Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Isla Mujeres and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $906 a month against $1,087 in Isla Mujeres, rent and utilities included – about $2,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Isla Mujeres
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Isla Mujeres Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Isla Mujeres

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,087

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$906

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,087 per month in Isla Mujeres vs $906 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Isla Mujeres $1,087
Chiang Mai $906

A couple spends around $1,747 per month in Isla Mujeres vs $1,385 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Isla Mujeres $1,747
Chiang Mai $1,385

A family of three spends $2,407 per month in Isla Mujeres vs $1,864 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Isla Mujeres $2,407
Chiang Mai $1,864

Isla Mujeres costs about 20% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Isla Mujeres and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Isla Mujeres 19% lower, Chiang Mai 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.60 MX$195

$2.13 ฿71.4

397.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.12 MX$721

$19.40 ฿650

101.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.06 MX$148

$5.47 ฿183

47.35%

Cappuccino

$3.38 MX$62.3

$1.68 ฿56.5

101.19%

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

$1.24 MX$22.79

$0.66 ฿22.11

87.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.96 MX$17.77

$0.34 ฿11.52

182.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.24 MX$41.23

$2.42 ฿81.1

-7.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 MX$69.9

$3.73 ฿125

1.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 MX$26.35

$2.06 ฿69.0

-30.58%

White Bread (500g)

$2.64 MX$48.68

$1.46 ฿48.81

80.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 MX$29.00

$1.35 ฿45.11

16.30%

Eggs

$2.38 MX$43.90

$2.27 ฿76.0

4.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.23 MX$152

$16.31 ฿547

-49.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.00 MX$147

$2.70 ฿90.4

196.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.78 MX$199

$9.20 ฿308

17.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 MX$50.0

$2.39 ฿80.2

13.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 MX$25.81

$1.04 ฿34.68

34.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 MX$32.82

$1.60 ฿53.7

11.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.65 MX$30.45

$1.44 ฿48.39

14.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.84 MX$33.96

$1.30 ฿43.62

41.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.53

$1.11 ฿37.32

73.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 MX$23.12

$0.70 ฿23.57

80.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 MX$17.88

$0.51 ฿17.00

90.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$78.7

$4.13 ฿138

3.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.66 MX$196

$17.78 ฿596

-40.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 MX$28.56

$1.63 ฿54.7

-4.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 MX$50.5

$2.87 ฿96.1

-4.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.66 MX$12.09

$0.86 ฿28.77

-23.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.2 ฿1,781

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.65 MX$48.90

$1.22 ฿40.84

117.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 MX$28.06

$0.56 ฿18.82

171.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 MX$154

$2.31 ฿77.5

262.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 MX$24.47

$1.50 ฿50.2

-11.33%

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

$21.2K MX$390.8K

$20.9K ฿698.7K

1.73%

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

$22.8K MX$420.5K

$26.7K ฿895.6K

-14.60%

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

$56.0 MX$1,032

$61.3 ฿2,052

-8.54%

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

$22.35 MX$412

$12.50 ฿419

78.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.89 MX$514

$20.36 ฿682

36.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.84 MX$679

$37.94 ฿1,271

-2.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.02 MX$295

$3.77 ฿126

324.93%

Cinema Ticket

$4.68 MX$86.2

$6.60 ฿221

-29.09%

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

$206 MX$3,791

$774 ฿25.9K

-73.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,587 MX$66.1K

$14.4K ฿483.5K

-75.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 MX$992

$54.8 ฿1,836

-1.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.65 MX$730

$25.26 ฿846

56.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.3 MX$1,644

$90.6 ฿3,034

-1.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.9 MX$1,435

$73.3 ฿2,454

6.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$518 MX$9,550

$459 ฿15.4K

13.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$390 MX$7,186

$294 ฿9,841

32.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$923 MX$17.0K

$919 ฿30.8K

0.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$762 MX$14.0K

$552 ฿18.5K

38.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,785 MX$32.9K

$1,917 ฿64.2K

-6.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,153 MX$21.2K

$1,445 ฿48.4K

-20.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$592 ฿19.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.48

5.57

106.10%

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

Last update for Isla Mujeres: October 6, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Isla Mujeres

$390 35.4%

Chiang Mai

$294 31.8% 24.7% $96

Groceries & Markets

Isla Mujeres

$252 22.8%

Chiang Mai

$236 25.6% 6.2% $16

Eating Out

Isla Mujeres

$177 16.1%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.4% 56.4% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Isla Mujeres

$117 10.7%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.9% 6.5% $7.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Isla Mujeres

$106 9.7%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 11.4% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Isla Mujeres

$46 4.2%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 10.7% $4.9

Getting Around

Isla Mujeres

$13 * 1.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 370% $48

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $518 in Isla Mujeres versus $459 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 $39.00 in Isla Mujeres versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $252 vs $236 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Isla Mujeres

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

00:58 12:58 AM

12:58 12:58 PM

12 h ahead of Isla Mujeres

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,174

127,240

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.43 USD

100 MXN = 4.84 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 12, 2026: 1 USD = 18.42 MXN (100 MXN = 5.43 USD). 1 EUR = 20.64 MXN (100 MXN = 4.84 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 12, 2026: 1 USD = 33.5 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.54 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Isla Mujeres Chiang Mai 15,520 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Isla Mujeres
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

Isla Mujeres vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Isla Mujeres costs about 20% 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 $1,631 per month in Isla Mujeres and $1,359 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $39.00 in Isla Mujeres and $19.00 in Chiang Mai. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 7% more in Isla Mujeres, 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 $906, than in Isla Mujeres at $1,087. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Isla Mujeres it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $906 versus $1,087 in Isla Mujeres. 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, Isla Mujeres makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.