Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and the Maldives

Name: Maldives
Address: MV

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $906 a month against $1,501 in the Maldives, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 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
72

Cost of Living Index in the Maldives
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Maldives Living Index

Jump to prices

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$906

/mo nomad

🇲🇻 Maldives

$1,501

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Chiang Mai is 17.9% cheaper than the Maldives without rent, and 39.6% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Chiang Mai is 22.3% cheaper than the Maldives without rent, and 43.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.7

$6.54 MVR 101

-67.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.40 ฿652

$49.62 MVR 765

-60.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.47 ฿184

$10.00 MVR 154

-45.30%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.97 MVR 76.6

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.82 MVR 151

Cappuccino

$1.68 ฿56.7

$3.27 MVR 50.4

-48.62%

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

$0.66 ฿22.19

$1.51 MVR 23.32

-56.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.34 ฿11.56

$0.31 MVR 4.81

9.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.42 ฿81.3

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 ฿126

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 ฿69.2

$1.88 MVR 29.01

9.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿48.98

$1.56 MVR 24.10

-6.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 ฿45.27

$1.04 MVR 16.04

29.81%

Eggs

$2.27 ฿76.3

$1.75 MVR 27.04

29.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.31 ฿548

$6.18 MVR 95.4

163.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.70 ฿90.7

$6.75 MVR 104

-60.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.20 ฿309

$10.03 MVR 155

-8.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.5

$3.98 MVR 61.3

-39.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿34.80

$2.99 MVR 46.12

-65.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$3.88 MVR 59.8

-58.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 ฿48.57

$2.56 MVR 39.48

-43.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 ฿43.77

$1.75 MVR 26.93

-25.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.45

$1.75 MVR 26.99

-36.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.70 ฿23.65

$2.23 MVR 34.38

-68.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.06

$0.60 MVR 9.25

-15.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$11.14 MVR 172

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.53 MVR 39.01

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 MVR 71.1

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.13 ฿139

$15.06 MVR 232

-72.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.78 ฿598

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ฿54.9

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 ฿96.4

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.88

$0.68 MVR 10.51

26.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.2 ฿1,787

$28.89 MVR 446

83.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 ฿40.99

$1.89 MVR 29.15

-35.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.56 ฿18.89

$1.95 MVR 30.12

-71.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.31 ฿77.8

$8.02 MVR 124

-71.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ฿50.4

$0.99 MVR 15.19

51.52%

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

$20.9K ฿701.2K

$31.7K MVR 489.3K

-34.27%

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

$26.7K ฿898.8K

$29.9K MVR 460.5K

-10.48%

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

$61.3 ฿2,059

$132 MVR 2,038

-53.65%

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

$12.50 ฿420

$30.76 MVR 474

-59.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.36 ฿685

$68.3 MVR 1,052

-70.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.94 ฿1,275

$63.4 MVR 978

-40.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$21.44 MVR 331

-82.42%

Cinema Ticket

$6.60 ฿222

$9.03 MVR 139

-26.91%

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

$774 ฿26.0K

$183 MVR 2,826

322.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K ฿485.3K

$2,922 MVR 45.1K

393.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.8 ฿1,842

$37.67 MVR 581

45.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.26 ฿849

$50.1 MVR 772

-49.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 ฿3,045

$86.1 MVR 1,327

5.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.3 ฿2,463

$51.9 MVR 800

41.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$459 ฿15.4K

$911 MVR 14.0K

-49.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$294 ฿9,877

$672 MVR 10.4K

-56.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$919 ฿30.9K

$1,927 MVR 29.7K

-52.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 ฿18.6K

$1,467 MVR 22.6K

-62.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,917 ฿64.5K

$2,641 MVR 40.7K

-27.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.6K

$781 MVR 12.0K

84.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$592 ฿19.9K

$783 MVR 12.1K

-24.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-60.21%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 5, 2026

Last update for the Maldives: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$294 31.8%

Maldives

$672 45.5% 129% $378

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$236 25.6%

Maldives

$219 14.8% 7.2% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$110 11.9%

Maldives

$102 6.9% 7.5% $8.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Maldives

$231 15.7% 146% $137

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.4%

Maldives

$129 8.7% 66.8% $52

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Maldives

$43 2.9% 28.6% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5%

Maldives

$81 5.5% 59.4% $30

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇲🇻 Maldives

🕒 Local time

17:44 5:44 PM

15:44 3:44 PM

2 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

436,330

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Maldivian Rufiyaa MVR Rf

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100 MVR = 6.49 USD

100 MVR = 5.79 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MVR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Maldivian Rufiyaa exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 15.42 MVR (100 MVR = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 17.28 MVR (100 MVR = 5.79 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Maldives 3,210 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Maldives

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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