Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hawassa and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Hawassa: $837 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Chiang Mai outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

40

Cost of Living Index in Hawassa
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Hawassa Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Hawassa

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$837

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $837 per month in Hawassa vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Hawassa $837
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,203 per month in Hawassa vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Hawassa $1,203
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,569 per month in Hawassa vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Hawassa $1,569
Chiang Mai $1,979

Hawassa is about 11% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Hawassa and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Hawassa 38% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.97 ETB 639

$2.24 ฿75.5

77.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.89 ETB 6,906

$19.00 ฿640

125.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.65 ETB 1,070

$5.55 ฿187

19.82%

Cappuccino

$0.88 ETB 142

$1.67 ฿56.4

-47.31%

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

$0.58 ETB 94.2

$0.64 ฿21.51

-9.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 ETB 104

$0.31 ฿10.29

109.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.82 ETB 133

$2.36 ฿79.5

-65.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 ETB 367

$3.66 ฿123

-37.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 ETB 171

$1.95 ฿65.7

-45.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 ETB 196

$1.44 ฿48.41

-15.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 ETB 157

$1.33 ฿44.97

-26.32%

Eggs

$1.53 ETB 246

$2.28 ฿77.0

-32.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.34 ETB 1,182

$16.45 ฿554

-55.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.99 ETB 1,608

$2.78 ฿93.8

259.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.38 ETB 1,510

$9.31 ฿314

0.75%

Apples (1kg)

$5.27 ETB 849

$2.35 ฿79.3

124.26%

Banana (1kg)

$0.65 ETB 105

$0.97 ฿32.75

-32.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.16 ETB 347

$1.60 ฿53.8

35.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.66 ETB 107

$1.50 ฿50.6

-56.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.50 ETB 79.7

$1.28 ฿43.06

-60.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ETB 176

$1.10 ฿37.14

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 ETB 105

$0.71 ฿23.79

-8.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 ETB 99.2

$0.49 ฿16.34

26.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.89 ETB 1,270

$4.14 ฿140

90.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.48 ETB 882

$17.52 ฿590

-68.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 ETB 115

$1.61 ฿54.4

-55.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.26 ETB 204

$2.78 ฿93.8

-54.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.27

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.30 ETB 209

$1.16 ฿39.00

12.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 ETB 46.86

$0.53 ฿17.78

-45.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.97 ETB 317

$2.42 ฿81.6

-18.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.97 ETB 156

$1.45 ฿48.82

-33.10%

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

$55.2K ETB 8.9M

$21.1K ฿709.7K

161.91%

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

$56.1K ETB 9.0M

$26.9K ฿907.9K

108.12%

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

$207 ETB 33.3K

$62.2 ฿2,095

232.86%

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

$7.40 ETB 1,191

$12.17 ฿410

-39.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$213 ETB 34.3K

$20.12 ฿678

959.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,257

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$3.65 ETB 587

$6.49 ฿219

-43.76%

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

$628 ETB 101.1K

$736 ฿24.8K

-14.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.4K ETB 4.9M

$14.8K ฿497.6K

105.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$32.89 ETB 5,295

$53.4 ฿1,799

-38.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.7 ETB 11.4K

$24.64 ฿830

186.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.1 ETB 12.4K

$91.5 ฿3,083

-15.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.3 ETB 13.1K

$71.9 ฿2,424

12.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.3K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$502 ETB 80.8K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-68.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

18.5

5.57

232.14%

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

Last update for Hawassa: October 27, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hawassa

$428 51.1%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 77.9% $333

Groceries & Markets

Hawassa

$206 24.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 13.8% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Hawassa

$118 14.1%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 7.8% $9.2

Eating Out

Hawassa

$76 9.1%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 2.3% $1.7

Sport & Entertainment

Hawassa

$7.3 * 0.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 589% $43

Getting Around

Hawassa

$2.8 * 0.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 2131% $59

Accommodation & Living

Hawassa

- * 0%

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Hawassa versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $206 in Hawassa vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Hawassa wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇪🇹 Hawassa

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

07:27 7:27 AM

11:27 11:27 AM

4 h ahead of Hawassa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

160,000

127,240

💱 Currency

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 ETB = 6.21 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.58 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to ETB – Ethiopian Birr Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇹 Ethiopian Birr (Br)

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 161 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.21 USD). 1 EUR = 179 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.58 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

USD to ETB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hawassa Chiang Mai 6,660 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Hawassa
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 12% more than Hawassa, 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 $1,256 per month in Hawassa and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Hawassa 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 14% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $837 in Hawassa and $936 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $837 in Hawassa to $936 in Chiang Mai. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.