Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Najran and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $1,238 in Najran, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Najran
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Najran Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Najran

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,238

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,238 per month in Najran vs $935 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Najran $1,238
Chiang Mai $935

A couple spends around $1,887 per month in Najran vs $1,467 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Najran $1,887
Chiang Mai $1,467

A family of three spends $2,536 per month in Najran vs $1,999 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Najran $2,536
Chiang Mai $1,999

Najran costs about 32% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Najran and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Najran 8% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.99 SAR 30.00

$2.13 ฿71.7

275.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.76 SAR 138

$18.62 ฿625

97.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.12 SAR 34.24

$5.60 ฿188

62.86%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.68 SAR 6.30

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.37 SAR 5.14

Cappuccino

$4.49 SAR 16.84

$1.66 ฿55.9

170.48%

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

$0.64 SAR 2.41

$0.65 ฿21.73

-1.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 SAR 1.11

$0.30 ฿10.24

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.32 ฿78.0

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 ฿123

Milk (1 liter)

$2.71 SAR 10.17

$2.02 ฿67.7

34.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 SAR 4.69

$1.41 ฿47.29

-11.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.28 SAR 8.55

$1.39 ฿46.75

64.03%

Eggs

$2.41 SAR 9.06

$2.37 ฿79.5

1.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.51 SAR 28.21

$16.52 ฿555

-54.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.91 SAR 29.70

$2.67 ฿89.7

196.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.77 SAR 47.91

$9.02 ฿303

41.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 SAR 7.95

$2.40 ฿80.6

-11.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 SAR 6.26

$1.04 ฿34.98

60.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 SAR 6.09

$1.66 ฿55.7

-2.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 SAR 6.03

$1.56 ฿52.4

3.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 SAR 4.64

$1.24 ฿41.57

Onion (1kg)

$1.31 SAR 4.93

$1.09 ฿36.50

20.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 SAR 4.48

$0.76 ฿25.59

56.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 SAR 2.01

$0.51 ฿17.27

5.88%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.00 SAR 11.25

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 SAR 6.83

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 SAR 7.59

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 SAR 24.19

$4.12 ฿138

56.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.93 ฿602

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ฿54.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 ฿94.8

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 SAR 4.05

$0.93 ฿31.39

16.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.45 SAR 144

$52.9 ฿1,777

-27.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.63 SAR 9.86

$1.18 ฿39.52

122.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.94 SAR 7.27

$0.17 ฿5.76

1041.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.12 SAR 53.0

$1.81 ฿60.9

680.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.54 SAR 2.04

$1.47 ฿49.47

-63.27%

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

$30.9K SAR 115.9K

$21.0K ฿705.8K

46.93%

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

$23.0K SAR 86.2K

$26.5K ฿890.7K

-13.37%

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

$103 SAR 388

$62.6 ฿2,101

65.36%

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

$33.14 SAR 124

$11.60 ฿390

185.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.1 SAR 248

$20.30 ฿682

225.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.9 SAR 292

$37.88 ฿1,272

105.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$81.0 SAR 304

$3.70 ฿124

2089.46%

Cinema Ticket

$13.22 SAR 49.63

$6.51 ฿219

103.07%

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

$454 SAR 1,703

$727 ฿24.4K

-37.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K SAR 39.6K

$16.6K ฿556.7K

-36.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.90 SAR 161

$53.5 ฿1,798

-19.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.5 SAR 205

$24.80 ฿833

119.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.7 SAR 363

$90.4 ฿3,036

6.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.6 SAR 321

$72.0 ฿2,418

18.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$544 SAR 2,040

$481 ฿16.2K

12.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$390 SAR 1,463

$310 ฿10.4K

25.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$937 SAR 3,518

$1,058 ฿35.5K

-11.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$614 SAR 2,306

$659 ฿22.1K

-6.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,949 SAR 7,314

$2,418 ฿81.2K

-19.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,268 SAR 4,760

$1,609 ฿54.0K

-21.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,737 SAR 6,519

$595 ฿20.0K

192.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

5.57

-0.54%

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

Last update for Najran: October 31, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Najran

$390 31.5%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1% 20.5% $80

Groceries & Markets

Najran

$211 17.1%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 11.9% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Najran

$203 16.4%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 53.4% $108

Eating Out

Najran

$149 12%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 48.6% $72

Clothing & Footwear

Najran

$126 10.2%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 13.9% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Najran

$104 8.4%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 51.2% $53

Getting Around

Najran

$55 4.5%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 6.5% $3.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $544 in Najran versus $481 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 Najran are about 2.9 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $37 in Najran versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $211 in Najran vs $237 in Chiang Mai – so Najran wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Najran

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

04:03 4:03 AM

08:03 8:03 AM

4 h ahead of Najran

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

298,288

127,240

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.23 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.59 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Najran Chiang Mai 5,760 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Najran
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

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

Najran costs about 32% 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.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,857 per month in Najran 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 Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $481 there versus $544 in Najran.

Kindergarten costs $454 per month in Najran and $727 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 11% cheaper in Najran – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,238 in Najran and $935 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 $935 in Chiang Mai to $1,238 in Najran. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Najran makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.