Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Coffs Harbour and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,468 in Coffs Harbour, rent and utilities included – about $18,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Coffs Harbour, Australia
Chiang Mai, Thailand
Coffs Harbour
🇦🇺 Australia
$2,468
/mo nomad
Chiang Mai
🇹🇭 Thailand
$936
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Coffs Harbour 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 Coffs Harbour and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,468 per month in Coffs Harbour vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Coffs Harbour $2,468
  • Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $3,579 per month in Coffs Harbour vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Coffs Harbour $3,579
  • Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $4,690 per month in Coffs Harbour vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Coffs Harbour $4,690
  • Chiang Mai $1,979

Coffs Harbour costs about 164% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Coffs Harbour sits 81% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$14.25 A$20.25
$2.24 ฿75.7
536.16%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$104 A$147
$19.00 ฿642
445.89%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.87 A$12.61
$5.55 ฿188
59.82%
Cappuccino
$3.77 A$5.36
$1.67 ฿56.6
125.75%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.86 A$4.07
$0.64 ฿21.56
346.87%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.95 A$2.77
$0.31 ฿10.32
529.03%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.37 A$7.64
$2.36 ฿79.6
127.54%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.48 A$7.79
$3.66 ฿124
49.73%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.52 A$2.16
$1.95 ฿65.8
-22.05%
White Bread (500g)
$2.64 A$3.74
$1.44 ฿48.51
83.33%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.40 A$3.41
$1.33 ฿45.07
80.45%
Eggs
$3.36 A$4.77
$2.28 ฿77.1
47.37%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.69 A$12.35
$16.45 ฿556
-47.17%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.11 A$10.11
$2.78 ฿94.0
155.76%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.76 A$19.56
$9.31 ฿314
47.80%
Apples (1kg)
$3.98 A$5.65
$2.35 ฿79.5
69.36%
Banana (1kg)
$3.09 A$4.39
$0.97 ฿32.82
218.56%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.47 A$4.93
$1.60 ฿53.9
116.88%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.16 A$5.91
$1.50 ฿50.7
177.33%
Potato (1kg)
$1.43 A$2.03
$1.28 ฿43.15
11.72%
Onion (1kg)
$2.44 A$3.47
$1.10 ฿37.22
121.82%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.52 A$3.58
$0.71 ฿23.84
254.93%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$2.37 A$3.37
$0.49 ฿16.38
383.67%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$32.01 A$45.48
$4.14 ฿140
673.19%
Wine (Bottle)
$14.22 A$20.20
$17.52 ฿592
-18.84%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$6.05 A$8.59
$1.61 ฿54.5
275.78%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.63 A$9.41
$2.78 ฿94.0
138.49%
🚌 Getting Around
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$4.72 A$6.71
$0.87 ฿29.33
442.53%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$54.1 ฿1,827
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.11 A$3.00
$1.16 ฿39.08
81.90%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.59 A$2.26
$0.53 ฿17.82
200.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$35.69 A$50.7
$2.42 ฿81.8
1374.79%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.32 A$1.87
$1.45 ฿48.93
-8.97%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.9K A$41.1K
$21.1K ฿711.2K
37.45%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.7K A$37.9K
$26.9K ฿909.8K
-0.92%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$175 A$248
$62.2 ฿2,100
181.05%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$10.59 A$15.05
$12.17 ฿411
-12.98%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$53.9 A$76.6
$20.12 ฿680
167.79%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$108 A$153
$37.31 ฿1,260
188.74%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$3.77 ฿127
-
Cinema Ticket
$13.45 A$19.11
$6.49 ฿219
107.24%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$2,183 A$3,102
$736 ฿24.9K
196.60%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.8K A$16.7K
$14.8K ฿498.6K
-20.31%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$77.2 A$110
$53.4 ฿1,802
44.56%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.5 A$76.1
$24.64 ฿832
117.29%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$103 A$146
$91.5 ฿3,089
12.13%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$124 A$176
$71.9 ฿2,429
71.80%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,399 A$1,988
$482 ฿16.3K
190.17%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,302 A$1,850
$309 ฿10.4K
321.39%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,111 A$2,999
$1,006 ฿34.0K
109.84%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,945 A$2,764
$633 ฿21.4K
207.05%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,566 A$5,066
$2,363 ฿79.8K
50.88%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,623 A$5,149
$1,589 ฿53.7K
128.03%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Coffs Harbour
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,275 A$4,653
$590 ฿19.9K
455.33%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.69
5.57
2.15%

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

Last update for Coffs Harbour: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Coffs Harbour
$1.3K
Chiang Mai
$309 76.3% $993
Groceries & Markets
Coffs Harbour
$360
Chiang Mai
$234 35% $126
Eating Out
Coffs Harbour
$243
Chiang Mai
$78 68.1% $165
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Coffs Harbour
$239
Chiang Mai
$94 60.5% $145
Clothing & Footwear
Coffs Harbour
$161
Chiang Mai
$109 32.3% $52
Sport & Entertainment
Coffs Harbour
$135
Chiang Mai
$50 62.7% $84
Getting Around
Coffs Harbour
$29 *
Chiang Mai
$61 112% $32

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,399 in Coffs Harbour versus $482 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 in Coffs Harbour are about 5.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $104 in Coffs Harbour versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $360 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇦🇺 Coffs Harbour
🇹🇭 Chiang Mai
🕒 Local time
03:54 3:54 AM
23:54 11:54 PM
4 h behind Coffs Harbour
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
78,759
127,240
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Coffs Harbour Chiang Mai 7,960 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Coffs Harbour
  • 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
Coffs Harbour vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Coffs Harbour or Chiang Mai?
Coffs Harbour costs about 164% 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 Coffs Harbour and in Chiang Mai?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,703 per month in Coffs Harbour and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Coffs Harbour or Chiang Mai?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $1,399 in Coffs Harbour.
How do dining costs compare in Coffs Harbour and in Chiang Mai?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $104 in Coffs Harbour and $19 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 Coffs Harbour or in Chiang Mai?
Groceries cost about 54% more in Coffs Harbour, 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 $800/month in Coffs Harbour or in Chiang Mai?
$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,468 in Coffs Harbour and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.
Which city is better for families?
Families tend to lean toward Chiang Mai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
How safe is Coffs Harbour 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 Coffs Harbour or to Chiang Mai?
If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Coffs Harbour makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Coffs Harbour vs other spots: cost of living compared

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