Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Naivasha and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Naivasha: $546 a month against $935 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

26

Cost of Living Index in Naivasha
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Naivasha Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Naivasha

🇰🇪 Kenya

$546

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $546 per month in Naivasha vs $935 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Naivasha $546
Chiang Mai $935

A couple spends around $893 per month in Naivasha vs $1,467 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Naivasha $893
Chiang Mai $1,467

A family of three spends $1,240 per month in Naivasha vs $1,999 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Naivasha $1,240
Chiang Mai $1,999

Naivasha is about 42% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Naivasha and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Naivasha 60% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.39 KES 830

$2.13 ฿72.0

200.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.37 KES 4,463

$18.62 ฿628

84.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.19 KES 804

$5.60 ฿189

10.54%

Cappuccino

$2.65 KES 344

$1.66 ฿56.1

59.64%

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

$0.66 KES 85.3

$0.65 ฿21.82

1.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 KES 80.8

$0.30 ฿10.29

106.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 KES 294

$2.32 ฿78.3

-2.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 KES 358

$3.67 ฿124

-24.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.87 KES 113

$2.02 ฿68.0

-56.93%

White Bread (500g)

$0.58 KES 74.8

$1.41 ฿47.49

-58.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 KES 254

$1.39 ฿46.94

41.01%

Eggs

$1.70 KES 220

$2.37 ฿79.9

-28.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.94 KES 1,420

$16.52 ฿557

-33.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.41 KES 833

$2.67 ฿90.1

140.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.26 KES 813

$9.02 ฿304

-30.60%

Apples (1kg)

$3.38 KES 438

$2.40 ฿80.9

40.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 KES 138

$1.04 ฿35.12

1.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 KES 273

$1.66 ฿56.0

26.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 KES 148

$1.56 ฿52.6

-26.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 KES 145

$1.24 ฿41.75

-9.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 KES 139

$1.09 ฿36.65

-1.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 KES 95.4

$0.76 ฿25.70

-2.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.80 KES 104

$0.51 ฿17.34

56.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.50 KES 454

$4.12 ฿139

-15.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.68 KES 1,517

$17.93 ฿605

-34.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.19 KES 285

$1.62 ฿54.8

35.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 KES 362

$2.82 ฿95.2

-1.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ฿31.52

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,784

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.58 KES 205

$1.18 ฿39.69

33.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 KES 203

$0.17 ฿5.78

817.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.87 KES 372

$1.81 ฿61.1

58.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 KES 201

$1.47 ฿49.67

5.44%

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

$19.6K KES 2.5M

$21.0K ฿708.7K

-6.61%

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

$22.1K KES 2.9M

$26.5K ฿894.4K

-16.73%

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

$55.4 KES 7,189

$62.6 ฿2,110

-11.51%

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

$15.36 KES 1,994

$11.60 ฿391

32.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.83 KES 4,523

$20.30 ฿685

71.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.88 ฿1,278

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿125

Cinema Ticket

$7.74 KES 1,005

$6.51 ฿220

18.89%

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

$276 KES 35.8K

$727 ฿24.5K

-62.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K KES 1.6M

$16.6K ฿559.0K

-25.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.73 KES 3,601

$53.5 ฿1,806

-48.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.30 KES 3,805

$24.80 ฿836

18.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.1 KES 9,096

$90.4 ฿3,049

-22.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.2 KES 7,690

$72.0 ฿2,428

-17.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$481 ฿16.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 ฿10.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 ฿35.7K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$659 ฿22.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$780 KES 101.2K

$2,418 ฿81.5K

-67.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿54.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.1K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

14.71

5.57

164.09%

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

Last update for Naivasha: November 2, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Naivasha

$208 38.1%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 13.7% $29

Eating Out

Naivasha

$123 22.6%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 38% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Naivasha

$106 19.3%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 10.5% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Naivasha

$84 15.4%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 29.2% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Naivasha

$15 * 2.8%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 229% $35

Getting Around

Naivasha

$9.4 * 1.7%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 525% $49

Accommodation & Living

Naivasha

- * 0%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1%

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 $34 in Naivasha versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $208 in Naivasha vs $237 in Chiang Mai – so Naivasha wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇰🇪 Naivasha

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

11:34 11:34 AM

15:34 3:34 PM

4 h ahead of Naivasha

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,563

127,240

💱 Currency

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KES = 7.7 USD

1,000 KES = 6.87 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to KES – Kenyan Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇪 Kenyan Shilling (Sh)

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.7 USD). 1 EUR = 146 KES (1,000 KES = 6.87 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

USD to KES in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Naivasha Chiang Mai 7,160 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Naivasha
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 71% more than Naivasha, 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 $819 per month in Naivasha 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 $34 in Naivasha 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 14% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $546 in Naivasha to $935 in Chiang Mai. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.