Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ciudad Obregon and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,183 in Ciudad Obregon, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Ciudad Obregon
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,183
/mo nomad
Chiang Mai
🇹🇭 Thailand
$925
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ciudad Obregon and in Chiang Mai

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Ciudad Obregon and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,183 per month in Ciudad Obregon vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Ciudad Obregon $1,183
  • Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $1,868 per month in Ciudad Obregon vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Ciudad Obregon $1,868
  • Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $2,553 per month in Ciudad Obregon vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Ciudad Obregon $2,553
  • Chiang Mai $1,903

Ciudad Obregon costs about 28% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ciudad Obregon and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Ciudad Obregon 13% lower, Chiang Mai 32% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.31 MX$191
$2.29 ฿76.5
350.22%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$48.41 MX$895
$19.64 ฿656
146.49%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.32 MX$154
$5.61 ฿188
48.31%
Cappuccino
$3.94 MX$72.7
$1.66 ฿55.6
137.35%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.24 MX$22.87
$0.70 ฿23.40
77.14%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.13 MX$20.93
$0.31 ฿10.24
264.52%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.56 MX$47.31
$2.41 ฿80.4
6.22%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.33 MX$80.1
$3.71 ฿124
16.71%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.57 MX$29.02
$1.95 ฿65.3
-19.49%
White Bread (500g)
$2.57 MX$47.49
$1.41 ฿47.03
82.27%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.73 MX$32.05
$1.31 ฿43.62
32.06%
Eggs
$2.39 MX$44.10
$2.18 ฿72.9
9.63%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.27 MX$153
$16.65 ฿556
-50.33%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.07 MX$149
$2.76 ฿92.2
192.39%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.24 MX$208
$9.11 ฿304
23.38%
Apples (1kg)
$2.65 MX$48.92
$2.39 ฿80.0
10.88%
Banana (1kg)
$1.49 MX$27.48
$1.03 ฿34.26
44.66%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.85 MX$34.15
$1.63 ฿54.4
13.50%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.78 MX$32.82
$1.50 ฿50.0
18.67%
Potato (1kg)
$2.01 MX$37.20
$1.29 ฿43.13
55.81%
Onion (1kg)
$1.74 MX$32.07
$1.11 ฿37.03
56.76%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.47 MX$27.18
$0.72 ฿24.08
104.17%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.11 MX$20.57
$0.53 ฿17.59
109.43%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.25 MX$78.6
$4.31 ฿144
-1.39%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.44 MX$211
$17.95 ฿600
-36.27%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.70 MX$31.39
$1.58 ฿52.9
7.59%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.09 MX$57.1
$2.84 ฿95.0
8.80%
🚌 Getting Around
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.68 MX$12.48
$0.86 ฿28.86
-20.93%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$53.3 ฿1,780
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.53 MX$46.69
$1.21 ฿40.29
109.09%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.67 MX$30.81
$0.57 ฿18.99
192.98%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$9.65 MX$178
$2.35 ฿78.6
310.64%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.35 MX$25.00
$1.44 ฿47.96
-6.25%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$25.9K MX$478.2K
$20.7K ฿692.8K
24.83%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$25.4K MX$469.7K
$26.8K ฿895.7K
-5.15%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$65.9 MX$1,218
$62.3 ฿2,083
5.71%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$19.30 MX$357
$12.11 ฿405
59.37%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.95 MX$535
$19.94 ฿666
45.19%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$33.67 MX$622
$37.07 ฿1,239
-9.17%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$20.00 MX$370
$3.78 ฿126
429.10%
Cinema Ticket
$5.07 MX$93.7
$6.50 ฿217
-22.00%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$215 MX$3,980
$793 ฿26.5K
-72.83%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,644 MX$85.8K
$14.8K ฿494.9K
-68.63%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$53.4 MX$987
$53.7 ฿1,796
-0.65%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$40.86 MX$755
$24.62 ฿823
65.96%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$101 MX$1,862
$90.9 ฿3,036
10.92%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.8 MX$1,659
$71.1 ฿2,378
26.19%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$684 MX$12.6K
$455 ฿15.2K
50.15%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$436 MX$8,053
$298 ฿9,954
46.33%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,160 MX$21.4K
$908 ฿30.4K
27.72%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$786 MX$14.5K
$554 ฿18.5K
41.93%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,931 MX$35.7K
$1,931 ฿64.5K
0.03%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,120 MX$20.7K
$1,445 ฿48.3K
-22.47%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Ciudad Obregon
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,189 MX$22.0K
$591 ฿19.7K
101.18%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.3
5.57
102.87%

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

Last update for Ciudad Obregon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Ciudad Obregon
$436
Chiang Mai
$298 31.7% $138
Groceries & Markets
Ciudad Obregon
$261
Chiang Mai
$235 9.9% $26
Eating Out
Ciudad Obregon
$186
Chiang Mai
$79 57.7% $107
Clothing & Footwear
Ciudad Obregon
$128
Chiang Mai
$108 15.6% $20
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ciudad Obregon
$114
Chiang Mai
$94 17.3% $20
Sport & Entertainment
Ciudad Obregon
$44
Chiang Mai
$50 14.3% $6.3
Getting Around
Ciudad Obregon
$14 *
Chiang Mai
$61 348% $47

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $684 in Ciudad Obregon versus $455 in Chiang Mai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 101% higher in Ciudad Obregon, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48.00 in Ciudad Obregon versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $261 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Ciudad Obregon
🇹🇭 Chiang Mai
🕒 Local time
06:23 6:23 AM
20:23 8:23 PM
14 h ahead of Ciudad Obregon
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
329,404
127,240
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Ciudad Obregon Chiang Mai 14,000 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Ciudad Obregon
  • Chiang Mai

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
Ciudad Obregon vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Ciudad Obregon or Chiang Mai?
Ciudad Obregon costs about 28% 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.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Ciudad Obregon and in Chiang Mai?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,774 per month in Ciudad Obregon and $1,388 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Ciudad Obregon or Chiang Mai?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
How do dining costs compare in Ciudad Obregon and in Chiang Mai?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $48.00 in Ciudad Obregon and $20.00 in Chiang Mai. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Are groceries more expensive in Ciudad Obregon or in Chiang Mai?
Groceries cost about 11% more in Ciudad Obregon, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Can you live on $1,000/month in Ciudad Obregon or in Chiang Mai?
A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $925, than in Ciudad Obregon at $1,183. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ciudad Obregon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Which city is better for digital nomads, Ciudad Obregon or Chiang Mai?
For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $1,183 in Ciudad Obregon. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.
How safe is Ciudad Obregon compared to Chiang Mai?
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.
Should I move to Ciudad Obregon or to Chiang Mai?
If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Ciudad Obregon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Ciudad Obregon vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?