Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Sabratha

For one person, living is cheaper in Sabratha: $406 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Sabratha
Learn more

Sabratha Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Sabratha

🇱🇾 Libya

$406

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $406 in Sabratha, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Sabratha $406

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $596 in Sabratha, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Sabratha $596

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $785 in Sabratha, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Sabratha $785

Chiang Mai costs about 130% more than Sabratha, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chiang Mai and Sabratha are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Sabratha 70% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$3.03 LYD 19.40

-26.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$9.55 LYD 61.2

98.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$1.54 LYD 9.87

260.39%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.60 LYD 3.87

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 LYD 4.33

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$0.44 LYD 2.83

279.55%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$0.32 LYD 2.07

100.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$0.09 LYD 0.57

244.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$0.92 LYD 5.87

111.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$0.20 LYD 1.28

620.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$1.10 LYD 7.06

20.91%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$1.41 LYD 9.01

61.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$5.23 LYD 33.54

214.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$3.50 LYD 22.43

-20.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$9.32 LYD 59.7

-0.11%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$2.00 LYD 12.79

17.50%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$1.54 LYD 9.86

-37.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$0.69 LYD 4.44

131.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$0.60 LYD 3.85

150.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$0.48 LYD 3.10

166.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$0.32 LYD 2.06

243.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$0.30 LYD 1.89

136.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$0.17 LYD 1.09

188.24%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.76 LYD 11.30

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 LYD 5.96

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 LYD 5.42

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$1.89 LYD 12.09

119.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$0.82 LYD 5.25

6.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$0.81 LYD 5.18

43.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$0.32 LYD 2.06

65.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$0.76 LYD 4.84

218.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$0.02 LYD 0.11

7150.00%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$23.2K LYD 149.0K

-9.42%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$21.4K LYD 137.2K

25.86%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$91.9 LYD 589

-32.34%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$3.80 LYD 24.38

220.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$13.86 LYD 88.9

45.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$11.06 LYD 70.9

237.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$7.61 LYD 48.79

-50.46%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$39.49 LYD 253

1764.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$946 LYD 6,064

1460.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$19.10 LYD 122

179.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$17.32 LYD 111

42.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$64.7 LYD 415

41.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$15.66 LYD 100

359.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$157 LYD 1,006

207.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$78.6 LYD 504

292.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$232 LYD 1,487

333.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$108 LYD 694

485.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$280 LYD 1,796

743.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

$189 LYD 1,208

742.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$187 LYD 1,201

214.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Sabratha: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Sabratha

$79 19.4% 74.5% $230

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Sabratha

$113 27.7% 51.9% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Sabratha

$53 13% 51.6% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Sabratha

$110 27% 16% $15

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Sabratha

$36 8.8% 53.9% $42

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Sabratha

$5.7 * 1.4% 90.7% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Sabratha

$11 * 2.7% 78% $39

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 $157 in Sabratha. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Chiang Mai are about 3.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $10 in Sabratha. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $113 – making Sabratha the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇱🇾 Sabratha

🕒 Local time

05:59 5:59 AM

00:59 12:59 AM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

83,398

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Libyan Dinar LYD ل.د

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 LYD = 0.156 USD

1 LYD = 0.14 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LYD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Libyan Dinar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.41 LYD (1 LYD = 0.156 USD). 1 EUR = 7.13 LYD (1 LYD = 0.14 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Sabratha 8,570 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Sabratha

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 Sabratha: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 130% more than Sabratha, 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 $609 in Sabratha. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sabratha, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $157 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $10 in Sabratha. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 108% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Sabratha, where all-in costs run around $406, than in Chiang Mai at $936. In Sabratha it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Sabratha. 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.