Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between General Santos and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in General Santos: $628 a month against $938 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in General Santos
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General Santos Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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General Santos

🇵🇭 Philippines

$628

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $628 per month in General Santos vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

General Santos $628
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $1,009 per month in General Santos vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

General Santos $1,009
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $1,391 per month in General Santos vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

General Santos $1,391
Chiang Mai $1,914

General Santos is about 33% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both General Santos and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – General Santos 53% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.38 ₱213

$2.26 ฿75.4

49.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.40 ₱1,725

$19.18 ฿641

42.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.72 ₱172

$5.59 ฿187

-51.34%

Cappuccino

$2.56 ₱161

$1.72 ฿57.6

48.84%

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

$0.28 ₱17.41

$0.64 ฿21.54

-56.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 ₱15.83

$0.33 ฿11.18

-24.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.58 ₱99.3

$2.36 ฿78.7

-33.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.34 ₱147

$3.90 ฿130

-40.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.00 ₱126

$2.05 ฿68.6

-2.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 ₱68.2

$1.40 ฿46.70

-22.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.87 ₱54.7

$1.28 ฿42.89

-32.03%

Eggs

$1.86 ₱117

$2.25 ฿75.3

-17.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.38 ₱402

$16.94 ฿566

-62.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.77 ₱300

$2.74 ฿91.6

74.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.25 ₱582

$9.36 ฿313

-1.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.74 ₱172

$2.40 ฿80.3

14.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.07 ₱67.2

$1.01 ฿33.92

5.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.45 ₱154

$1.61 ฿53.9

52.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.19 ₱74.6

$1.52 ฿50.7

-21.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.98 ₱125

$1.28 ฿42.90

54.69%

Onion (1kg)

$3.28 ₱207

$1.11 ฿37.22

195.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ₱78.2

$0.72 ฿24.09

72.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 ₱42.60

$0.52 ฿17.54

30.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.46 ₱155

$4.33 ฿145

-43.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.76 ₱488

$17.73 ฿593

-56.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 ₱78.5

$1.63 ฿54.4

-23.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ₱106

$2.85 ฿95.3

-41.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 ₱24.37

$0.85 ฿28.31

-54.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.15 ₱513

$53.9 ฿1,801

-84.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.78 ₱49.25

$1.17 ฿39.18

-33.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.25 ₱15.79

$0.57 ฿19.00

-56.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.82 ₱51.4

$2.37 ฿79.2

-65.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 ₱70.7

$1.45 ฿48.32

-22.76%

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

$20.9K ₱1.3M

$20.5K ฿684.3K

1.93%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$26.5K ฿886.1K

-27.88%

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

$76.6 ₱4,825

$62.3 ฿2,083

22.96%

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

$6.53 ₱411

$12.27 ฿410

-46.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.67 ₱1,994

$19.97 ฿668

58.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.91 ฿1,267

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$4.91 ₱309

$6.71 ฿224

-26.83%

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

$109 ₱6,840

$797 ฿26.6K

-86.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,532 ₱474.2K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-49.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.8 ₱3,767

$53.3 ฿1,780

12.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.67 ₱1,931

$25.05 ฿837

22.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.3 ₱4,428

$91.6 ฿3,062

-23.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.7 ₱3,823

$73.5 ฿2,455

-17.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$174 ₱11.0K

$464 ฿15.5K

-62.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$112 ₱7,068

$305 ฿10.2K

-63.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$359 ₱22.6K

$915 ฿30.6K

-60.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$238 ₱15.0K

$552 ฿18.5K

-56.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,912 ฿63.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,438 ฿48.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

5.57

49.19%

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

Last update for General Santos: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

General Santos

$199 31.7%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 19.6% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

General Santos

$115 18.3%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 17.6% $20

Accommodation & Living

General Santos

$112 17.9%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 171% $192

Clothing & Footwear

General Santos

$100 15.9%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 9.8% $9.8

Eating Out

General Santos

$81 12.8%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 2% $1.6

Getting Around

General Santos

$12 1.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 422% $50

Sport & Entertainment

General Santos

$9.8 * 1.6%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 423% $42

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $174 in General Santos versus $464 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 $27.00 in General Santos versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $199 in General Santos vs $238 in Chiang Mai – so General Santos wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇵🇭 General Santos

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

15:06 3:06 PM

14:06 2:06 PM

1 h behind General Santos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

697,315

127,240

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

General Santos Chiang Mai 3,170 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

General Santos
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

General Santos vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 49% more than General Santos, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $942 per month in General Santos and $1,408 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in General Santos, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $109 per month in General Santos and $797 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 20% more in Chiang Mai, 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 General Santos, where all-in costs run around $628, than in Chiang Mai at $938. In General Santos it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. General Santos costs $628 versus $938 in Chiang Mai. 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 General Santos. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chiang Mai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.