Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Kiambu

For one person, living is cheaper in Kiambu: $503 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 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
24

Cost of Living Index in Kiambu
Learn more

Kiambu Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Kiambu

🇰🇪 Kenya

$503

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $503 in Kiambu, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Kiambu $503

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $823 in Kiambu, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Kiambu $823

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,143 in Kiambu, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Kiambu $1,143

Chiang Mai costs about 86% more than Kiambu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Chiang Mai and Kiambu are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Kiambu 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$6.41 KES 833

-65.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$34.12 KES 4,431

-44.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$6.52 KES 847

-14.88%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$2.60 KES 337

-35.77%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$0.64 KES 83.4

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$0.62 KES 81.1

-50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$2.26 KES 293

4.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$2.62 KES 340

39.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$0.54 KES 70.8

261.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$0.55 KES 71.5

161.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$1.83 KES 237

-27.32%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$1.37 KES 179

66.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$10.71 KES 1,391

53.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$6.67 KES 866

-58.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$4.01 KES 520

132.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$3.50 KES 455

-32.86%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$1.04 KES 135

-6.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$0.75 KES 97.0

113.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$0.59 KES 77.1

154.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$0.72 KES 93.7

77.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$0.71 KES 92.5

54.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$0.30 KES 38.52

136.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$0.37 KES 47.84

32.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$3.39 KES 440

22.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$11.49 KES 1,493

52.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$2.27 KES 295

-29.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.70 KES 350

2.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$0.63 KES 81.3

38.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$1.51 KES 196

-23.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$0.36 KES 47.33

47.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$2.81 KES 365

-13.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.60 KES 208

-9.38%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$19.2K KES 2.5M

9.59%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$21.6K KES 2.8M

24.69%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$56.4 KES 7,320

10.29%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$7.86 KES 1,020

54.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$35.13 KES 4,562

-42.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$5.82 KES 755

11.51%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$280 KES 36.4K

162.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$12.5K KES 1.6M

17.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$27.56 KES 3,579

93.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$29.19 KES 3,791

-15.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$70.1 KES 9,109

30.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$57.5 KES 7,466

25.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$116 KES 15.0K

316.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$1,175 KES 152.6K

101.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$125 KES 16.3K

370.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

14.71

-62.13%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Kiambu: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Kiambu

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Kiambu

$180 35.8% 23.2% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Kiambu

$83 16.5% 23.6% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Kiambu

$99 19.7% 5.2% $4.9

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Kiambu

$124 24.6% 59.3% $46

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Kiambu

$5.8 * 1.2% 90.5% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Kiambu

$12 * 2.3% 76.9% $39

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 $116 in Kiambu. 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 4.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $34 in Kiambu. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $180 in Kiambu – so Kiambu wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇰🇪 Kiambu

🕒 Local time

11:26 11:26 AM

07:26 7:26 AM

4 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

147,870

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 KES = 7.7 USD

1,000 KES = 6.92 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KES, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.7 USD). 1 EUR = 145 KES (1,000 KES = 6.92 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Kiambu 7,140 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Kiambu

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 Kiambu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 86% more than Kiambu, 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 $755 in Kiambu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kiambu, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $116 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $34 in Kiambu. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 30% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Families tend to lean toward Kiambu – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Kiambu. 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.