

$1.72 ฿57.6

$1.06 CUP 25.42

62.26%

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

$0.64 ฿21.54

$1.51 CUP 36.33

-57.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ฿11.18

$0.99 CUP 23.80

-66.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿78.7

$1.24 CUP 29.66

90.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.90 ฿130

$2.05 CUP 49.10

90.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 ฿68.6

$2.68 CUP 64.3

-23.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.40 ฿46.70

$1.22 CUP 29.26

14.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 ฿42.89

$1.76 CUP 42.35

-27.27%

Eggs

$2.25 ฿75.3

$3.50 CUP 83.9

-35.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.94 ฿566

$4.52 CUP 108

274.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.74 ฿91.6

$4.66 CUP 112

-41.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.36 ฿313

$8.56 CUP 205

9.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.3

$6.20 CUP 149

-61.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.01 ฿33.92

$1.02 CUP 24.55

-0.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.61 ฿53.9

$3.83 CUP 92.0

-57.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 ฿50.7

$2.24 CUP 53.8

-32.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿42.90

$2.93 CUP 70.2

-56.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.22

$2.74 CUP 65.7

-59.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.09

$0.72 CUP 17.33

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.54

$0.57 CUP 13.60

-8.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.33 ฿145

$1.61 CUP 38.72

168.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.73 ฿593

$5.37 CUP 129

230.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ฿54.4

$1.77 CUP 42.38

-7.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.3

$2.05 CUP 49.30

39.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 ฿28.31

$0.63 CUP 15.17

34.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.9 ฿1,801

$22.13 CUP 531

143.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.17 ฿39.18

$2.63 CUP 63.1

-55.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿19.00

$0.33 CUP 7.98

72.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.37 ฿79.2

$19.63 CUP 471

-87.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.32

$1.27 CUP 30.50

14.17%

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

$20.5K ฿684.3K

$60.4K CUP 1.5M

-66.11%

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

$26.5K ฿886.1K

$59.1K CUP 1.4M

-55.15%

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

$62.3 ฿2,083

$46.62 CUP 1,119

33.70%

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

$12.27 ฿410

$39.24 CUP 942

-68.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.97 ฿668

$89.3 CUP 2,144

-77.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.91 ฿1,267

$16.35 CUP 392

131.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

$12.84 CUP 308

-70.72%

Cinema Ticket

$6.71 ฿224

$0.83 CUP 19.99

708.43%

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

$797 ฿26.6K

$156 CUP 3,752

409.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿495.7K

$12.5K CUP 298.9K

19.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ฿1,780

$52.2 CUP 1,253

1.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.05 ฿837

$41.71 CUP 1,001

-39.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.6 ฿3,062

$80.0 CUP 1,919

14.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.5 ฿2,455

$67.6 CUP 1,623

8.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$464 ฿15.5K

$246 CUP 5,911

88.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$305 ฿10.2K

$219 CUP 5,245

39.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$915 ฿30.6K

$872 CUP 20.9K

4.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 ฿18.5K

$508 CUP 12.2K

8.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,912 ฿63.9K

$314 CUP 7,545

508.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,438 ฿48.1K

$407 CUP 9,762

253.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

$29.60 CUP 710

1910.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

9.1

-38.79%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Last update for Havana: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5%

Havana

$219 25.4% 28.3% $86

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4%

Havana

$234 27.2% 1.7% $4.1

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7%

Havana

$109 12.6% 0.8% $0.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1%

Havana

$175 20.4% 85.2% $81

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4%

Havana

$76 8.9% 3.3% $2.6

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5%

Havana

$29 3.4% 52.8% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5%

Havana

$18 2.1% 64.9% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $464 in Chiang Mai versus $246 in Havana. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 1911% higher in Chiang Mai, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19.00 in Chiang Mai versus $28.00 in Havana. Groceries tell a different story – $238 in Chiang Mai vs $234 in Havana – so Havana wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇨🇺 Havana

🕒 Local time

11:37 11:37 AM

00:37 12:37 AM

11 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

2,141,993 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Cuban Peso CUP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 CUP = 4.17 USD

100 CUP = 3.71 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CUP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Cuban Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 24 CUP (100 CUP = 4.17 USD). 1 EUR = 26.98 CUP (100 CUP = 3.71 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Havana 15,350 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Havana

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 Havana: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 9% more than Havana, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from utilities. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,408 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,289 in Havana. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Havana, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $797 per month in Chiang Mai and $156 in Havana. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 2% more in Chiang Mai, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Havana, where all-in costs run around $860, than in Chiang Mai at $938. In Havana it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Havana costs $860 versus $938 in Chiang Mai. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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