Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kirkwall and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $2,121 in Kirkwall, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

103

Cost of Living Index in Kirkwall
Learn more

Kirkwall Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

Kirkwall

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,121

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,121 per month in Kirkwall vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Kirkwall $2,121
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $3,026 per month in Kirkwall vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Kirkwall $3,026
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $3,931 per month in Kirkwall vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Kirkwall $3,931
Chiang Mai $1,903

Kirkwall costs about 129% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Kirkwall sits 57% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.63 £17.73

$2.29 ฿76.5

931.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$94.8 £71.1

$19.64 ฿656

382.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.57 £7.93

$5.61 ฿188

88.41%

Cappuccino

$3.92 £2.94

$1.66 ฿55.6

136.14%

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

$3.26 £2.44

$0.70 ฿23.40

365.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 £0.98

$0.31 ฿10.24

322.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.20 £4.65

$2.41 ฿80.4

157.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.47 £6.36

$3.71 ฿124

128.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.79 £0.59

$1.95 ฿65.3

-59.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 £1.19

$1.41 ฿47.03

12.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 £1.54

$1.31 ฿43.62

56.49%

Eggs

$3.22 £2.42

$2.18 ฿72.9

47.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.59 £4.95

$16.65 ฿556

-60.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.97 £6.73

$2.76 ฿92.2

225.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.90 £11.92

$9.11 ฿304

74.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 £1.65

$2.39 ฿80.0

-7.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 £1.48

$1.03 ฿34.26

91.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 £1.18

$1.63 ฿54.4

-3.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.32 £0.99

$1.50 ฿50.0

-12.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.11 £0.83

$1.29 ฿43.13

-13.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 £0.82

$1.11 ฿37.03

-1.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 £0.58

$0.72 ฿24.08

6.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 £0.81

$0.53 ฿17.59

103.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.10 £15.08

$4.31 ฿144

366.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.18 £6.89

$17.95 ฿600

-48.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.71 £2.03

$1.58 ฿52.9

71.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 £2.16

$2.84 ฿95.0

1.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$10.51 £7.89

$0.86 ฿28.86

1122.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 £80.4

$53.3 ฿1,780

101.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.19 £3.90

$1.21 ฿40.29

328.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.58 £1.93

$0.57 ฿18.99

352.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.06 £20.30

$2.35 ฿78.6

1051.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.05 £1.54

$1.44 ฿47.96

42.36%

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

$37.8K £28.4K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

82.57%

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

$41.2K £30.9K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

53.56%

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

$282 £212

$62.3 ฿2,083

353.17%

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

$30.12 £22.60

$12.11 ฿405

148.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.04 £24.79

$19.94 ฿666

65.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.73 £31.31

$37.07 ฿1,239

12.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$11.46 £8.60

$6.50 ฿217

76.31%

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

$1,237 £928

$793 ฿26.5K

56.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿494.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.5 £68.7

$53.7 ฿1,796

70.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.72 £32.80

$24.62 ฿823

77.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.0 £71.3

$90.9 ฿3,036

4.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$138 £103

$71.1 ฿2,378

93.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$935 £701

$455 ฿15.2K

105.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$792 £594

$298 ฿9,954

165.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,182 £887

$908 ฿30.4K

30.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$966 £725

$554 ฿18.5K

74.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,931 ฿64.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,914 £1,436

$591 ฿19.7K

223.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.07

5.57

-8.98%

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

Last update for Kirkwall: October 19, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kirkwall

$792 37.3%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 62.4% $494

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kirkwall

$346 16.3%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 72.7% $251

Eating Out

Kirkwall

$334 15.8%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 76.5% $255

Groceries & Markets

Kirkwall

$252 11.9%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 6.6% $17

Getting Around

Kirkwall

$167 7.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 63.7% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Kirkwall

$165 7.8%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 34.6% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Kirkwall

$65 3.1%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 22.6% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $935 in Kirkwall versus $455 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 224% higher in Kirkwall, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $95.0 in Kirkwall versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $252 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Kirkwall

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

18:49 6:49 PM

00:49 12:49 AM

6 h ahead of Kirkwall

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,500

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kirkwall Chiang Mai 8,890 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Kirkwall
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

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

Kirkwall costs about 129% 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 $3,182 per month in Kirkwall and $1,388 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.

Kindergarten costs $1,237 per month in Kirkwall and $793 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 7% more in Kirkwall, 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 $925, than in Kirkwall at $2,121. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Kirkwall it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $2,121 in Kirkwall. 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, Kirkwall makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.