Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Roodepoort

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,172 in Roodepoort, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Roodepoort
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Roodepoort Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Roodepoort

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,172

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,172 in Roodepoort, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Roodepoort $1,172

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,767 in Roodepoort, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Roodepoort $1,767

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,362 in Roodepoort, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Roodepoort $2,362

Chiang Mai is about 20% cheaper than Roodepoort, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Roodepoort are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Roodepoort 14% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$12.00 R 200

-81.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$44.96 R 748

-57.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$7.11 R 118

-21.94%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$2.43 R 40.47

-31.28%

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

$0.64 ฿21.53

$1.13 R 18.87

-43.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.30

$0.98 R 16.28

-68.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$2.44 R 40.53

-3.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$2.78 R 46.26

31.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.21 R 20.16

61.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.45

$1.15 R 19.12

25.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.01

$1.78 R 29.68

-25.28%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$2.51 R 41.77

-9.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$8.79 R 146

87.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$5.38 R 89.5

-48.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$8.88 R 148

4.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$1.86 R 30.94

26.34%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.78

$1.79 R 29.77

-45.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.73 R 28.78

-7.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$2.13 R 35.43

-29.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.10

$1.72 R 28.58

-25.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.17

$1.77 R 29.40

-37.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.81

$1.21 R 20.18

-41.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$1.26 R 20.91

-61.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$3.50 R 58.2

18.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$5.85 R 97.3

199.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.52 R 25.34

5.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$1.91 R 31.75

45.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.29

$0.81 R 13.43

7.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.03

$0.81 R 13.40

43.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.79

$0.88 R 14.71

-39.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$14.69 R 244

-83.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.87

$1.56 R 25.91

-7.05%

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

$21.1K ฿710.3K

$34.7K R 577.7K

-39.35%

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

$26.9K ฿908.7K

$35.1K R 583.8K

-23.22%

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

$62.2 ฿2,097

$226 R 3,761

-72.50%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$39.16 R 652

-68.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$37.33 R 621

-46.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$47.68 R 793

-21.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$7.35 R 122

-11.70%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$238 R 3,967

208.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.0K

$5,476 R 91.1K

169.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,800

$52.1 R 866

2.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$32.49 R 541

-24.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,086

$110 R 1,822

-16.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,426

$88.4 R 1,471

-18.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$598 R 9,957

-19.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$289 R 4,800

7.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$1,530 R 25.5K

-34.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$531 R 8,828

19.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$1,519 R 25.3K

-61.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.25

-50.49%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Roodepoort: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Roodepoort

$289 24.6% 6.6% $20

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Roodepoort

$210 17.9% 10.4% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Roodepoort

$127 10.9% 17% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Roodepoort

$303 25.8% 220% $208

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Roodepoort

$173 14.7% 123% $95

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Roodepoort

$8.5 * 0.7% 86.2% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Roodepoort

$62 5.3% 24.1% $12

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $598 in Roodepoort. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Roodepoort are about 2.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $45 in Roodepoort. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $210 in Roodepoort – so Roodepoort wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇿🇦 Roodepoort

🕒 Local time

20:53 8:53 PM

15:53 3:53 PM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

325,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.01 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 16.64 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.01 USD). 1 EUR = 18.57 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Roodepoort 9,160 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Roodepoort

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 Roodepoort: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Roodepoort costs about 25% 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 $1,758 in Roodepoort. 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 $482 there versus $598 in Roodepoort.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $45 in Roodepoort. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 10% cheaper in Roodepoort – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,172 in Roodepoort. 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 $936 in Chiang Mai to $1,172 in Roodepoort. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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