Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lazaro Cardenas and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,141 in Lazaro Cardenas, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Lazaro Cardenas
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Lazaro Cardenas Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Lazaro Cardenas

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,141

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,141 per month in Lazaro Cardenas vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lazaro Cardenas $1,141
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $1,839 per month in Lazaro Cardenas vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lazaro Cardenas $1,839
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $2,537 per month in Lazaro Cardenas vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lazaro Cardenas $2,537
Chiang Mai $1,903

Lazaro Cardenas costs about 23% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Lazaro Cardenas and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Lazaro Cardenas 16% lower, Chiang Mai 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.83 MX$203

$2.29 ฿77.2

372.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.66 MX$817

$19.64 ฿663

122.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 MX$163

$5.61 ฿189

55.08%

Cappuccino

$3.61 MX$67.6

$1.66 ฿56.1

117.47%

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

$1.42 MX$26.59

$0.70 ฿23.61

102.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$19.24

$0.31 ฿10.33

232.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.51 MX$46.92

$2.41 ฿81.1

4.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.99 MX$74.7

$3.71 ฿125

7.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 MX$31.06

$1.95 ฿65.9

-14.87%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 MX$47.41

$1.41 ฿47.47

79.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.67 MX$31.19

$1.31 ฿44.03

27.48%

Eggs

$2.43 MX$45.51

$2.18 ฿73.6

11.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.19 MX$153

$16.65 ฿562

-50.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.49 MX$159

$2.76 ฿93.0

207.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.33 MX$212

$9.11 ฿307

24.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.67 MX$49.98

$2.39 ฿80.7

11.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 MX$29.74

$1.03 ฿34.58

54.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 MX$35.65

$1.63 ฿54.9

16.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 MX$34.27

$1.50 ฿50.5

22.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 MX$36.05

$1.29 ฿43.53

49.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.61

$1.11 ฿37.37

62.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.75

$0.72 ฿24.30

105.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$20.23

$0.53 ฿17.76

103.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.32 MX$80.8

$4.31 ฿145

0.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.32 MX$193

$17.95 ฿605

-42.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 MX$32.88

$1.58 ฿53.4

11.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 MX$59.8

$2.84 ฿95.9

12.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 MX$12.92

$0.86 ฿29.13

-19.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,797

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.53 MX$47.26

$1.21 ฿40.66

109.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.92 MX$35.92

$0.57 ฿19.16

236.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.01 MX$206

$2.35 ฿79.4

368.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.62

$1.44 ฿48.40

2.78%

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

$21.1K MX$395.7K

$20.7K ฿699.2K

1.98%

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

$23.8K MX$445.7K

$26.8K ฿904.0K

-11.15%

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

$58.7 MX$1,099

$62.3 ฿2,102

-5.79%

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

$22.31 MX$417

$12.11 ฿408

84.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.94 MX$560

$19.94 ฿673

50.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.30 MX$642

$37.07 ฿1,250

-7.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.49 MX$384

$3.78 ฿127

442.06%

Cinema Ticket

$5.11 MX$95.7

$6.50 ฿219

-21.38%

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

$221 MX$4,141

$793 ฿26.7K

-72.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,553 MX$85.2K

$14.8K ฿499.5K

-69.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.3 MX$1,035

$53.7 ฿1,813

2.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.96 MX$748

$24.62 ฿831

62.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 MX$1,867

$90.9 ฿3,064

9.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.1 MX$1,687

$71.1 ฿2,400

26.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$602 MX$11.3K

$455 ฿15.4K

32.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$393 MX$7,352

$298 ฿10.0K

31.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 MX$19.8K

$908 ฿30.6K

16.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 MX$14.6K

$554 ฿18.7K

40.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,921 MX$36.0K

$1,931 ฿65.1K

-0.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,169 MX$21.9K

$1,445 ฿48.7K

-19.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$552 MX$10.3K

$591 ฿19.9K

-6.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

5.57

102.87%

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

Last update for Lazaro Cardenas: 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

Lazaro Cardenas

$393 34.4%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 24.2% $95

Groceries & Markets

Lazaro Cardenas

$263 23.1%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 10.5% $28

Eating Out

Lazaro Cardenas

$186 16.3%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 57.8% $108

Clothing & Footwear

Lazaro Cardenas

$128 11.3%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 15.7% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lazaro Cardenas

$111 9.7%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 14.9% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Lazaro Cardenas

$45 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 12.4% $5.5

Getting Around

Lazaro Cardenas

$15 * 1.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 309% $46

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $602 in Lazaro Cardenas 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 7% higher in Chiang Mai, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Lazaro Cardenas versus $20 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $263 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Lazaro Cardenas

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

22:45 10:45 PM

11:45 11:45 AM

13 h ahead of Lazaro Cardenas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

83,637

127,240

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 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 26, 2026: 1 USD = 18.72 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 21 MXN (100 MXN = 4.76 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.84 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lazaro Cardenas Chiang Mai 15,320 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Lazaro Cardenas
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

Lazaro Cardenas vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lazaro Cardenas costs about 23% 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 $1,711 per month in Lazaro Cardenas 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $455 there versus $602 in Lazaro Cardenas.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Lazaro Cardenas and $20 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 12% more in Lazaro Cardenas, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,141 in Lazaro Cardenas and $925 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 $925 in Chiang Mai to $1,141 in Lazaro Cardenas. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.