Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Manzanillo

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $1,200 in Manzanillo, rent and utilities included – about $3,200 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Manzanillo
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Manzanillo Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Manzanillo

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,200

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $935 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,200 in Manzanillo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $935
Manzanillo $1,200

A couple spends around $1,467 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,100 in Manzanillo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,467
Manzanillo $2,100

A family of three spends $1,999 per month in Chiang Mai vs $3,000 in Manzanillo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,999
Manzanillo $3,000

Chiang Mai is about 22% cheaper than Manzanillo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Manzanillo are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Manzanillo 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.8

$10.88 MX$202

-80.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.62 ฿626

$32.44 MX$604

-42.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.60 ฿188

$10.92 MX$203

-48.72%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.9

$3.71 MX$69.1

-55.26%

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

$0.65 ฿21.75

$1.14 MX$21.14

-42.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ฿10.25

$1.12 MX$20.81

-73.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.32 ฿78.1

$2.11 MX$39.23

9.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 ฿123

$4.31 MX$80.2

-14.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 ฿67.8

$1.51 MX$28.04

33.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.34

$2.53 MX$47.10

-44.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 ฿46.79

$1.16 MX$21.54

19.83%

Eggs

$2.37 ฿79.6

$2.07 MX$38.50

14.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.52 ฿555

$8.01 MX$149

106.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.67 ฿89.8

$5.42 MX$101

-50.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.02 ฿303

$9.44 MX$176

-4.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.6

$2.87 MX$53.4

-16.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿35.01

$1.38 MX$25.67

-24.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 ฿55.8

$1.73 MX$32.21

-4.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.4

$1.46 MX$27.23

6.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ฿41.61

$2.31 MX$42.95

-46.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ฿36.53

$1.65 MX$30.77

-33.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 ฿25.61

$1.83 MX$34.15

-58.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.29

$1.16 MX$21.53

-56.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.12 ฿139

$5.31 MX$98.9

-22.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.93 ฿603

$6.36 MX$118

181.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ฿54.6

$1.80 MX$33.46

-10.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 ฿94.9

$2.44 MX$45.32

15.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ฿31.42

$0.75 MX$13.94

24.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,778

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ฿39.56

$2.39 MX$44.54

-50.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 ฿5.76

$2.48 MX$46.14

-93.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 ฿60.9

$8.20 MX$153

-77.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.51

$1.41 MX$26.16

4.26%

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

$21.0K ฿706.4K

$23.9K MX$445.2K

-12.16%

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

$26.5K ฿891.4K

$23.3K MX$434.3K

13.61%

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

$62.6 ฿2,103

$64.1 MX$1,193

-2.40%

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

$11.60 ฿390

$19.79 MX$368

-41.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.30 ฿683

$28.60 MX$532

-29.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.88 ฿1,274

$65.8 MX$1,224

-42.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿124

$31.67 MX$589

-88.32%

Cinema Ticket

$6.51 ฿219

$4.34 MX$80.8

50.00%

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

$727 ฿24.4K

$162 MX$3,022

347.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ฿557.2K

$8,458 MX$157.4K

95.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ฿1,800

$42.68 MX$794

25.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.80 ฿834

$24.94 MX$464

-0.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.4 ฿3,039

$73.9 MX$1,376

22.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.0 ฿2,420

$114 MX$2,112

-36.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$481 ฿16.2K

$660 MX$12.3K

-27.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 ฿10.4K

$460 MX$8,560

-32.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 ฿35.6K

$1,531 MX$28.5K

-30.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$659 ฿22.1K

$1,322 MX$24.6K

-50.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,418 ฿81.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿54.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.0K

$402 MX$7,485

47.89%

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: November 1, 2026

Last update for Manzanillo: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1%

Manzanillo

$460 38.3% 48.4% $150

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3%

Manzanillo

$228 19% 3.8% $9

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6%

Manzanillo

$115 9.6% 6% $6.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Manzanillo

$112 9.4% 19.1% $18

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2%

Manzanillo

$193 16.1% 152% $116

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3%

Manzanillo

$18 * 1.5% 69.7% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4%

Manzanillo

$74 6.2% 46.3% $24

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 $660 in Manzanillo. 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 48% 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 $19 in Chiang Mai versus $32 in Manzanillo. Groceries tell a different story – $237 in Chiang Mai vs $228 in Manzanillo – so Manzanillo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇲🇽 Manzanillo

🕒 Local time

11:06 11:06 AM

22:06 10:06 PM

13 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

159,853

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 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 November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.95 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Manzanillo 15,100 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Manzanillo

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 Manzanillo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Manzanillo costs about 28% 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 $1,800 in Manzanillo. 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 $481 there versus $660 in Manzanillo.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $32 in Manzanillo. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 4% cheaper in Manzanillo – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $935 in Chiang Mai and $1,200 in Manzanillo. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.