Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Van

For one person, living costs are similar in Chiang Mai and in Van: $936 and $956 a month, rent and utilities included.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Van
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Van Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Van

🇹🇷 Turkey

$956

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $956 in Van, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Van $956

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,536 in Van, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Van $1,536

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,116 in Van, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Van $2,116

Chiang Mai is about 2% cheaper than Van, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Van are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Van 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$7.48 ₺373

-70.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$34.59 ₺1,723

-45.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$7.93 ₺395

-30.01%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$3.57 ₺178

-53.22%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$1.14 ₺56.6

-43.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$0.42 ₺21.17

-26.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$3.33 ₺166

-29.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.10 ₺154

18.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$0.96 ₺47.67

103.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$1.00 ₺49.80

44.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$2.25 ₺112

-40.89%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$1.48 ₺73.9

54.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$8.99 ₺448

82.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$4.07 ₺203

-31.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$22.62 ₺1,127

-58.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$1.82 ₺90.9

29.12%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$1.83 ₺91.1

-46.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.09 ₺54.3

46.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$1.15 ₺57.4

30.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$0.52 ₺25.73

146.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$0.35 ₺17.44

214.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$0.74 ₺36.87

-4.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$0.61 ₺30.53

-19.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$2.16 ₺108

91.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$10.36 ₺516

69.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$2.01 ₺99.9

-19.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.79 ₺139

-0.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$0.73 ₺36.59

19.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$1.30 ₺64.6

-10.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$0.76 ₺37.85

-30.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$7.21 ₺359

-66.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.28 ₺64.0

13.28%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$42.2K ₺2.1M

-50.15%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$38.9K ₺1.9M

-30.75%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$79.9 ₺3,981

-22.19%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$10.46 ₺521

16.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$13.39 ₺667

50.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$57.0 ₺2,841

-34.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$6.49 ₺324

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$624 ₺31.1K

17.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$11.4K ₺566.1K

29.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$45.86 ₺2,285

16.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$33.35 ₺1,661

-26.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$79.7 ₺3,969

14.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$88.8 ₺4,425

-19.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$469 ₺23.4K

2.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$278 ₺13.9K

10.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$816 ₺40.6K

23.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$586 ₺29.2K

8.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$1,491 ₺74.3K

58.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

$968 ₺48.2K

64.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

41.33

-86.52%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Van: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Van

$278 29.1% 9.9% $31

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Van

$229 23.9% 2.4% $5.6

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Van

$111 11.7% 2.6% $2.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Van

$104 10.9% 9.8% $9.3

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Van

$156 16.3% 101% $78

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Van

$8 * 0.8% 86.9% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Van

$70 7.3% 39.2% $20

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 $469 in Van. 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 $35 in Van. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $229 in Van – so Van wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇹🇷 Van

🕒 Local time

21:02 9:02 PM

17:02 5:02 PM

4 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

1,141,015

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 TRY = 2.01 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, 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 = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 49.82 TRY (100 TRY = 2.01 USD). 1 EUR = 55.45 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Van 5,750 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Van

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 Van: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Van costs about 2% 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 $1,434 in Van. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $482 in Chiang Mai and $469 in Van. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $936 in Chiang Mai and $956 in Van. That’s a gap of about 2%.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $35 in Van. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $956 in Van. 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 $956 in Van. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.