Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Marabella and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Marabella: $770 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Chiang Mai outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

37

Cost of Living Index in Marabella
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Marabella Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Marabella

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$770

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $770 per month in Marabella vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Marabella $770
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,322 per month in Marabella vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Marabella $1,322
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,873 per month in Marabella vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Marabella $1,873
Chiang Mai $1,979

Marabella is about 18% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Marabella and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Marabella 43% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.47 TTD 70.3

$2.24 ฿75.6

367.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.8 TTD 401

$19.00 ฿641

214.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.98 TTD 53.6

$5.55 ฿187

43.78%

Cappuccino

$3.82 TTD 25.64

$1.67 ฿56.5

128.74%

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

$1.00 TTD 6.68

$0.64 ฿21.54

56.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 TTD 5.18

$0.31 ฿10.31

148.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 TTD 11.99

$2.36 ฿79.5

-24.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 TTD 17.24

$3.66 ฿124

-29.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.00 TTD 13.43

$1.95 ฿65.7

2.56%

White Bread (500g)

$2.24 TTD 15.06

$1.44 ฿48.46

55.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.87 TTD 19.26

$1.33 ฿45.03

115.79%

Eggs

$3.94 TTD 26.46

$2.28 ฿77.1

72.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.70 TTD 44.97

$16.45 ฿555

-59.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.27 TTD 68.9

$2.78 ฿93.9

269.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.18 TTD 61.6

$9.31 ฿314

-1.40%

Apples (1kg)

$5.45 TTD 36.57

$2.35 ฿79.4

131.91%

Banana (1kg)

$2.53 TTD 17.01

$0.97 ฿32.79

160.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.67 TTD 24.64

$1.60 ฿53.9

129.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.26 TTD 28.56

$1.50 ฿50.6

184.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 TTD 4.81

$1.28 ฿43.11

-43.75%

Onion (1kg)

$0.71 TTD 4.76

$1.10 ฿37.18

-35.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 TTD 10.13

$0.71 ฿23.82

112.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 TTD 7.83

$0.49 ฿16.36

138.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.57 TTD 37.40

$4.14 ฿140

34.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.94 TTD 120

$17.52 ฿591

2.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 TTD 10.11

$1.61 ฿54.5

-6.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 TTD 20.65

$2.78 ฿93.9

10.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.30

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.87 TTD 5.85

$1.16 ฿39.04

-25.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.93 TTD 6.22

$0.53 ฿17.80

75.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.04 TTD 101

$2.42 ฿81.7

521.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 TTD 7.83

$1.45 ฿48.88

-19.31%

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

$36.2K TTD 243.2K

$21.1K ฿710.5K

72.08%

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

$41.0K TTD 274.9K

$26.9K ฿909.0K

52.07%

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

$44.53 TTD 299

$62.2 ฿2,098

-28.37%

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

$41.74 TTD 280

$12.17 ฿411

242.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.96 TTD 302

$20.12 ฿679

123.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$8.75 TTD 58.7

$6.49 ฿219

34.82%

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

$404 TTD 2,710

$736 ฿24.8K

-45.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K TTD 73.3K

$14.8K ฿498.2K

-26.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 TTD 371

$53.4 ฿1,801

3.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.52 TTD 245

$24.64 ฿831

48.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.7 TTD 602

$91.5 ฿3,087

-1.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.4 TTD 587

$71.9 ฿2,427

21.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

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)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.75

5.57

3.23%

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

Last update for Marabella: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Marabella

$320 41.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 26.8% $86

Eating Out

Marabella

$175 22.7%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 55.6% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Marabella

$131 17%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 28% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Marabella

$121 15.7%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 10.2% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Marabella

$17 * 2.3%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 188% $33

Getting Around

Marabella

$5.5 * 0.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 1014% $56

Accommodation & Living

Marabella

- * 0%

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60 in Marabella versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $320 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇹 Marabella

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

19:55 7:55 PM

06:55 6:55 AM

11 h ahead of Marabella

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

26,700

127,240

💱 Currency

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar TTD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 TTD = 0.149 USD

1 TTD = 0.133 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to TTD – Trinidad and Tobago Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago Dollar ($)

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 6.71 TTD (1 TTD = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 TTD (1 TTD = 0.133 EUR).

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

USD to TTD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Marabella Chiang Mai 16,130 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Marabella
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 21% more than Marabella, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,155 per month in Marabella and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60 in Marabella and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 27% cheaper in Chiang Mai – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $770 in Marabella and $936 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $770 in Marabella to $936 in Chiang Mai. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.