Cost of Living Comparison Between Machakos and Chiang Mai Cost of Living Comparison Between Machakos and Chiang Mai

🙂 Solo nomad: Machakos is 36.7% cheaper than Chiang Mai without rent, and 48.5% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Machakos is 17.7% cheaper than Chiang Mai without rent, and 41.5% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$2.31 KES 298
$2.02 ฿65.3
14.36%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$39.11 KES 5,054
$18.78 ฿608
108.25%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.63 KES 857
$7.67 ฿248
-13.56%
Cappuccino
$1.87 KES 242
$1.98 ฿64.2
-5.56%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.7 KES 90.7
$0.82 ฿26.64
-14.63%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.51 KES 65.5
$0.33 ฿10.58
54.55%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.9 KES 245
$2.12 ฿68.6
-10.38%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.65 KES 343
$3.73 ฿121
-28.95%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.41 KES 52.8
$1.64 ฿53.2
-75.00%
White Bread (500g)
$0.44 KES 57.2
$1.57 ฿50.9
-71.97%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$0.76 KES 98
$1.19 ฿38.62
-36.13%
Eggs
$1.37 KES 178
$1.98 ฿64.1
-30.81%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.47 KES 1,482
$15.99 ฿517
-28.27%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.9 KES 892
$3.12 ฿101
121.15%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$4.56 KES 589
$11.16 ฿361
-59.14%
Apples (1kg)
$1.58 KES 204
$2.76 ฿89.2
-42.75%
Banana (1kg)
$0.75 KES 97.5
$1.22 ฿39.5
-38.52%
Oranges (1kg)
$0.41 KES 52.6
$1.71 ฿55.4
-76.02%
Tomato (1kg)
$0.4 KES 52.2
$1.55 ฿50.2
-74.19%
Potato (1kg)
$0.8 KES 104
$1.34 ฿43.21
-40.30%
Onion (1kg)
$0.76 KES 97.7
$1.21 ฿39.23
-37.19%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.64 KES 83.2
$0.72 ฿23.2
-11.11%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.38 KES 48.73
$0.53 ฿17.05
-28.30%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.03 KES 392
$4.72 ฿153
-35.81%
Wine (Bottle)
$11.65 KES 1,505
$18.39 ฿595
-36.65%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.94 KES 251
$1.79 ฿57.9
8.38%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.78 KES 360
$3.21 ฿104
-13.40%
🚌 Getting Around
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$0.94 ฿30.44
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$18.9 ฿612
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.75 KES 97.3
$1.42 ฿46.08
-47.18%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.8 KES 103
$1.35 ฿43.53
-40.74%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$2.94 KES 380
$7.85 ฿254
-62.55%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 KES 187
$1.25 ฿40.4
16.00%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$22.1K KES 2.9M
$21.2K ฿684.9K
4.24%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$20K KES 2.6M
$21.8K ฿706.8K
-8.63%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$34.05 KES 4,401
$70.6 ฿2,285
-51.78%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$7.71 KES 997
$13.72 ฿444
-43.80%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$11.83 KES 1,529
$17.56 ฿568
-32.63%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$41.64 ฿1,347
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$6.9 ฿223
-
Cinema Ticket
$6.32 KES 817
$5.8 ฿188
8.97%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$46.98 KES 6,072
$308 ฿9,963
-84.74%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$8,164 KES 1.1M
$14.7K ฿475.8K
-44.47%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$11.76 KES 1,520
$55.4 ฿1,793
-78.77%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$23.69 KES 3,061
$26.4 ฿854
-10.27%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$64.5 KES 8,337
$85.1 ฿2,755
-24.22%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$38.4 KES 4,963
$71.8 ฿2,323
-46.50%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$91.5 KES 11.8K
$434 ฿14K
-78.93%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$70.2 KES 9,076
$235 ฿7,610
-70.14%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$154 KES 19.9K
$821 ฿26.6K
-81.24%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$114 KES 14.7K
$498 ฿16.1K
-77.11%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$2,180 ฿70.6K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,543 ฿49.9K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Machakos
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$383 KES 49.5K
$703 ฿22.8K
-45.60%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
14.84
5
196.80%

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

Last update for Machakos: October 29, 2025

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 29, 2025

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