Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Popayan

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $1,398 in Popayan, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 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
67

Cost of Living Index in Popayan
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Popayan Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Popayan

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,398

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $935 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,398 in Popayan, rent included.

Chiang Mai $935
Popayan $1,398

A couple spends around $1,467 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,091 in Popayan, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,467
Popayan $2,091

A family of three spends $1,999 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,783 in Popayan, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,999
Popayan $2,783

Chiang Mai is about 33% cheaper than Popayan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Popayan is 3% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.4

$7.83 COP 25.3K

-72.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.62 ฿623

$46.74 COP 151.0K

-60.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.60 ฿187

$9.82 COP 31.7K

-42.97%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.6

$2.77 COP 8,933

-40.07%

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

$0.65 ฿21.63

$1.36 COP 4,405

-52.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ฿10.20

$0.91 COP 2,931

-67.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.32 ฿77.7

$2.86 COP 9,246

-18.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 ฿123

$4.26 COP 13.8K

-13.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 ฿67.4

$1.50 COP 4,839

34.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.08

$2.07 COP 6,699

-31.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 ฿46.54

$1.99 COP 6,416

-30.15%

Eggs

$2.37 ฿79.2

$3.31 COP 10.7K

-28.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.52 ฿552

$8.28 COP 26.7K

99.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.67 ฿89.3

$11.20 COP 36.2K

-76.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.02 ฿302

$14.18 COP 45.8K

-36.39%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.2

$3.93 COP 12.7K

-38.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿34.82

$1.49 COP 4,812

-30.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 ฿55.5

$1.82 COP 5,867

-8.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.1

$1.81 COP 5,857

-13.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ฿41.39

$1.62 COP 5,225

-23.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ฿36.34

$1.69 COP 5,460

-35.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 ฿25.47

$1.04 COP 3,368

-26.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.19

$1.34 COP 4,327

-61.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.12 ฿138

$4.02 COP 13.0K

2.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.93 ฿600

$13.00 COP 42.0K

37.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ฿54.3

$1.61 COP 5,192

0.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 ฿94.4

$2.27 COP 7,326

24.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ฿31.25

$1.17 COP 3,780

-20.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,769

$56.8 COP 183.5K

-6.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ฿39.35

$1.71 COP 5,512

-30.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 ฿5.73

$2.15 COP 6,958

-92.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 ฿60.6

$8.15 COP 26.3K

-77.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.25

$1.33 COP 4,302

10.53%

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

$21.0K ฿702.6K

$36.6K COP 118.4M

-42.66%

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

$26.5K ฿886.7K

$37.8K COP 122.1M

-29.83%

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

$62.6 ฿2,092

$111 COP 360.0K

-43.87%

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

$11.60 ฿388

$14.64 COP 47.3K

-20.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.30 ฿679

$27.47 COP 88.7K

-26.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.88 ฿1,267

$39.02 COP 126.0K

-2.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿124

Cinema Ticket

$6.51 ฿218

$6.76 COP 21.8K

-3.70%

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

$727 ฿24.3K

$507 COP 1.6M

43.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ฿554.2K

$10.5K COP 33.8M

58.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ฿1,790

$80.7 COP 260.7K

-33.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.80 ฿829

$58.1 COP 187.6K

-57.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.4 ฿3,023

$119 COP 385.6K

-24.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.0 ฿2,407

$104 COP 334.8K

-30.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$481 ฿16.1K

$802 COP 2.6M

-39.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 ฿10.4K

$506 COP 1.6M

-38.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 ฿35.4K

$1,349 COP 4.4M

-21.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$659 ฿22.0K

$779 COP 2.5M

-15.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,418 ฿80.8K

$2,078 COP 6.7M

16.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿53.8K

$1,794 COP 5.8M

-10.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-53.58%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Last update for Popayan: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1%

Popayan

$506 36.2% 63.3% $196

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3%

Popayan

$292 20.9% 23.5% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6%

Popayan

$163 11.6% 50.3% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Popayan

$154 11% 62.6% $59

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2%

Popayan

$157 11.2% 105% $81

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3%

Popayan

$74 5.3% 26.1% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4%

Popayan

$53 3.8% 3.2% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $481 in Chiang Mai versus $802 in Popayan. 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 $47 in Popayan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $237 vs $292 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇨🇴 Popayan

🕒 Local time

20:22 8:22 PM

08:22 8:22 AM

12 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

318,059

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 33.44 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.56 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,230 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,628 COP (10,000 COP = 2.76 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Popayan 17,610 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Popayan

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 Popayan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Popayan costs about 49% 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 $2,098 in Popayan. 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 $802 in Popayan.

Kindergarten costs $727 per month in Chiang Mai and $507 in Popayan. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 23% more in Popayan, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $935 in Chiang Mai and $1,398 in Popayan. 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 $1,398 in Popayan. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

For expats, Chiang Mai is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 33% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.