Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kemaman and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Kemaman: $897 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $470 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Kemaman
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Kemaman Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Kemaman

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$897

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $897 per month in Kemaman vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Kemaman $897
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,369 per month in Kemaman vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Kemaman $1,369
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,841 per month in Kemaman vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Kemaman $1,841
Chiang Mai $1,979

Kemaman is about 4% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Kemaman and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Kemaman 34% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.62 MYR 10.65

$2.24 ฿75.6

16.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$14.92 MYR 60.7

$19.00 ฿641

-21.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.40 MYR 17.90

$5.55 ฿187

-20.72%

Cappuccino

$3.09 MYR 12.57

$1.67 ฿56.5

85.03%

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

$0.48 MYR 1.93

$0.64 ฿21.53

-25.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 MYR 1.46

$0.31 ฿10.30

16.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 MYR 13.34

$2.36 ฿79.5

38.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.76 MYR 23.45

$3.66 ฿124

57.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 MYR 7.66

$1.95 ฿65.7

-3.59%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 MYR 4.24

$1.44 ฿48.45

-27.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 MYR 4.13

$1.33 ฿45.01

-24.06%

Eggs

$1.15 MYR 4.70

$2.28 ฿77.0

-49.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.61 MYR 39.11

$16.45 ฿555

-41.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.19 MYR 13.00

$2.78 ฿93.8

14.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.30 MYR 37.84

$9.31 ฿314

-0.11%

Apples (1kg)

$3.59 MYR 14.63

$2.35 ฿79.4

52.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 MYR 7.62

$0.97 ฿32.78

92.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.62 MYR 10.66

$1.60 ฿53.9

63.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 MYR 7.40

$1.50 ฿50.6

21.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.17 MYR 8.83

$1.28 ฿43.10

69.53%

Onion (1kg)

$2.04 MYR 8.30

$1.10 ฿37.17

85.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 MYR 5.98

$0.71 ฿23.81

107.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 MYR 2.08

$0.49 ฿16.36

4.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.57 MYR 18.60

$4.14 ฿140

10.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.42 MYR 79.1

$17.52 ฿591

10.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 MYR 11.09

$1.61 ฿54.5

68.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.44 MYR 18.07

$2.78 ฿93.9

59.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.76 MYR 3.11

$0.87 ฿29.29

-12.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.79 MYR 43.94

$54.1 ฿1,825

-80.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 MYR 4.88

$1.16 ฿39.03

3.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.36 MYR 1.46

$0.53 ฿17.79

-32.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.90 MYR 36.24

$2.42 ฿81.7

267.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.48 MYR 1.94

$1.45 ฿48.87

-66.90%

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

$46.4K MYR 188.7K

$21.1K ฿710.3K

120.16%

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

$36.1K MYR 146.8K

$26.9K ฿908.7K

33.90%

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

$49.04 MYR 200

$62.2 ฿2,097

-21.12%

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

$8.25 MYR 33.58

$12.17 ฿410

-32.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.11 MYR 110

$20.12 ฿679

34.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.78 MYR 170

$37.31 ฿1,259

11.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.29 MYR 25.62

$3.77 ฿127

66.84%

Cinema Ticket

$4.79 MYR 19.49

$6.49 ฿219

-26.19%

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

$123 MYR 500

$736 ฿24.8K

-83.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.3K MYR 42.1K

$14.8K ฿498.0K

-30.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.0 MYR 211

$53.4 ฿1,800

-2.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.15 MYR 123

$24.64 ฿831

22.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.6 MYR 320

$91.5 ฿3,086

-14.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.0 MYR 350

$71.9 ฿2,426

19.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$434 MYR 1,767

$482 ฿16.3K

-10.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$288 MYR 1,171

$309 ฿10.4K

-6.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$636 MYR 2,589

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-36.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$546 MYR 2,223

$633 ฿21.4K

-13.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,062 MYR 8,395

$2,363 ฿79.7K

-12.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,069 MYR 4,351

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-32.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.51

5.57

-19.03%

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

Last update for Kemaman: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kemaman

$288 32.1%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 7.4% $21

Groceries & Markets

Kemaman

$243 27.1%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 3.7% $8.9

Clothing & Footwear

Kemaman

$111 12.4%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 2.2% $2.4

Eating Out

Kemaman

$102 11.4%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 24.2% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kemaman

$84 9.4%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 11.9% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Kemaman

$51 5.7%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 2.1% $1.1

Getting Around

Kemaman

$17 1.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 264% $45

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $434 in Kemaman 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 $15 in Kemaman versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $243 in Kemaman vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Chiang Mai wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kemaman

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

01:35 1:35 AM

00:35 12:35 AM

1 h behind Kemaman

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

215,582

127,240

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.07 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.54 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kemaman Chiang Mai 1,690 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Kemaman
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 4% more than Kemaman, 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 $1,346 per month in Kemaman 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 Kemaman, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $434 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $123 per month in Kemaman and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 4% cheaper in Chiang Mai – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

Families tend to lean toward Kemaman – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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