Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Iskenderun and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $965 in Iskenderun, rent and utilities included – about $360 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Iskenderun outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

47

Cost of Living Index in Iskenderun
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Iskenderun Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Iskenderun

🇹🇷 Turkey

$965

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $965 per month in Iskenderun vs $935 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Iskenderun $965
Chiang Mai $935

A couple spends around $1,450 per month in Iskenderun vs $1,467 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Iskenderun $1,450
Chiang Mai $1,467

A family of three spends $1,935 per month in Iskenderun vs $1,999 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Iskenderun $1,935
Chiang Mai $1,999

Iskenderun costs about 3% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Iskenderun and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Iskenderun 29% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.01 ₺301

$2.13 ฿71.7

182.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.58 ₺1,480

$18.62 ฿625

58.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.11 ₺306

$5.60 ฿188

9.11%

Cappuccino

$3.08 ₺154

$1.66 ฿55.9

85.54%

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

$1.11 ₺55.7

$0.65 ฿21.73

70.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ₺13.51

$0.30 ฿10.24

-10.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.39 ₺119

$2.32 ฿78.0

3.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 ₺132

$3.67 ฿123

-28.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.03 ₺51.5

$2.02 ฿67.7

-49.01%

White Bread (500g)

$0.78 ₺39.26

$1.41 ฿47.29

-44.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.67 ₺83.5

$1.39 ฿46.75

20.14%

Eggs

$1.85 ₺92.7

$2.37 ฿79.5

-21.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.36 ₺368

$16.52 ฿555

-55.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.92 ₺196

$2.67 ฿89.7

46.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.71 ₺886

$9.02 ฿303

96.34%

Apples (1kg)

$1.62 ₺80.8

$2.40 ฿80.6

-32.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 ₺92.1

$1.04 ฿34.98

76.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.85 ₺42.55

$1.66 ฿55.7

-48.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.07 ₺53.5

$1.56 ฿52.4

-31.41%

Potato (1kg)

$0.49 ₺24.53

$1.24 ฿41.57

-60.48%

Onion (1kg)

$0.37 ₺18.65

$1.09 ฿36.50

-66.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 ₺42.07

$0.76 ฿25.59

10.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 ₺30.42

$0.51 ฿17.27

19.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.11 ₺106

$4.12 ฿138

-48.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.93 ₺497

$17.93 ฿602

-44.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.32 ₺116

$1.62 ฿54.5

43.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 ₺160

$2.82 ฿94.8

13.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.66 ₺32.77

$0.93 ฿31.39

-29.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,777

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.98 ₺49.27

$1.18 ฿39.52

-16.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺46.09

$0.17 ฿5.76

441.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.06 ₺503

$1.81 ฿60.9

455.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.4

$1.47 ฿49.47

-14.97%

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

$40.5K ₺2.0M

$21.0K ฿705.8K

92.68%

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

$41.4K ₺2.1M

$26.5K ฿890.7K

56.24%

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

$88.3 ₺4,417

$62.6 ฿2,101

41.16%

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

$9.59 ₺480

$11.60 ฿390

-17.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.35 ₺518

$20.30 ฿682

-49.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.34 ₺2,368

$37.88 ฿1,272

24.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿124

Cinema Ticket

$6.10 ₺305

$6.51 ฿219

-6.30%

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

$443 ₺22.2K

$727 ฿24.4K

-39.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,098 ₺355.1K

$16.6K ฿556.7K

-57.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ₺2,672

$53.5 ฿1,798

-0.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.94 ₺1,447

$24.80 ฿833

16.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 ₺5,642

$90.4 ฿3,036

24.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 ₺5,411

$72.0 ฿2,418

50.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$428 ₺21.4K

$481 ฿16.2K

-11.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$321 ₺16.1K

$310 ฿10.4K

3.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$704 ₺35.2K

$1,058 ฿35.5K

-33.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$508 ₺25.4K

$659 ฿22.1K

-22.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,128 ₺56.4K

$2,418 ฿81.2K

-53.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$950 ₺47.5K

$1,609 ฿54.0K

-40.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,122 ₺56.1K

$595 ฿20.0K

88.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

528.37%

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

Last update for Iskenderun: October 31, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Iskenderun

$321 33.3%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1% 3.5% $11

Groceries & Markets

Iskenderun

$206 21.3%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 15.1% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Iskenderun

$136 14.1%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 20.6% $28

Eating Out

Iskenderun

$126 13.1%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 39.3% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Iskenderun

$108 11.2%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 12.7% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Iskenderun

$60 6.2%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 14.5% $8.6

Getting Around

Iskenderun

$8.2 * 0.9%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 615% $50

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $428 in Iskenderun versus $481 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 89% higher in Iskenderun. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30 in Iskenderun versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $206 in Iskenderun vs $237 in Chiang Mai – so Iskenderun wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Iskenderun

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

13:01 1:01 PM

17:01 5:01 PM

4 h ahead of Iskenderun

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

246,639

127,240

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 50.02 TRY (100 TRY = 2 USD). 1 EUR = 56.21 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.59 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.75 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Iskenderun Chiang Mai 6,380 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Iskenderun
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

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

Iskenderun costs about 3% 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 $1,448 per month in Iskenderun 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 Iskenderun, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $428 there versus $481 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30 in Iskenderun and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 13% cheaper in Iskenderun – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $965 in Iskenderun and $935 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $935 in Chiang Mai to $965 in Iskenderun. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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