Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mosta and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,053 in Mosta, rent and utilities included – about $13,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Mosta, Malta
Chiang Mai, Thailand
Mosta
🇲🇹 Malta
$2,053
/mo nomad
Chiang Mai
🇹🇭 Thailand
$936
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,053 per month in Mosta vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Mosta $2,053
  • Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $3,060 per month in Mosta vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Mosta $3,060
  • Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $4,067 per month in Mosta vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

  • Mosta $4,067
  • Chiang Mai $1,979

Mosta costs about 119% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Mosta sits 51% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.64 €14.91
$2.24 ฿75.5
642.86%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$88.8 €79.6
$19.00 ฿640
367.53%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$12.53 €11.23
$5.55 ฿187
125.77%
Cappuccino
$2.45 €2.19
$1.67 ฿56.4
46.71%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.00 €1.79
$0.64 ฿21.51
212.50%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.10 €0.99
$0.31 ฿10.29
254.84%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.86 €2.56
$2.36 ฿79.5
21.19%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.15 €4.62
$3.66 ฿123
40.71%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.36 €1.22
$1.95 ฿65.7
-30.26%
White Bread (500g)
$1.47 €1.32
$1.44 ฿48.41
2.08%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.41 €3.05
$1.33 ฿44.97
156.39%
Eggs
$3.31 €2.97
$2.28 ฿77.0
45.18%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.15 €9.09
$16.45 ฿554
-38.30%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$12.00 €10.76
$2.78 ฿93.8
331.65%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.20 €10.04
$9.31 ฿314
20.30%
Apples (1kg)
$3.75 €3.36
$2.35 ฿79.3
59.57%
Banana (1kg)
$2.68 €2.40
$0.97 ฿32.75
176.29%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.98 €1.77
$1.60 ฿53.8
23.75%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.69 €3.31
$1.50 ฿50.6
146.00%
Potato (1kg)
$1.64 €1.47
$1.28 ฿43.06
28.12%
Onion (1kg)
$2.51 €2.25
$1.10 ฿37.14
128.18%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.28 €2.05
$0.71 ฿23.79
221.13%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.63 €0.56
$0.49 ฿16.34
28.57%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.27 €5.62
$4.14 ฿140
51.45%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.93 €5.31
$17.52 ฿590
-66.15%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.26 €1.13
$1.61 ฿54.4
-21.74%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.27 €2.03
$2.78 ฿93.8
-18.35%
🚌 Getting Around
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.76 €2.48
$0.87 ฿29.27
217.24%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$54.1 ฿1,823
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.79 €3.40
$1.16 ฿39.00
226.72%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.81 €1.62
$0.53 ฿17.78
241.51%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$28.01 €25.10
$2.42 ฿81.6
1057.44%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.48 €1.33
$1.45 ฿48.82
2.07%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.5K €24.6K
$21.1K ฿709.7K
30.54%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$38.2K €34.3K
$26.9K ฿907.9K
41.93%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$117 €105
$62.2 ฿2,095
87.60%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$24.41 €21.88
$12.17 ฿410
100.58%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$29.77 €26.68
$20.12 ฿678
47.96%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$73.7 €66.1
$37.31 ฿1,257
97.59%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$33.60 €30.11
$3.77 ฿127
791.25%
Cinema Ticket
$11.24 €10.07
$6.49 ฿219
73.19%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$272 €243
$736 ฿24.8K
-63.10%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$12.4K €11.1K
$14.8K ฿497.6K
-15.73%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$57.6 €51.6
$53.4 ฿1,799
7.96%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$68.5 €61.4
$24.64 ฿830
178.13%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$114 €102
$91.5 ฿3,083
24.60%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$128 €114
$71.9 ฿2,424
77.51%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,248 €1,118
$482 ฿16.3K
158.78%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,070 €959
$309 ฿10.4K
246.43%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,947 €1,745
$1,006 ฿33.9K
93.60%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,614 €1,446
$633 ฿21.3K
154.77%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$2,363 ฿79.6K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,589 ฿53.6K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mosta
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,784 €1,599
$590 ฿19.9K
202.51%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.05
5.57
-27.29%

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

Last update for Mosta: 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
Mosta
$1.1K
Chiang Mai
$309 71.1% $761
Groceries & Markets
Mosta
$290
Chiang Mai
$234 19.1% $55
Eating Out
Mosta
$237
Chiang Mai
$78 67.3% $160
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mosta
$171
Chiang Mai
$94 44.7% $76
Clothing & Footwear
Mosta
$166
Chiang Mai
$109 34.4% $57
Sport & Entertainment
Mosta
$96
Chiang Mai
$50 47.7% $46
Getting Around
Mosta
$24 *
Chiang Mai
$61 157% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,248 in Mosta 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 Mosta are about 3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $89 in Mosta versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $290 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇹 Mosta
🇹🇭 Chiang Mai
🕒 Local time
02:21 2:21 AM
08:21 8:21 AM
6 h ahead of Mosta
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
20,241
127,240
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mosta Chiang Mai 8,320 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mosta
  • 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
Mosta vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Mosta or Chiang Mai?
Mosta costs about 119% 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.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Mosta and in Chiang Mai?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,080 per month in Mosta and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Mosta or Chiang Mai?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $1,248 in Mosta.
How do dining costs compare in Mosta and in Chiang Mai?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $89 in Mosta and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Are groceries more expensive in Mosta or in Chiang Mai?
Groceries cost about 24% more in Mosta, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Can you live on $800/month in Mosta or in Chiang Mai?
$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,053 in Mosta and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Mosta or Chiang Mai?
It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $2,053 in Mosta. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
How safe is Mosta compared to Chiang Mai?
Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.
Should I move to Mosta or to Chiang Mai?
If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mosta makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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