Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Maltepe

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $971 in Maltepe, rent and utilities included – about $430 less a year. The total is higher in Maltepe despite lower rent and utilities.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Maltepe
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Maltepe Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Maltepe

🇹🇷 Turkey

$971

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $935 per month in Chiang Mai vs $971 in Maltepe, rent included.

Chiang Mai $935
Maltepe $971

A couple spends around $1,467 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,525 in Maltepe, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,467
Maltepe $1,525

A family of three spends $1,999 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,080 in Maltepe, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,999
Maltepe $2,080

Chiang Mai is about 4% cheaper than Maltepe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Maltepe are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Maltepe 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.7

$8.54 ₺427

-75.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.62 ฿625

$32.89 ₺1,645

-43.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.60 ฿188

$8.18 ₺409

-31.54%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.9

$3.76 ₺188

-55.85%

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

$0.65 ฿21.73

$1.04 ₺52.2

-37.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ฿10.24

$0.37 ₺18.65

-18.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.32 ฿78.0

$2.42 ₺121

-4.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 ฿123

$3.04 ₺152

20.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 ฿67.7

$1.04 ₺52.0

94.23%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.29

$0.86 ₺42.85

63.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 ฿46.75

$2.19 ₺110

-36.53%

Eggs

$2.37 ฿79.5

$2.34 ₺117

1.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.52 ฿555

$10.28 ₺514

60.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.67 ฿89.7

$4.93 ₺247

-45.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.02 ฿303

$19.84 ₺993

-54.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.6

$1.79 ₺89.7

34.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿34.98

$1.93 ₺96.7

-46.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 ฿55.7

$1.03 ₺51.5

61.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.4

$1.32 ₺65.8

18.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ฿41.57

$0.61 ₺30.67

103.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ฿36.50

$0.41 ₺20.73

165.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 ฿25.59

$0.79 ₺39.43

-3.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.27

$0.60 ₺30.07

-15.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.12 ฿138

$2.03 ₺101

102.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.93 ฿602

$12.89 ₺645

39.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ฿54.5

$2.07 ₺103

-21.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 ฿94.8

$2.31 ₺115

22.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ฿31.39

$0.62 ₺31.03

50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,777

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ฿39.52

$1.27 ₺63.4

-7.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 ฿5.76

$0.91 ₺45.65

-81.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 ฿60.9

$8.62 ₺431

-79.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.47

$1.42 ₺70.9

3.52%

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

$21.0K ฿705.8K

$48.6K ₺2.4M

-56.78%

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

$26.5K ฿890.7K

$40.6K ₺2.0M

-34.75%

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

$62.6 ฿2,101

$74.1 ₺3,706

-15.56%

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

$11.60 ฿390

$11.05 ₺553

4.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.30 ฿682

$14.85 ₺743

36.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.88 ฿1,272

$45.79 ₺2,290

-17.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿124

Cinema Ticket

$6.51 ฿219

$5.86 ₺293

11.09%

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

$727 ฿24.4K

$596 ₺29.8K

21.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ฿556.7K

$11.6K ₺582.4K

42.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ฿1,798

$47.70 ₺2,386

12.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.80 ฿833

$41.92 ₺2,097

-40.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.4 ฿3,036

$81.6 ₺4,080

10.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.0 ฿2,418

$92.7 ₺4,637

-22.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$481 ฿16.2K

$434 ₺21.7K

10.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 ฿10.4K

$287 ₺14.4K

7.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 ฿35.5K

$875 ₺43.7K

21.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$659 ฿22.1K

$539 ₺26.9K

22.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,418 ฿81.2K

$1,371 ₺68.6K

76.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿54.0K

$971 ₺48.6K

65.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

40.42

-86.22%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Last update for Maltepe: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1%

Maltepe

$287 29.6% 7.4% $23

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3%

Maltepe

$237 24.4% 0.2% $0.5

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6%

Maltepe

$119 12.2% 9.6% $10

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Maltepe

$100 10.3% 5.8% $5.5

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2%

Maltepe

$162 16.7% 111% $85

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3%

Maltepe

$8.3 * 0.9% 85.8% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4%

Maltepe

$58 5.9% 13% $6.6

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $481 in Chiang Mai versus $434 in Maltepe. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $33 in Maltepe. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $237 vs $237 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇹🇷 Maltepe

🕒 Local time

17:28 5:28 PM

13:28 1:28 PM

4 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

523,137

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.59 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.75 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 50.02 TRY (100 TRY = 2 USD). 1 EUR = 56.21 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Maltepe 6,980 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Maltepe

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 Maltepe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Maltepe costs about 4% 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 $1,456 in Maltepe. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Maltepe, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $434 there versus $481 in Chiang Mai.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $935 in Chiang Mai and $971 in Maltepe. That makes Chiang Mai about 4% cheaper.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $33 in Maltepe. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $935 in Chiang Mai and $971 in Maltepe. 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 $935 in Chiang Mai to $971 in Maltepe. 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.