Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manipal and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Manipal: $362 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

17

Cost of Living Index in Manipal
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Manipal Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Manipal

🇮🇳 India

$362

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $362 per month in Manipal vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Manipal $362
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $551 per month in Manipal vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Manipal $551
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $740 per month in Manipal vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Manipal $740
Chiang Mai $1,979

Manipal is about 61% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Manipal and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Manipal 73% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.61 ₹153

$2.24 ฿75.6

-28.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.76 ₹832

$19.00 ฿641

-53.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.56 ₹243

$5.55 ฿187

-53.87%

Cappuccino

$1.38 ₹131

$1.67 ฿56.5

-17.37%

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

$0.33 ₹31.59

$0.64 ฿21.54

-48.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.13 ₹12.56

$0.31 ฿10.31

-58.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.39 ₹132

$2.36 ฿79.5

-41.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.79 ₹170

$3.66 ฿124

-51.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.46 ₹43.62

$1.95 ฿65.7

-76.41%

White Bread (500g)

$0.45 ₹42.92

$1.44 ฿48.46

-68.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.41 ₹39.38

$1.33 ฿45.03

-69.17%

Eggs

$0.80 ₹75.6

$2.28 ฿77.1

-64.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.12 ₹202

$16.45 ฿555

-87.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.34 ₹222

$2.78 ฿93.9

-15.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

Apples (1kg)

$1.14 ₹108

$2.35 ฿79.4

-51.49%

Banana (1kg)

$0.61 ₹57.8

$0.97 ฿32.79

-37.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.81 ₹76.7

$1.60 ฿53.9

-49.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 ₹47.42

$1.50 ฿50.6

-66.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.37 ₹35.53

$1.28 ฿43.11

-71.09%

Onion (1kg)

$0.39 ₹36.83

$1.10 ฿37.18

-64.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.11 ₹10.62

$0.71 ฿23.82

-84.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.25 ₹23.63

$0.49 ฿16.36

-48.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 ₹408

$4.14 ฿140

3.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.39 ₹512

$17.52 ฿591

-69.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 ₹71.7

$1.61 ฿54.5

-53.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 ₹207

$2.78 ฿93.9

-21.58%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$3.19 ₹303

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ₹20.92

$0.87 ฿29.30

-74.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 ₹76.8

$1.16 ฿39.04

-30.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.12 ₹11.01

$0.53 ฿17.80

-77.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.07 ₹197

$2.42 ฿81.7

-14.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 ₹99.6

$1.45 ฿48.88

-27.59%

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

$10.4K ₹982.8K

$21.1K ฿710.5K

-50.85%

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

$20.0K ₹1.9M

$26.9K ฿909.0K

-25.63%

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

$55.8 ₹5,294

$62.2 ฿2,098

-10.31%

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

$2.97 ₹282

$12.17 ฿411

-75.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$5.94 ₹564

$20.12 ฿679

-70.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.44 ₹1,751

$37.31 ฿1,259

-50.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$1.63 ₹154

$6.49 ฿219

-74.88%

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

$20.91 ₹1,986

$736 ฿24.8K

-97.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$500 ₹47.5K

$14.8K ฿498.2K

-96.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$12.80 ₹1,215

$53.4 ฿1,801

-76.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.08 ₹2,666

$24.64 ฿831

13.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$21.07 ₹2,001

$91.5 ฿3,087

-76.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$26.45 ₹2,511

$71.9 ฿2,427

-63.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$152 ₹14.4K

$482 ฿16.3K

-68.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$112 ₹10.7K

$309 ฿10.4K

-63.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$382 ₹36.3K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-62.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$240 ₹22.8K

$633 ฿21.4K

-62.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$704 ₹66.8K

$590 ฿19.9K

19.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.37

5.57

68.22%

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

Last update for Manipal: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manipal

$112 31.1%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 175% $197

Groceries & Markets

Manipal

$71 19.8%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 228% $163

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manipal

$65 17.9%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 46.1% $30

Eating Out

Manipal

$49 13.7%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 56.9% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Manipal

$40 11%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 173% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Manipal

$22 6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 132% $29

Getting Around

Manipal

$2.3 * 0.6%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 2603% $59

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $152 in Manipal 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 run about 19% higher in Manipal, 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 $9 in Manipal versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $71 vs $234 – making Manipal the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Manipal

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

05:33 5:33 AM

07:03 7:03 AM

1 h 30 min ahead of Manipal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,370

127,240

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 94.95 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Manipal Chiang Mai 2,650 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Manipal
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 159% more than Manipal, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $542 per month in Manipal 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 Manipal, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $152 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $9 in Manipal and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 228% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Manipal costs $362 versus $936 in Chiang Mai. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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