Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guanacaste and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,534 in Guanacaste, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Guanacaste
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Guanacaste Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Guanacaste

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,534

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,534 per month in Guanacaste vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Guanacaste $1,534
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $2,421 per month in Guanacaste vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Guanacaste $2,421
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $3,307 per month in Guanacaste vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Guanacaste $3,307
Chiang Mai $1,979

Guanacaste costs about 64% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Guanacaste sits 13% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.77 ₡4,862

$2.24 ฿75.6

380.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.69 ₡21.5K

$19.00 ฿641

151.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.68 ₡5,272

$5.55 ฿187

110.45%

Cappuccino

$4.44 ₡2,004

$1.67 ฿56.5

165.87%

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

$2.70 ₡1,221

$0.64 ฿21.54

321.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 ₡871

$0.31 ฿10.31

522.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.10 ₡1,399

$2.36 ฿79.5

31.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,020

$3.66 ฿124

22.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.04 ₡922

$1.95 ฿65.7

4.62%

White Bread (500g)

$3.19 ₡1,440

$1.44 ฿48.46

121.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 ₡1,091

$1.33 ฿45.03

81.95%

Eggs

$3.59 ₡1,619

$2.28 ฿77.1

57.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.63 ₡2,544

$16.45 ฿555

-65.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.30 ₡1,943

$2.78 ฿93.9

54.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.09 ₡5,007

$9.31 ฿314

19.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.68 ₡1,210

$2.35 ฿79.4

14.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 ₡709

$0.97 ฿32.79

61.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.40 ₡1,989

$1.60 ฿53.9

175.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 ₡689

$1.50 ฿50.6

2.00%

Potato (1kg)

$3.86 ₡1,745

$1.28 ฿43.11

201.56%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 ₡1,017

$1.10 ฿37.18

104.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.90 ₡406

$0.71 ฿23.82

26.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.07 ₡1,386

$0.49 ฿16.36

526.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.34 ₡1,959

$4.14 ฿140

4.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.25 ₡9,144

$17.52 ฿591

15.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.80 ₡1,262

$1.61 ฿54.5

73.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,202

$2.78 ฿93.9

-4.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.29 ₡584

$0.87 ฿29.30

48.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.50 ₡1,128

$1.16 ฿39.04

115.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡707

$0.53 ฿17.80

196.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.85 ₡3,997

$2.42 ฿81.7

265.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡709

$1.45 ฿48.88

8.28%

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

$33.7K ₡15.2M

$21.1K ฿710.5K

60.07%

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

$41.3K ₡18.6M

$26.9K ฿909.0K

53.13%

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

$93.5 ₡42.2K

$62.2 ฿2,098

50.43%

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

$36.18 ₡16.3K

$12.17 ฿411

197.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.69 ₡14.8K

$20.12 ฿679

62.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.5 ₡30.0K

$37.31 ฿1,259

78.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$7.85 ₡3,544

$6.49 ฿219

20.96%

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

$968 ₡437.0K

$736 ฿24.8K

31.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.5K ₡7.9M

$14.8K ฿498.2K

18.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.5 ₡30.0K

$53.4 ฿1,801

24.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.53 ₡20.1K

$24.64 ฿831

80.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.6 ₡39.1K

$91.5 ฿3,087

-5.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 ₡35.3K

$71.9 ฿2,427

8.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$795 ₡359.0K

$482 ฿16.3K

64.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 ₡279.8K

$309 ฿10.4K

100.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,899 ₡857.1K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

88.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,279 ₡577.4K

$633 ฿21.4K

101.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

5.57

54.76%

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

Last update for Guanacaste: 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

Guanacaste

$620 40.4%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 50.2% $311

Groceries & Markets

Guanacaste

$312 20.4%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 25% $78

Eating Out

Guanacaste

$217 14.2%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 64.3% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guanacaste

$162 10.6%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 41.8% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Guanacaste

$124 8.1%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 12.5% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Guanacaste

$82 5.4%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 38.8% $32

Getting Around

Guanacaste

$16 * 1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 296% $46

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $795 in Guanacaste 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 $48 in Guanacaste versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $312 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Guanacaste

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

19:59 7:59 PM

08:59 8:59 AM

13 h ahead of Guanacaste

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,823

127,240

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Guanacaste Chiang Mai 16,770 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Guanacaste
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

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

Guanacaste costs about 64% 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 $2,301 per month in Guanacaste 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 $795 in Guanacaste.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $48 in Guanacaste 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 33% more in Guanacaste, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,534 in Guanacaste and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $936 versus $1,534 in Guanacaste. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.