Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mbarara and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Mbarara: $488 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

23

Cost of Living Index in Mbarara
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Mbarara Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Mbarara

🇺🇬 Uganda

$488

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $488 per month in Mbarara vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Mbarara $488
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $776 per month in Mbarara vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Mbarara $776
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,063 per month in Mbarara vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Mbarara $1,063
Chiang Mai $1,979

Mbarara is about 48% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Mbarara and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Mbarara 64% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.35 UGX 10.3K

$2.24 ฿75.5

4.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.42 UGX 107.0K

$19.00 ฿640

28.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.07 UGX 31.0K

$5.55 ฿187

27.39%

Cappuccino

$2.43 UGX 10.6K

$1.67 ฿56.4

45.51%

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

$0.34 UGX 1,502

$0.64 ฿21.51

-46.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 UGX 1,190

$0.31 ฿10.29

-12.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.22 UGX 5,332

$2.36 ฿79.5

-48.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 UGX 8,018

$3.66 ฿123

-50.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.50 UGX 2,177

$1.95 ฿65.7

-74.36%

White Bread (500g)

$0.93 UGX 4,083

$1.44 ฿48.41

-35.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 UGX 5,130

$1.33 ฿44.97

-12.03%

Eggs

$1.53 UGX 6,682

$2.28 ฿77.0

-32.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.23 UGX 18.5K

$16.45 ฿554

-74.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.51 UGX 19.7K

$2.78 ฿93.8

62.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$3.46 UGX 15.1K

$9.31 ฿314

-62.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.00 UGX 8,780

$2.35 ฿79.3

-14.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 UGX 5,434

$0.97 ฿32.75

27.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 UGX 5,706

$1.60 ฿53.8

-18.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.19 UGX 5,199

$1.50 ฿50.6

-20.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 UGX 5,389

$1.28 ฿43.06

-3.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 UGX 5,125

$1.10 ฿37.14

6.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 UGX 3,158

$0.71 ฿23.79

1.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 UGX 2,218

$0.49 ฿16.34

4.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.43 UGX 10.6K

$4.14 ฿140

-41.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.39 UGX 32.4K

$17.52 ฿590

-57.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 UGX 4,730

$1.61 ฿54.4

-32.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.81 UGX 7,949

$2.78 ฿93.8

-34.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 UGX 3,056

$0.87 ฿29.27

-19.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.46 UGX 2,035

$1.16 ฿39.00

-60.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 UGX 1,266

$0.53 ฿17.78

-45.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 UGX 13.3K

$2.42 ฿81.6

25.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 UGX 5,981

$1.45 ฿48.82

-5.52%

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

$7,154 UGX 31.3M

$21.1K ฿709.7K

-66.03%

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

$7,202 UGX 31.5M

$26.9K ฿907.9K

-73.27%

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

$69.2 UGX 302.9K

$62.2 ฿2,095

11.23%

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

$11.20 UGX 49.1K

$12.17 ฿410

-7.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.55 UGX 146.9K

$20.12 ฿678

66.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.82 UGX 78.0K

$37.31 ฿1,257

-52.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$7.15 UGX 31.3K

$6.49 ฿219

10.17%

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

$247 UGX 1.1M

$736 ฿24.8K

-66.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,140 UGX 35.7M

$14.8K ฿497.6K

-44.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.66 UGX 59.8K

$53.4 ฿1,799

-74.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$12.69 UGX 55.6K

$24.64 ฿830

-48.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$31.67 UGX 138.7K

$91.5 ฿3,083

-65.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.04 UGX 184.2K

$71.9 ฿2,424

-41.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$83.7 UGX 366.4K

$482 ฿16.3K

-82.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$73.0 UGX 319.5K

$309 ฿10.4K

-76.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$231 UGX 1.0M

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-77.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$171 UGX 749.8K

$633 ฿21.3K

-72.97%

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)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.75

5.57

272.53%

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

Last update for Mbarara: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Mbarara

$138 28.3%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 69.7% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mbarara

$114 23.3%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 17.1% $19

Eating Out

Mbarara

$81 16.7%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 4.7% $3.8

Accommodation & Living

Mbarara

$73 14.9%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 324% $236

Clothing & Footwear

Mbarara

$45 9.2%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 141% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Mbarara

$32 6.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 56.5% $18

Getting Around

Mbarara

$4.7 * 1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 1206% $57

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $84 in Mbarara 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $24 in Mbarara versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $138 in Mbarara vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Mbarara wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇺🇬 Mbarara

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

06:09 6:09 AM

10:09 10:09 AM

4 h ahead of Mbarara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

195,013

127,240

💱 Currency

Ugandan Shilling UGX Sh

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 UGX = 2.28 USD

10,000 UGX = 2.05 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to UGX – Ugandan Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇬 Ugandan Shilling (Sh)

Ugandan Shilling exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 4,380 UGX (10,000 UGX = 2.28 USD). 1 EUR = 4,876 UGX (10,000 UGX = 2.05 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

USD to UGX in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mbarara Chiang Mai 7,760 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Mbarara
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 92% more than Mbarara, 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 $732 per month in Mbarara 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 Mbarara, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $84 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $24 in Mbarara 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 70% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

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