Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fort William and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $2,455 in Fort William, rent and utilities included – about $18,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Fort William
Learn more

Fort William Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

Fort William

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,455

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,455 per month in Fort William vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Fort William $2,455
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $3,592 per month in Fort William vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Fort William $3,592
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $4,730 per month in Fort William vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Fort William $4,730
Chiang Mai $1,903

Fort William costs about 165% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Fort William sits 81% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.26 £15.20

$2.29 ฿76.5

784.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.3 £73.8

$19.64 ฿656

400.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.59 £7.95

$5.61 ฿188

88.77%

Cappuccino

$4.63 £3.47

$1.66 ฿55.6

178.92%

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

$2.73 £2.05

$0.70 ฿23.40

290.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 £1.47

$0.31 ฿10.24

532.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.03 £5.28

$2.41 ฿80.4

191.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.81 £5.86

$3.71 ฿124

110.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 £1.11

$1.95 ฿65.3

-24.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.73 £1.30

$1.41 ฿47.03

22.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 £1.52

$1.31 ฿43.62

54.96%

Eggs

$3.49 £2.61

$2.18 ฿72.9

60.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.00 £6.75

$16.65 ฿556

-45.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.71 £8.03

$2.76 ฿92.2

288.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.56 £11.67

$9.11 ฿304

70.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.86 £2.15

$2.39 ฿80.0

19.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.03 ฿34.26

26.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.06 £1.54

$1.63 ฿54.4

26.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.80 £2.85

$1.50 ฿50.0

153.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.16 £0.87

$1.29 ฿43.13

-10.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.35 £1.01

$1.11 ฿37.03

21.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$0.72 ฿24.08

66.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 £1.20

$0.53 ฿17.59

201.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.80 £16.36

$4.31 ฿144

405.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.96 £8.23

$17.95 ฿600

-38.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.71 £2.03

$1.58 ฿52.9

71.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 £2.32

$2.84 ฿95.0

9.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.66 £2.75

$0.86 ฿28.86

325.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$108 £80.9

$53.3 ฿1,780

102.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.04 £3.03

$1.21 ฿40.29

233.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.44 £1.83

$0.57 ฿18.99

328.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.80 £17.86

$2.35 ฿78.6

912.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 £1.62

$1.44 ฿47.96

49.31%

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

$38.6K £28.9K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

86.09%

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

$39.8K £29.9K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

48.56%

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

$378 £284

$62.3 ฿2,083

507.14%

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

$27.94 £20.96

$12.11 ฿405

130.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.04 £32.29

$19.94 ฿666

115.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.86 £35.16

$37.07 ฿1,239

26.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.75 £5.06

$3.78 ฿126

78.57%

Cinema Ticket

$11.56 £8.67

$6.50 ฿217

77.85%

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

$1,792 £1,345

$793 ฿26.5K

126.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.5K £17.6K

$14.8K ฿494.9K

58.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.2 £72.2

$53.7 ฿1,796

78.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.12 £36.10

$24.62 ฿823

95.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 £77.8

$90.9 ฿3,036

14.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 £86.4

$71.1 ฿2,378

61.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,213 £910

$455 ฿15.2K

166.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 £759

$298 ฿9,954

239.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,161 £1,621

$908 ฿30.4K

137.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,628 £1,221

$554 ฿18.5K

193.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,096 £3,823

$1,931 ฿64.5K

163.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,553 £2,666

$1,445 ฿48.3K

146.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,973 £1,480

$591 ฿19.7K

233.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

5.57

-8.26%

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

Last update for Fort William: 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

Fort William

$1K 41.2%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 70.6% $714

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fort William

$449 18.3%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 79% $355

Eating Out

Fort William

$319 13%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 75.4% $240

Groceries & Markets

Fort William

$303 12.3%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 22.2% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Fort William

$163 6.7%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 33.8% $55

Getting Around

Fort William

$139 5.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 56.2% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Fort William

$70 2.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 28.5% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,213 in Fort William 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 234% higher in Fort William, 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 $98.0 in Fort William versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $303 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Fort William

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

18:14 6:14 PM

00:14 12:14 AM

6 h ahead of Fort William

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

10,000

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Fort William Chiang Mai 9,090 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Fort William
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

Fort William vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Fort William costs about 165% 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 $3,682 per month in Fort William and $1,388 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $1,792 per month in Fort William and $793 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 29% more in Fort William, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $925, than in Fort William at $2,455. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Fort William it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $2,455 in Fort William. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Fort William makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.