Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Johannesburg Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Johannesburg

🙂 Solo nomad: Chiang Mai is 19.7% cheaper than Johannesburg without rent, and 24.9% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Chiang Mai is 21.1% cheaper than Johannesburg without rent, and 23.1% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.02 ฿65.3

$11.4 R 203

-82.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.78 ฿608

$44.89 R 798

-58.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.67 ฿248

$4.98 R 88.7

54.02%

Cappuccino

$1.98 ฿64.2

$2.18 R 38.8

-9.17%

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

$0.82 ฿26.64

$1.04 R 18.45

-21.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ฿10.58

$0.75 R 13.39

-56.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.12 ฿68.6

$2.7 R 48.05

-21.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 ฿121

$2.55 R 45.29

46.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 ฿53.2

$1.2 R 21.39

36.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.57 ฿50.9

$1.1 R 19.5

42.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 ฿38.62

$1.72 R 30.51

-30.81%

Eggs

$1.98 ฿64.1

$2.47 R 43.92

-19.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.99 ฿517

$8.04 R 143

98.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.12 ฿101

$4.91 R 87.4

-36.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿361

$6.75 R 120

65.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 ฿89.2

$1.69 R 30.11

63.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 ฿39.5

$1.53 R 27.16

-20.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.71 ฿55.4

$1.47 R 26.22

16.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.55 ฿50.2

$1.58 R 28.14

-1.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.34 ฿43.21

$1.45 R 25.8

-7.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.21 ฿39.23

$1.39 R 24.78

-12.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿23.2

$1.05 R 18.64

-31.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.05

$0.95 R 16.87

-44.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.72 ฿153

$3.04 R 54.1

55.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.39 ฿595

$5.99 R 107

207.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 ฿57.9

$1.31 R 23.23

36.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 ฿104

$1.67 R 29.74

92.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.94 ฿30.44

$1.7 R 30.26

-44.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.9 ฿612

$71.1 R 1,265

-73.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.42 ฿46.08

$1.1 R 19.48

29.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.35 ฿43.53

$0.94 R 16.73

43.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.85 ฿254

$4.1 R 72.9

91.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ฿40.4

$1.21 R 21.58

3.31%

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

$21.2K ฿684.9K

$22.3K R 396.4K

-5.05%

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

$21.8K ฿706.8K

$24.4K R 433.4K

-10.37%

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

$70.6 ฿2,285

$116 R 2,069

-39.29%

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

$13.72 ฿444

$40.29 R 717

-65.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.56 ฿568

$42.05 R 748

-58.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.64 ฿1,347

$34.62 R 616

20.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.9 ฿223

$13.93 R 248

-50.47%

Cinema Ticket

$5.8 ฿188

$7.23 R 129

-19.78%

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

$308 ฿9,963

$206 R 3,665

49.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.7K ฿475.8K

$4,981 R 88.6K

195.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 ฿1,793

$50.6 R 899

9.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.4 ฿854

$33.58 R 597

-21.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 ฿2,755

$91.2 R 1,621

-6.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.8 ฿2,323

$78.5 R 1,397

-8.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$434 ฿14K

$423 R 7,519

2.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$235 ฿7,610

$371 R 6,592

-36.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$821 ฿26.6K

$901 R 16K

-8.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$498 ฿16.1K

$692 R 12.3K

-27.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,180 ฿70.6K

$1,111 R 19.8K

96.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,543 ฿49.9K

$748 R 13.3K

106.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$703 ฿22.8K

$1,585 R 28.2K

-55.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.51

-56.56%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 29, 2025

Last update for Johannesburg: October 27, 2025

Similar cities

Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

Bansko

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

Bogota

🇨🇴 Colombia

Beijing (Pekin)

🇨🇳 China

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil

Nairobi

🇰🇪 Kenya