Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maidstone and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,646 in Maidstone, rent and utilities included – about $20,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Maidstone
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Maidstone Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Maidstone

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,646

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,646 per month in Maidstone vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Maidstone $2,646
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $4,095 per month in Maidstone vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Maidstone $4,095
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $5,544 per month in Maidstone vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Maidstone $5,544
Chiang Mai $1,979

Maidstone costs about 183% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Maidstone sits 94% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.45 £19.16

$2.24 ฿75.7

1036.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$95.3 £71.7

$19.00 ฿642

401.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.11 £7.61

$5.55 ฿188

82.16%

Cappuccino

$5.04 £3.79

$1.67 ฿56.6

201.80%

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

$2.73 £2.06

$0.64 ฿21.56

326.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 £1.46

$0.31 ฿10.32

525.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.79 £5.11

$2.36 ฿79.6

187.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.03 £4.54

$3.66 ฿124

64.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 £1.46

$1.95 ฿65.8

-0.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.63 £1.23

$1.44 ฿48.51

13.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 £1.63

$1.33 ฿45.07

63.16%

Eggs

$3.99 £3.01

$2.28 ฿77.1

75.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.03 £7.55

$16.45 ฿556

-39.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.31 £7.01

$2.78 ฿94.0

234.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.44 £11.62

$9.31 ฿314

65.84%

Apples (1kg)

$3.04 £2.29

$2.35 ฿79.5

29.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 £1.27

$0.97 ฿32.82

74.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.35 £1.77

$1.60 ฿53.9

46.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.17 £2.38

$1.50 ฿50.7

111.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 £1.38

$1.28 ฿43.15

42.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.35 £1.02

$1.10 ฿37.22

22.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 £0.86

$0.71 ฿23.84

60.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 £1.25

$0.49 ฿16.38

238.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.61 £17.77

$4.14 ฿140

470.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.96 £8.25

$17.52 ฿592

-37.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 £1.86

$1.61 ฿54.5

53.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 £2.46

$2.78 ฿94.0

17.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.25 £3.95

$0.87 ฿29.33

503.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$99.7 £75.1

$54.1 ฿1,827

84.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.14 £3.87

$1.16 ฿39.08

343.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.70 £2.03

$0.53 ฿17.82

409.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 £14.92

$2.42 ฿81.8

719.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.98 £1.49

$1.45 ฿48.93

36.55%

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

$37.2K £28.0K

$21.1K ฿711.2K

76.56%

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

$40.0K £30.1K

$26.9K ฿909.8K

48.41%

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

$285 £215

$62.2 ฿2,100

358.77%

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

$16.72 £12.58

$12.17 ฿411

37.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.31 £34.10

$20.12 ฿680

125.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.2 £52.1

$37.31 ฿1,260

85.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.00 £22.58

$3.77 ฿127

695.76%

Cinema Ticket

$17.27 £13.00

$6.49 ฿219

166.10%

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

$2,069 £1,557

$736 ฿24.9K

181.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.3K £15.3K

$14.8K ฿498.6K

37.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.1 £68.5

$53.4 ฿1,802

70.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.18 £34.76

$24.64 ฿832

87.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.8 £67.6

$91.5 ฿3,089

-1.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.6 £68.2

$71.9 ฿2,429

25.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,786 £1,344

$482 ฿16.3K

270.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,246 £938

$309 ฿10.4K

303.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,694 £2,028

$1,006 ฿34.0K

167.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,415 £1,818

$633 ฿21.4K

281.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,796 £2,857

$2,363 ฿79.8K

60.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,333 £3,261

$1,589 ฿53.7K

172.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,039 £2,287

$590 ฿19.9K

415.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.12

5.57

-8.08%

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

Last update for Maidstone: 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

Maidstone

$1.2K 47.1%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 75.2% $937

Eating Out

Maidstone

$359 13.6%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 78.4% $282

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maidstone

$347 13.1%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 72.8% $253

Groceries & Markets

Maidstone

$308 11.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 23.8% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Maidstone

$143 5.4%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 24% $34

Getting Around

Maidstone

$139 5.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 56% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Maidstone

$104 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 51.5% $53

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,786 in Maidstone 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.

Salaries in Maidstone are about 5.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $95 in Maidstone versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $308 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Maidstone

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

21:22 9:22 PM

04:22 4:22 AM

7 h ahead of Maidstone

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

113,137

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.753 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.838 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Maidstone Chiang Mai 8,960 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Maidstone
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

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

Maidstone costs about 183% 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 $3,968 per month in Maidstone 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 Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $1,786 in Maidstone.

Kindergarten costs $2,069 per month in Maidstone and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 31% more in Maidstone, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,646 in Maidstone and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Maidstone makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.