Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Los Mochis

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,153 in Los Mochis, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Los Mochis
Learn more

Los Mochis Living Index

Jump to prices

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Los Mochis

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,153

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Los Mochis

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,153 in Los Mochis, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Los Mochis $1,153

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,782 in Los Mochis, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Los Mochis $1,782

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,411 in Los Mochis, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Los Mochis $2,411

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

Both Chiang Mai and Los Mochis are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Los Mochis 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.5

$6.57 MX$122

-65.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿640

$31.72 MX$591

-40.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$10.63 MX$198

-47.79%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.4

$3.30 MX$61.5

-49.39%

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

$0.64 ฿21.51

$1.03 MX$19.19

-37.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.29

$1.05 MX$19.63

-70.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$2.38 MX$44.29

-0.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿123

$3.21 MX$59.8

14.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.51 MX$28.05

29.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.41

$2.63 MX$48.95

-45.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.97

$1.56 MX$29.05

-14.74%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$2.68 MX$49.95

-14.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿554

$7.90 MX$147

108.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$8.16 MX$152

-65.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$12.20 MX$227

-23.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.3

$2.69 MX$50.2

-12.64%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.75

$1.74 MX$32.36

-44.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.8

$1.79 MX$33.42

-10.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$1.71 MX$31.86

-12.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.06

$1.71 MX$31.88

-25.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.14

$1.59 MX$29.64

-30.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.79

$1.38 MX$25.74

-48.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.34

$1.14 MX$21.15

-57.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$4.61 MX$85.8

-10.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿590

$10.22 MX$190

71.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.4

$1.80 MX$33.57

-10.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$2.86 MX$53.3

-2.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.27

$0.62 MX$11.55

40.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

$25.73 MX$479

110.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.00

$2.59 MX$48.24

-55.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.78

$1.95 MX$36.40

-72.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.6

$11.08 MX$206

-78.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.82

$1.46 MX$27.16

-0.68%

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

$21.1K ฿709.7K

$23.8K MX$443.2K

-11.48%

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

$26.9K ฿907.9K

$23.4K MX$435.4K

15.28%

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

$62.2 ฿2,095

$51.9 MX$967

19.79%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$22.71 MX$423

-46.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿678

$28.71 MX$535

-29.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,257

$31.72 MX$591

17.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$19.64 MX$366

-80.80%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$5.25 MX$97.8

23.62%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$214 MX$3,988

243.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿497.6K

$4,209 MX$78.4K

250.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,799

$54.3 MX$1,011

-1.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿830

$40.66 MX$758

-39.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,083

$99.8 MX$1,858

-8.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,424

$87.9 MX$1,638

-18.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$607 MX$11.3K

-20.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$427 MX$7,954

-27.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$1,016 MX$18.9K

-1.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.3K

$761 MX$14.2K

-16.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.6K

$1,693 MX$31.5K

39.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$985 MX$18.3K

61.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$651 MX$12.1K

-9.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.31

-50.75%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Los Mochis: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Los Mochis

$427 37.1% 38.2% $118

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Los Mochis

$262 22.7% 11.6% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Los Mochis

$127 11% 17.1% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Los Mochis

$103 9% 9.4% $8.9

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Los Mochis

$151 13.1% 94.2% $73

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Los Mochis

$41 3.5% 33.9% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Los Mochis

$42 3.7% 16% $8.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $607 in Los Mochis. 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 10% higher in Los Mochis, 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 in Chiang Mai versus $32 in Los Mochis. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $262 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇲🇽 Los Mochis

🕒 Local time

07:15 7:15 AM

17:15 5:15 PM

14 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

298,009

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.82 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 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 18.63 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.74 MXN (100 MXN = 4.82 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Los Mochis 14,210 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Los Mochis

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 Los Mochis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Los Mochis 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 $1,403 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,729 in Los Mochis. 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 $607 in Los Mochis.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $214 in Los Mochis. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 12% more in Los Mochis, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,153 in Los Mochis. 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 $1,153 in Los Mochis. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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