Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nanyuki and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Nanyuki: $614 a month against $935 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Nanyuki
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Nanyuki Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Nanyuki

🇰🇪 Kenya

$614

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $614 per month in Nanyuki vs $935 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Nanyuki $614
Chiang Mai $935

A couple spends around $1,028 per month in Nanyuki vs $1,467 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Nanyuki $1,028
Chiang Mai $1,467

A family of three spends $1,442 per month in Nanyuki vs $1,999 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Nanyuki $1,442
Chiang Mai $1,999

Nanyuki is about 34% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Nanyuki and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Nanyuki 55% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.68 KES 868

$2.13 ฿71.6

213.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.11 KES 4,559

$18.62 ฿624

88.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.49 KES 842

$5.60 ฿188

15.89%

Cappuccino

$2.59 KES 336

$1.66 ฿55.8

56.02%

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

$0.69 KES 89.4

$0.65 ฿21.69

6.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 KES 85.0

$0.30 ฿10.22

116.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.28 KES 296

$2.32 ฿77.9

-1.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 KES 353

$3.67 ฿123

-25.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 KES 121

$2.02 ฿67.6

-53.96%

White Bread (500g)

$0.58 KES 75.3

$1.41 ฿47.21

-58.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.13 KES 147

$1.39 ฿46.67

-18.71%

Eggs

$1.74 KES 225

$2.37 ฿79.4

-26.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.78 KES 1,400

$16.52 ฿554

-34.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 KES 859

$2.67 ฿89.5

147.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.15 KES 799

$9.02 ฿302

-31.82%

Apples (1kg)

$3.42 KES 444

$2.40 ฿80.4

42.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.08 KES 140

$1.04 ฿34.91

3.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.11 KES 274

$1.66 ฿55.6

27.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 KES 149

$1.56 ฿52.3

-26.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.15 KES 149

$1.24 ฿41.50

-7.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 KES 143

$1.09 ฿36.44

0.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 KES 95.2

$0.76 ฿25.54

-3.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 KES 105

$0.51 ฿17.24

58.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.39 KES 441

$4.12 ฿138

-17.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.45 KES 1,487

$17.93 ฿601

-36.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 KES 282

$1.62 ฿54.4

33.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 KES 361

$2.82 ฿94.6

-1.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ฿31.33

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,773

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 KES 204

$1.18 ฿39.45

33.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 KES 203

$0.17 ฿5.75

817.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.96 KES 385

$1.81 ฿60.8

63.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 KES 198

$1.47 ฿49.38

4.08%

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

$19.1K KES 2.5M

$21.0K ฿704.5K

-9.16%

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

$22.0K KES 2.9M

$26.5K ฿889.1K

-16.96%

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

$57.0 KES 7,400

$62.6 ฿2,098

-8.90%

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

$15.03 KES 1,952

$11.60 ฿389

29.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.81 KES 4,519

$20.30 ฿681

71.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.88 ฿1,270

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿124

Cinema Ticket

$7.73 KES 1,003

$6.51 ฿218

18.74%

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

$275 KES 35.8K

$727 ฿24.4K

-62.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K KES 1.6M

$16.6K ฿555.7K

-25.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.91 KES 3,625

$53.5 ฿1,795

-47.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.57 KES 3,839

$24.80 ฿832

19.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.4 KES 9,007

$90.4 ฿3,031

-23.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.4 KES 7,717

$72.0 ฿2,413

-17.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$78.2 KES 10.2K

$481 ฿16.1K

-83.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$66.6 KES 8,645

$310 ฿10.4K

-78.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$229 KES 29.8K

$1,058 ฿35.5K

-78.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$194 KES 25.2K

$659 ฿22.1K

-70.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,418 ฿81.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿53.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$113 KES 14.7K

$595 ฿19.9K

-80.97%

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 Nanyuki: November 1, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Nanyuki

$206 33.5%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 15% $31

Eating Out

Nanyuki

$126 20.6%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 39.3% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nanyuki

$107 17.4%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 11.6% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Nanyuki

$84 13.7%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 29.2% $24

Accommodation & Living

Nanyuki

$67 10.8%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1% 366% $243

Sport & Entertainment

Nanyuki

$15 * 2.5%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 229% $35

Getting Around

Nanyuki

$9.4 * 1.5%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 525% $49

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $78 in Nanyuki 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 Chiang Mai are about 5.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35 in Nanyuki versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $206 in Nanyuki vs $237 in Chiang Mai – so Nanyuki wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇰🇪 Nanyuki

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

17:22 5:22 PM

21:22 9:22 PM

4 h ahead of Nanyuki

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

32,000

127,240

💱 Currency

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KES = 7.7 USD

1,000 KES = 6.86 EUR

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.66 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 6, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.7 USD). 1 EUR = 146 KES (1,000 KES = 6.86 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 33.53 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to KES in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nanyuki Chiang Mai 7,060 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Nanyuki
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 52% more than Nanyuki, 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 $921 per month in Nanyuki 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 Nanyuki, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $78 there versus $481 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35 in Nanyuki 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 15% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Nanyuki, where all-in costs run around $614, than in Chiang Mai at $935. In Nanyuki it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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