Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Matola and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $999 in Matola, rent and utilities included – about $760 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Matola
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Matola Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Matola

🇲🇿 Mozambique

$999

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $999 per month in Matola vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Matola $999
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,523 per month in Matola vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Matola $1,523
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $2,048 per month in Matola vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Matola $2,048
Chiang Mai $1,979

Matola costs about 7% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Matola and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Matola 27% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.80 MZN 493

$2.24 ฿75.5

248.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.6 MZN 3,960

$19.00 ฿640

229.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.34 MZN 464

$5.55 ฿187

32.25%

Cappuccino

$1.59 MZN 100

$1.67 ฿56.4

-4.79%

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

$0.82 MZN 52.0

$0.64 ฿21.51

28.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 MZN 42.67

$0.31 ฿10.29

116.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.18 MZN 74.8

$2.36 ฿79.5

-50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 MZN 97.5

$3.66 ฿123

-57.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 MZN 101

$1.95 ฿65.7

-18.46%

White Bread (500g)

$0.99 MZN 62.6

$1.44 ฿48.41

-31.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 MZN 101

$1.33 ฿44.97

19.55%

Eggs

$1.93 MZN 122

$2.28 ฿77.0

-15.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.47 MZN 852

$16.45 ฿554

-18.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.82 MZN 368

$2.78 ฿93.8

109.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.76 MZN 301

$9.31 ฿314

-48.87%

Apples (1kg)

$1.97 MZN 125

$2.35 ฿79.3

-16.17%

Banana (1kg)

$0.62 MZN 39.38

$0.97 ฿32.75

-36.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 MZN 103

$1.60 ฿53.8

2.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.03 MZN 65.4

$1.50 ฿50.6

-31.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.00 MZN 63.5

$1.28 ฿43.06

-21.88%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 MZN 47.08

$1.10 ฿37.14

-32.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.95 MZN 60.1

$0.71 ฿23.79

33.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 MZN 33.64

$0.49 ฿16.34

8.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.89 MZN 183

$4.14 ฿140

-30.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.21 MZN 456

$17.52 ฿590

-58.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 MZN 61.3

$1.61 ฿54.4

-39.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MZN 76.8

$2.78 ฿93.8

-56.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.27

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.61 MZN 102

$1.16 ฿39.00

38.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 MZN 76.1

$0.53 ฿17.78

126.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.12 MZN 1,525

$2.42 ฿81.6

896.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 MZN 88.5

$1.45 ฿48.82

-3.45%

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

$31.4K MZN 2.0M

$21.1K ฿709.7K

49.19%

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

$22.5K MZN 1.4M

$26.9K ฿907.9K

-16.36%

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

$39.21 MZN 2,480

$62.2 ฿2,095

-36.93%

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

$7.64 MZN 483

$12.17 ฿410

-37.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$77.9 MZN 4,926

$20.12 ฿678

287.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.09 MZN 2,473

$37.31 ฿1,257

4.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$7.60 MZN 481

$6.49 ฿219

17.10%

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

$173 MZN 10.9K

$736 ฿24.8K

-76.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,041 MZN 318.8K

$14.8K ฿497.6K

-65.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.21 MZN 3,113

$53.4 ฿1,799

-7.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.0 MZN 3,539

$24.64 ฿830

127.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.2 MZN 5,011

$91.5 ฿3,083

-13.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.4 MZN 4,898

$71.9 ฿2,424

7.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$462 MZN 29.2K

$482 ฿16.3K

-4.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$391 MZN 24.7K

$309 ฿10.4K

26.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$696 MZN 44.0K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-30.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 MZN 34.9K

$633 ฿21.3K

-12.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$307 MZN 19.4K

$590 ฿19.9K

-48.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

348.83%

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

Last update for Matola: October 27, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Matola

$391 39.1%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 20.9% $82

Groceries & Markets

Matola

$185 18.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 26.4% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Matola

$125 12.5%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 24.3% $30

Eating Out

Matola

$118 11.9%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 34.5% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Matola

$118 11.8%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 7.8% $9.2

Sport & Entertainment

Matola

$54 5.4%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 7.4% $4

Getting Around

Matola

$7.6 * 0.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 705% $54

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $462 in Matola 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 92% 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 $63 in Matola versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $185 in Matola vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Matola wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇿 Matola

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

02:34 2:34 AM

07:34 7:34 AM

5 h ahead of Matola

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

675,422

127,240

💱 Currency

Mozambican Metical MZN MT

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MZN = 1.58 USD

100 MZN = 1.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MZN – Mozambican Metical Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇿 Mozambican Metical (MT)

Mozambican Metical exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 63.25 MZN (100 MZN = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 70.89 MZN (100 MZN = 1.41 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.77 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to MZN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Matola Chiang Mai 8,740 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Matola
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

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

Matola costs about 7% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from utilities. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,498 per month in Matola and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $462 in Matola and $482 in Chiang Mai. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $63 in Matola 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 21% cheaper in Matola – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $999 in Matola and $936 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 $936 in Chiang Mai to $999 in Matola. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.