Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Stony Hill

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,615 in Stony Hill, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 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
77

Cost of Living Index in Stony Hill
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Stony Hill Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Stony Hill

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,615

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Stony Hill

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,615 in Stony Hill, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Stony Hill $1,615

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,814 in Stony Hill, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Stony Hill $2,814

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $4,012 in Stony Hill, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Stony Hill $4,012

Chiang Mai is about 42% cheaper than Stony Hill, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Stony Hill is 19% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$13.27 JMD 2,097

-83.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$76.8 JMD 12.1K

-75.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$8.26 JMD 1,305

-32.81%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$5.22 JMD 824

-68.01%

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

$0.64 ฿21.53

$1.16 JMD 183

-44.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.30

$0.64 JMD 101

-51.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$1.85 JMD 293

27.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.13 JMD 495

16.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$3.16 JMD 500

-38.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.45

$1.55 JMD 245

-7.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.01

$1.56 JMD 247

-14.74%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$3.38 JMD 533

-32.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$11.27 JMD 1,780

45.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$5.12 JMD 809

-45.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$2.75 JMD 434

238.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$6.01 JMD 950

-60.90%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.78

$3.78 JMD 598

-74.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$4.18 JMD 660

-61.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$2.50 JMD 394

-40.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.10

$2.81 JMD 444

-54.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.17

$1.91 JMD 302

-42.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.81

$1.61 JMD 255

-55.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$1.45 JMD 229

-66.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$9.73 JMD 1,537

-57.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$11.37 JMD 1,797

54.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$2.93 JMD 464

-45.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$3.96 JMD 626

-29.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.29

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.03

$1.29 JMD 203

-10.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.79

$3.14 JMD 495

-83.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$6.12 JMD 966

-60.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.87

$0.66 JMD 104

119.70%

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

$21.1K ฿710.3K

$31.7K JMD 5.0M

-33.57%

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

$26.9K ฿908.7K

$25.6K JMD 4.1M

5.05%

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

$62.2 ฿2,097

$47.46 JMD 7,499

30.99%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$22.45 JMD 3,547

-45.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$40.24 JMD 6,357

-50.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$74.6 JMD 11.8K

-49.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$19.00 JMD 3,002

-80.16%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$12.42 JMD 1,963

-47.75%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$359 JMD 56.7K

105.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.0K

$8,252 JMD 1.3M

78.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,800

$23.71 JMD 3,745

125.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$32.10 JMD 5,072

-23.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,086

$76.2 JMD 12.0K

20.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,426

$103 JMD 16.2K

-29.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$932 JMD 147.3K

-48.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$769 JMD 121.5K

-59.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$2,246 JMD 354.8K

-55.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,884 JMD 297.7K

-66.39%

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

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-38.11%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Stony Hill: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Stony Hill

$769 47.6% 149% $460

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Stony Hill

$298 18.5% 27.1% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Stony Hill

$106 6.5% 2.8% $3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Stony Hill

$110 6.8% 16.6% $16

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Stony Hill

$216 13.4% 179% $139

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Stony Hill

$17 * 1.1% 72.4% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Stony Hill

$99 6.2% 97.7% $49

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 $932 in Stony Hill. 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 $77 in Stony Hill. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $298 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇯🇲 Stony Hill

🕒 Local time

02:12 2:12 AM

14:12 2:12 PM

12 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

8,551

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, 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).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.67 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Stony Hill 15,890 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Stony Hill

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 Stony Hill: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Stony Hill costs about 73% 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 $2,423 in Stony Hill. 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 $932 in Stony Hill.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $77 in Stony Hill. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 27% more in Stony Hill, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,615 in Stony Hill. 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 $1,615 in Stony Hill. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.