Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Santa Cruz Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Santa Cruz

🙂 Solo nomad: Chiang Mai is 33.9% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 5% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Chiang Mai is 26.6% cheaper than Santa Cruz without rent, and 9.6% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.03 ฿64.2

$7.66 JMD 1,198

-73.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.59 ฿588

$62.9 JMD 9,834

-70.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 ฿237

$8.65 JMD 1,354

-13.53%

Cappuccino

$2.00 ฿63.2

$4.33 JMD 677

-53.81%

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

$0.85 ฿26.81

$1.37 JMD 215

-37.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.35 ฿11.13

$0.70 JMD 109

-50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.21 ฿70.0

$2.55 JMD 400

-13.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.76 ฿119

$3.17 JMD 496

18.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 ฿54.4

$4.41 JMD 689

-61.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.63 ฿51.7

$3.59 JMD 561

-54.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.16 ฿36.66

$1.57 JMD 245

-26.11%

Eggs

$1.98 ฿62.6

$3.53 JMD 552

-43.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.93 ฿504

$10.97 JMD 1,716

45.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.17 ฿100

$6.45 JMD 1,009

-50.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿345

$7.85 JMD 1,228

38.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.65 ฿83.7

$6.11 JMD 956

-56.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 ฿38.70

$3.09 JMD 483

-60.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.70 ฿53.7

$4.25 JMD 665

-60.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.59 ฿50.3

$2.96 JMD 464

-46.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 ฿41.90

$2.09 JMD 327

-36.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 ฿36.99

$2.01 JMD 315

-41.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.68 ฿21.46

$2.97 JMD 464

-77.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ฿17.64

$1.44 JMD 225

-61.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.51 ฿143

$8.54 JMD 1,336

-47.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.07 ฿604

$11.28 JMD 1,765

69.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿56.0

$2.81 JMD 439

-37.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 ฿101

$3.19 JMD 499

-0.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.96 ฿30.47

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.90 ฿598

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.36 ฿42.98

$1.07 JMD 167

27.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.35 ฿42.80

$3.24 JMD 507

-58.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.03 ฿254

$6.39 JMD 1,000

25.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 ฿39.34

$1.28 JMD 201

-3.13%

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

$21.2K ฿669.8K

$43.4K JMD 6.8M

-51.28%

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

$21.8K ฿688.5K

$32.9K JMD 5.2M

-33.95%

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

$71.2 ฿2,255

$160 JMD 25.1K

-55.55%

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

$14.09 ฿446

$21.79 JMD 3,408

-35.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.47 ฿553

$50.4 JMD 7,889

-65.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.07 ฿1,332

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.88 ฿218

Cinema Ticket

$5.94 ฿188

$13.25 JMD 2,072

-55.17%

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

$307 ฿9,728

$227 JMD 35.5K

35.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿468.2K

$2,440 JMD 381.7K

506.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.7 ฿1,762

$26.36 JMD 4,122

111.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.79 ฿848

$25.86 JMD 4,045

3.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.2 ฿2,634

$71.3 JMD 11.1K

16.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.1 ฿2,219

$75.4 JMD 11.8K

-6.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$427 ฿13.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$237 ฿7,504

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$802 ฿25.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$503 ฿15.9K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,061 ฿65.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,533 ฿48.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$654 ฿20.7K

$401 JMD 62.7K

63.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.15

-45.36%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: March 1, 2026

Last update for Santa Cruz: March 2, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Similar cities

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

Minsk

🇧🇾 Belarus

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

🇻🇳 Vietnam

Jakarta

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Curitiba

🇧🇷 Brazil

Astana

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

Bishkek

🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan

Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil