Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Delhi and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Delhi: $536 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

26

Cost of Living Index in Delhi
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Delhi Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

Delhi

🇮🇳 India

$536

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $536 per month in Delhi vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Delhi $536
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $901 per month in Delhi vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Delhi $901
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,266 per month in Delhi vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Delhi $1,266
Chiang Mai $1,979

Delhi is about 43% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Delhi and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Delhi 61% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.66 ₹349

$2.24 ฿75.5

63.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.76 ₹1,976

$19.00 ฿640

9.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.74 ₹356

$5.55 ฿187

-32.61%

Cappuccino

$2.48 ₹236

$1.67 ฿56.4

48.50%

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

$0.38 ₹36.21

$0.64 ฿21.51

-40.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 ₹15.85

$0.31 ฿10.29

-45.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.04 ₹194

$2.36 ฿79.5

-13.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.07 ₹293

$3.66 ฿123

-16.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.70 ₹66.4

$1.95 ฿65.7

-64.10%

White Bread (500g)

$0.52 ₹49.25

$1.44 ฿48.41

-63.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.82 ₹78.2

$1.33 ฿44.97

-38.35%

Eggs

$1.17 ₹112

$2.28 ฿77.0

-48.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.31 ₹411

$16.45 ฿554

-73.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.36 ₹320

$2.78 ฿93.8

20.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

Apples (1kg)

$1.96 ₹186

$2.35 ฿79.3

-16.60%

Banana (1kg)

$0.74 ₹70.6

$0.97 ฿32.75

-23.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.99 ₹94.1

$1.60 ฿53.8

-38.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.49 ₹46.72

$1.50 ฿50.6

-67.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.29 ₹27.29

$1.28 ฿43.06

-77.34%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 ₹38.62

$1.10 ฿37.14

-62.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.44 ₹41.94

$0.71 ฿23.79

-38.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.31 ₹29.80

$0.49 ฿16.34

-36.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.03 ₹479

$4.14 ฿140

21.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.37 ₹796

$17.52 ฿590

-52.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 ₹159

$1.61 ฿54.4

3.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 ₹268

$2.78 ฿93.8

1.08%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$6.64 ₹632

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 ₹38.58

$0.87 ฿29.27

-52.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.60 ₹1,485

$54.1 ฿1,823

-71.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.08 ₹102

$1.16 ฿39.00

-6.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.25 ₹23.74

$0.53 ฿17.78

-52.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ₹149

$2.42 ฿81.6

-35.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ₹106

$1.45 ฿48.82

-23.45%

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

$11.1K ₹1.1M

$21.1K ฿709.7K

-47.51%

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

$19.6K ₹1.9M

$26.9K ฿907.9K

-27.28%

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

$43.87 ₹4,177

$62.2 ฿2,095

-29.44%

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

$4.27 ₹407

$12.17 ฿410

-64.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.82 ₹649

$20.12 ฿678

-66.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.06 ₹2,481

$37.31 ฿1,257

-30.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.09 ₹771

$3.77 ฿127

114.59%

Cinema Ticket

$5.34 ₹509

$6.49 ฿219

-17.72%

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

$100 ₹9,533

$736 ฿24.8K

-86.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,288 ₹217.8K

$14.8K ฿497.6K

-84.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$24.84 ₹2,365

$53.4 ฿1,799

-53.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.18 ₹2,779

$24.64 ฿830

18.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$53.2 ₹5,062

$91.5 ฿3,083

-41.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$44.74 ₹4,260

$71.9 ฿2,424

-37.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$277 ₹26.4K

$482 ฿16.3K

-42.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$159 ₹15.1K

$309 ฿10.4K

-48.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$798 ₹76.0K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-20.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$420 ₹40.0K

$633 ฿21.3K

-33.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,558 ₹243.6K

$2,363 ฿79.6K

8.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,172 ₹111.6K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-26.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$598 ₹57.0K

$590 ฿19.9K

1.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.35

5.57

49.91%

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

Last update for Delhi: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Delhi

$159 29.6%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 94.6% $150

Groceries & Markets

Delhi

$108 20.2%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 116% $126

Eating Out

Delhi

$89 16.6%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 12.7% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Delhi

$68 12.8%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 58.9% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Delhi

$55 10.3%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 71.9% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Delhi

$37 6.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 36.9% $14

Getting Around

Delhi

$20 3.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 214% $42

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $277 in Delhi 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 $21 in Delhi versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $108 in Delhi vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Delhi wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Delhi

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

15:18 3:18 PM

16:48 4:48 PM

1 h 30 min ahead of Delhi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

16,787,941 Capital

127,240

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.5 USD

1,000 INR = 9.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 95.21 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.41 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.61 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Delhi Chiang Mai 2,470 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Delhi
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 75% more than Delhi, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $803 per month in Delhi 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 Delhi, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $277 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $100 per month in Delhi and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 116% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $536 in Delhi and $936 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Delhi – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.