Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Medea

For one person, living is cheaper in Medea: $453 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Medea
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Medea Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Medea

🇩🇿 Algeria

$453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $453 in Medea, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Medea $453

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $778 in Medea, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Medea $778

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,103 in Medea, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Medea $1,103

Chiang Mai costs about 107% more than Medea, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chiang Mai and Medea are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Medea 67% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.5

$1.91 DZD 258

17.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿640

$28.37 DZD 3,835

-33.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$3.80 DZD 514

46.05%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.4

$0.36 DZD 49.22

363.89%

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

$0.64 ฿21.51

$0.43 DZD 58.2

48.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.29

$0.21 DZD 27.71

47.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$2.19 DZD 296

7.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿123

$2.18 DZD 295

67.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$0.88 DZD 119

121.59%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.41

$0.08 DZD 10.18

1700.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.97

$1.10 DZD 148

20.91%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$1.19 DZD 161

91.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿554

$7.91 DZD 1,069

107.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$3.93 DZD 531

-29.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$14.49 DZD 1,959

-35.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.3

$2.04 DZD 275

15.20%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.75

$2.77 DZD 374

-64.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.8

$1.07 DZD 144

49.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$0.60 DZD 80.7

150.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.06

$0.62 DZD 83.2

106.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.14

$0.49 DZD 66.0

124.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.79

$0.81 DZD 110

-12.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.34

$0.27 DZD 36.52

81.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$2.16 DZD 292

91.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿590

$6.84 DZD 924

156.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.4

$1.28 DZD 172

25.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$1.87 DZD 253

48.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.27

$0.23 DZD 30.49

278.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

$6.89 DZD 932

685.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.00

$0.54 DZD 73.6

114.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.78

$0.46 DZD 62.3

15.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.6

$5.55 DZD 750

-56.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.82

$0.32 DZD 43.89

353.12%

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

$21.1K ฿709.7K

$19.7K DZD 2.7M

6.99%

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

$26.9K ฿907.9K

$34.4K DZD 4.7M

-21.78%

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

$62.2 ฿2,095

$18.29 DZD 2,472

239.91%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$7.51 DZD 1,015

62.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿678

$12.12 DZD 1,638

66.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,257

$22.61 DZD 3,056

65.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$1.89 DZD 256

99.47%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$3.27 DZD 442

98.47%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$39.39 DZD 5,325

1768.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿497.6K

$6,300 DZD 851.5K

134.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,799

$19.54 DZD 2,641

173.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿830

$31.20 DZD 4,216

-21.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,083

$31.23 DZD 4,221

192.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,424

$54.9 DZD 7,414

31.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$141 DZD 19.1K

240.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$91.6 DZD 12.4K

237.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$268 DZD 36.2K

275.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.3K

$197 DZD 26.7K

220.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.6K

$990 DZD 133.7K

138.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$1,059 DZD 143.1K

50.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$311 DZD 42.1K

89.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.40%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Medea: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Medea

$92 20.3% 70.3% $217

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Medea

$173 38.2% 26.3% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Medea

$62 13.6% 43.3% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Medea

$38 8.4% 59.9% $57

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Medea

$49 10.8% 36.9% $29

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Medea

$11 2.4% 82.7% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Medea

$29 6.4% 42% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $141 in Medea. 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 89% higher in Chiang Mai, 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 $28 in Medea. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $173 in Medea – so Medea wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇩🇿 Medea

🕒 Local time

15:24 3:24 PM

09:24 9:24 AM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

138,355

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Algerian Dinar DZD د.ج

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1,000 DZD = 7.4 USD

1,000 DZD = 6.61 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DZD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.73 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Algerian Dinar exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 135 DZD (1,000 DZD = 7.4 USD). 1 EUR = 151 DZD (1,000 DZD = 6.61 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Medea 9,320 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Medea

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 Medea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 107% more than Medea, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. 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 $679 in Medea. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Medea, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $141 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $39 in Medea. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 36% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Families tend to lean toward Medea – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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