Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Creston and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,156 in Creston, rent and utilities included – about $14,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

109

Cost of Living Index in Creston
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Creston Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Creston

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,156

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,156 per month in Creston vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Creston $2,156
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $3,178 per month in Creston vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Creston $3,178
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $4,200 per month in Creston vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Creston $4,200
Chiang Mai $1,979

Creston costs about 130% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Creston sits 58% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.53 CA$24.49

$2.24 ฿75.6

682.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.8 CA$89.1

$19.00 ฿641

235.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.79 CA$13.68

$5.55 ฿187

76.40%

Cappuccino

$4.17 CA$5.82

$1.67 ฿56.5

149.70%

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

$2.07 CA$2.90

$0.64 ฿21.53

223.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 CA$1.97

$0.31 ฿10.30

354.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.24 CA$7.32

$2.36 ฿79.5

122.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 CA$7.60

$3.66 ฿124

48.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.14 CA$2.99

$1.95 ฿65.7

9.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 CA$3.90

$1.44 ฿48.45

93.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.80 CA$5.31

$1.33 ฿45.01

185.71%

Eggs

$4.44 CA$6.20

$2.28 ฿77.0

94.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.29 CA$14.39

$16.45 ฿555

-37.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.05 CA$16.84

$2.78 ฿93.8

333.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.85 CA$20.76

$9.31 ฿314

59.51%

Apples (1kg)

$3.78 CA$5.28

$2.35 ฿79.4

60.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.36 CA$1.91

$0.97 ฿32.78

40.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.40 CA$4.75

$1.60 ฿53.9

112.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 CA$4.59

$1.50 ฿50.6

118.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.23 CA$3.12

$1.28 ฿43.10

74.22%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 CA$3.10

$1.10 ฿37.17

101.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.74 CA$3.82

$0.71 ฿23.81

285.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 CA$2.47

$0.49 ฿16.36

261.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.96 CA$19.51

$4.14 ฿140

237.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.59 CA$16.19

$17.52 ฿591

-33.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.95 CA$4.13

$1.61 ฿54.5

83.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.16 CA$4.41

$2.78 ฿93.9

13.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.64 CA$3.70

$0.87 ฿29.29

203.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.2 CA$75.8

$54.1 ฿1,825

0.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.97 CA$4.15

$1.16 ฿39.03

156.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.06

$0.53 ฿17.79

179.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.87 CA$33.36

$2.42 ฿81.7

886.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 CA$1.64

$1.45 ฿48.87

-19.31%

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

$30.1K CA$42.0K

$21.1K ฿710.3K

42.75%

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

$21.0K CA$29.3K

$26.9K ฿908.7K

-22.18%

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

$135 CA$188

$62.2 ฿2,097

116.76%

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

$39.04 CA$54.6

$12.17 ฿410

220.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.5 CA$76.1

$20.12 ฿679

170.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.90 CA$58.6

$37.31 ฿1,259

12.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.08 CA$22.47

$3.77 ฿127

326.53%

Cinema Ticket

$10.66 CA$14.90

$6.49 ฿219

64.25%

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

$696 CA$973

$736 ฿24.8K

-5.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.7K CA$19.1K

$14.8K ฿498.0K

-7.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.9 CA$78.2

$53.4 ฿1,800

4.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.78 CA$47.20

$24.64 ฿831

37.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.8 CA$130

$91.5 ฿3,086

1.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.8 CA$139

$71.9 ฿2,426

38.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,440 CA$2,012

$482 ฿16.3K

198.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,029 CA$1,438

$309 ฿10.4K

233.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,949 CA$2,724

$1,006 ฿33.9K

93.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,656 CA$2,314

$633 ฿21.4K

161.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,461 CA$6,234

$2,363 ฿79.7K

88.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,715 CA$5,192

$1,589 ฿53.6K

133.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.68

5.57

-15.98%

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

Last update for Creston: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Creston

$1K 47.7%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 70% $720

Groceries & Markets

Creston

$363 16.8%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 35.4% $128

Eating Out

Creston

$271 12.6%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 71.3% $193

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Creston

$228 10.6%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 58.6% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Creston

$127 5.9%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 14.5% $18

Getting Around

Creston

$75 3.5%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 18.3% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Creston

$63 2.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 20.5% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,440 in Creston 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64 in Creston versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $363 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Creston

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

07:11 7:11 AM

21:11 9:11 PM

14 h ahead of Creston

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,583

127,240

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Creston Chiang Mai 11,690 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Creston
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

Creston vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Creston costs about 130% 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 $3,234 per month in Creston and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. 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 $1,440 in Creston.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64 in Creston and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 55% more in Creston, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,156 in Creston and $936 in Chiang Mai. 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 $2,156 in Creston. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.