Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Lazaro Cardenas

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,141 in Lazaro Cardenas, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Lazaro Cardenas
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Lazaro Cardenas Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Lazaro Cardenas

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,141

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Lazaro Cardenas

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

A single person spends $925 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,141 in Lazaro Cardenas, rent included.

Chiang Mai $925
Lazaro Cardenas $1,141

A couple spends around $1,414 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,839 in Lazaro Cardenas, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,414
Lazaro Cardenas $1,839

A family of three spends $1,903 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,537 in Lazaro Cardenas, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,903
Lazaro Cardenas $2,537

Chiang Mai is about 19% cheaper than Lazaro Cardenas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Lazaro Cardenas are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 32% lower, Lazaro Cardenas 16% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.29 ฿77.2

$10.83 MX$203

-78.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.64 ฿663

$43.66 MX$817

-55.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.61 ฿189

$8.70 MX$163

-35.52%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿56.1

$3.61 MX$67.6

-54.02%

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

$0.70 ฿23.61

$1.42 MX$26.59

-50.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.33

$1.03 MX$19.24

-69.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 ฿81.1

$2.51 MX$46.92

-3.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.71 ฿125

$3.99 MX$74.7

-7.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.9

$1.66 MX$31.06

17.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.47

$2.53 MX$47.41

-44.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 ฿44.03

$1.67 MX$31.19

-21.56%

Eggs

$2.18 ฿73.6

$2.43 MX$45.51

-10.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.65 ฿562

$8.19 MX$153

103.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.76 ฿93.0

$8.49 MX$159

-67.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.11 ฿307

$11.33 MX$212

-19.59%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.7

$2.67 MX$49.98

-10.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ฿34.58

$1.59 MX$29.74

-35.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 ฿54.9

$1.90 MX$35.65

-14.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.83 MX$34.27

-18.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.29 ฿43.53

$1.93 MX$36.05

-33.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.37

$1.80 MX$33.61

-38.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.30

$1.48 MX$27.75

-51.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.76

$1.08 MX$20.23

-50.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.31 ฿145

$4.32 MX$80.8

-0.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.95 ฿605

$10.32 MX$193

73.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ฿53.4

$1.76 MX$32.88

-10.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$3.20 MX$59.8

-11.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿29.13

$0.69 MX$12.92

24.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,797

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.21 ฿40.66

$2.53 MX$47.26

-52.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿19.16

$1.92 MX$35.92

-70.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$11.01 MX$206

-78.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 ฿48.40

$1.48 MX$27.62

-2.70%

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

$20.7K ฿699.2K

$21.1K MX$395.7K

-1.94%

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

$26.8K ฿904.0K

$23.8K MX$445.7K

12.55%

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

$62.3 ฿2,102

$58.7 MX$1,099

6.15%

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

$12.11 ฿408

$22.31 MX$417

-45.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.94 ฿673

$29.94 MX$560

-33.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.07 ฿1,250

$34.30 MX$642

8.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿127

$20.49 MX$384

-81.55%

Cinema Ticket

$6.50 ฿219

$5.11 MX$95.7

27.20%

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

$793 ฿26.7K

$221 MX$4,141

258.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿499.5K

$4,553 MX$85.2K

225.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.7 ฿1,813

$55.3 MX$1,035

-2.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.62 ฿831

$39.96 MX$748

-38.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 ฿3,064

$99.7 MX$1,867

-8.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.1 ฿2,400

$90.1 MX$1,687

-21.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$455 ฿15.4K

$602 MX$11.3K

-24.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ฿10.0K

$393 MX$7,352

-24.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$908 ฿30.6K

$1,055 MX$19.8K

-13.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$554 ฿18.7K

$780 MX$14.6K

-29.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,931 ฿65.1K

$1,921 MX$36.0K

0.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.7K

$1,169 MX$21.9K

23.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.9K

$552 MX$10.3K

7.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.3

-50.71%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Last update for Lazaro Cardenas: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2%

Lazaro Cardenas

$393 34.4% 31.9% $95

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5%

Lazaro Cardenas

$263 23.1% 11.7% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7%

Lazaro Cardenas

$128 11.3% 18.6% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Lazaro Cardenas

$111 9.7% 17.6% $17

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5%

Lazaro Cardenas

$186 16.3% 137% $108

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Lazaro Cardenas

$15 * 1.3% 75.5% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Lazaro Cardenas

$45 3.9% 11.1% $5.5

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $455 in Chiang Mai versus $602 in Lazaro Cardenas. 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 7% higher in Chiang Mai, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20 in Chiang Mai versus $44 in Lazaro Cardenas. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $235 vs $263 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇲🇽 Lazaro Cardenas

🕒 Local time

15:18 3:18 PM

02:18 2:18 AM

13 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

83,637

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.84 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 18.72 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Lazaro Cardenas 15,320 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Lazaro Cardenas

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 Lazaro Cardenas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lazaro Cardenas costs about 23% 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 $1,388 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,711 in Lazaro Cardenas. 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 $455 there versus $602 in Lazaro Cardenas.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20 in Chiang Mai and $44 in Lazaro Cardenas. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 12% more in Lazaro Cardenas, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $925 in Chiang Mai and $1,141 in Lazaro Cardenas. 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 $925 in Chiang Mai to $1,141 in Lazaro Cardenas. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.