Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Kuala Belait

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,726 in Kuala Belait, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 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
83

Cost of Living Index in Kuala Belait
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Kuala Belait Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Kuala Belait

🇧🇳 Brunei

$1,726

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Kuala Belait

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,726 in Kuala Belait, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Kuala Belait $1,726

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,561 in Kuala Belait, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Kuala Belait $2,561

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $3,397 in Kuala Belait, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Kuala Belait $3,397

Chiang Mai is about 46% cheaper than Kuala Belait, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Kuala Belait is 27% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$7.77 BND 9.92

-71.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$47.28 BND 60.4

-59.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$7.74 BND 9.88

-28.29%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.89 BND 2.42

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 BND 3.06

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$4.46 BND 5.70

-62.56%

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

$0.64 ฿21.54

$0.88 BND 1.13

-27.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.31

$0.50 BND 0.64

-38.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.82 BND 2.32

7.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.46

$2.51 BND 3.21

-42.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.03

$2.30 BND 2.94

-42.17%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$2.70 BND 3.45

-15.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$19.08 BND 24.37

-13.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$9.44 BND 12.06

-70.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$24.33 BND 31.09

-61.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$4.83 BND 6.17

-51.35%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.79

$2.17 BND 2.77

-55.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$5.01 BND 6.40

-68.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$2.49 BND 3.18

-39.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.11

$1.73 BND 2.21

-26.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.18

$2.91 BND 3.71

-62.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.82

$5.51 BND 7.04

-87.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$0.86 BND 1.10

-43.02%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$11.81 BND 15.08

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.91 BND 7.54

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$7.89 BND 10.07

-47.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.30

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.04

$4.01 BND 5.12

-71.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

$3.27 BND 4.18

-83.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$11.49 BND 14.67

-78.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.88

$0.35 BND 0.45

314.29%

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

$21.1K ฿710.5K

$31.8K BND 40.7K

-33.83%

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

$26.9K ฿909.0K

$26.9K BND 34.3K

0.26%

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

$62.2 ฿2,098

$39.60 BND 50.6

56.99%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$21.64 BND 27.64

-43.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$65.2 BND 83.2

-69.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$99.3 BND 127

-62.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$27.87 BND 35.60

-86.47%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$5.49 BND 7.01

18.21%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$217 BND 278

238.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.2K

$9,343 BND 11.9K

58.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,801

$76.2 BND 97.4

-30.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$101 BND 129

-75.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,087

$155 BND 198

-40.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,427

$71.1 BND 90.8

1.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$730 BND 933

-33.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$789 BND 1,008

-60.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$1,167 BND 1,491

-13.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,169 BND 1,493

-45.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$3,379 BND 4,317

-82.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.88

43.56%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Kuala Belait: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Kuala Belait

$789 45.7% 156% $480

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Kuala Belait

$354 20.5% 50.9% $119

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Kuala Belait

$181 10.5% 66.8% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Kuala Belait

$126 7.3% 33.8% $32

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Kuala Belait

$144 8.4% 86.2% $67

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Kuala Belait

$20 * 1.2% 66.8% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Kuala Belait

$110 6.4% 119% $60

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 $730 in Kuala Belait. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Kuala Belait are about 5.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $47 in Kuala Belait. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $354 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇧🇳 Kuala Belait

🕒 Local time

21:03 9:03 PM

22:03 10:03 PM

1 h ahead of Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

31,178

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Brunei Dollar BND $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 BND = 0.783 USD

1 BND = 0.701 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BND, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Brunei Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.28 BND (1 BND = 0.783 USD). 1 EUR = 1.43 BND (1 BND = 0.701 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

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

From you

Chiang Mai
Kuala Belait

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 Kuala Belait: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kuala Belait costs about 84% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. 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 $2,589 in Kuala Belait. 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 $730 in Kuala Belait.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $47 in Kuala Belait. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 51% more in Kuala Belait, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,726 in Kuala Belait. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $1,726 in Kuala Belait. 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 Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Kuala Belait makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.