Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Newtown and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $2,196 in Newtown, rent and utilities included – about $15,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Newtown
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Newtown Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Newtown

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,196

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,196 per month in Newtown vs $935 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Newtown $2,196
Chiang Mai $935

A couple spends around $3,258 per month in Newtown vs $1,467 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Newtown $3,258
Chiang Mai $1,467

A family of three spends $4,320 per month in Newtown vs $1,999 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Newtown $4,320
Chiang Mai $1,999

Newtown costs about 135% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Newtown sits 62% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.72 £14.63

$2.13 ฿71.8

825.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.0 £59.3

$18.62 ฿626

329.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.85 £8.05

$5.60 ฿188

93.75%

Cappuccino

$4.89 £3.63

$1.66 ฿55.9

194.58%

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

$2.60 £1.93

$0.65 ฿21.75

300.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 £1.31

$0.30 ฿10.25

486.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.87 £5.09

$2.32 ฿78.1

196.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.80 £5.04

$3.67 ฿123

85.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 £1.26

$2.02 ฿67.8

-15.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.52 £1.13

$1.41 ฿47.34

7.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.00 £1.48

$1.39 ฿46.79

43.88%

Eggs

$3.72 £2.76

$2.37 ฿79.6

56.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.81 £6.53

$16.52 ฿555

-46.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.22 £6.10

$2.67 ฿89.8

207.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.98 £7.40

$9.02 ฿303

10.64%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 £2.45

$2.40 ฿80.6

37.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 £1.41

$1.04 ฿35.01

82.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.48 £1.84

$1.66 ฿55.8

49.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.60 £3.41

$1.56 ฿52.4

194.87%

Potato (1kg)

$3.02 £2.24

$1.24 ฿41.61

143.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.63 £1.21

$1.09 ฿36.53

49.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 £1.11

$0.76 ฿25.61

96.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 £1.10

$0.51 ฿17.29

190.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.91 £17.73

$4.12 ฿139

480.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.06 £8.95

$17.93 ฿603

-32.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.04 £3.00

$1.62 ฿54.6

149.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.85 £3.59

$2.82 ฿94.9

71.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.00 £2.96

$0.93 ฿31.42

330.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.5 £67.1

$52.9 ฿1,778

71.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.61 £3.42

$1.18 ฿39.56

290.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.32 £1.72

$0.17 ฿5.76

1264.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.98 £18.53

$1.81 ฿60.9

1280.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 £1.49

$1.47 ฿49.51

36.73%

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

$24.1K £17.9K

$21.0K ฿706.4K

14.80%

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

$40.3K £29.9K

$26.5K ฿891.4K

52.13%

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

$202 £150

$62.6 ฿2,103

223.19%

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

$17.11 £12.69

$11.60 ฿390

47.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.47 £35.20

$20.30 ฿683

133.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.59 £34.55

$37.88 ฿1,274

22.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿124

Cinema Ticket

$13.55 £10.05

$6.51 ฿219

108.14%

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

$1,932 £1,433

$727 ฿24.4K

165.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.9K £21.5K

$16.6K ฿557.2K

74.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.9 £45.14

$53.5 ฿1,800

13.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.50 £27.07

$24.80 ฿834

47.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.1 £58.6

$90.4 ฿3,039

-12.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.7 £59.1

$72.0 ฿2,420

10.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,264 £938

$481 ฿16.2K

162.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,000 £742

$310 ฿10.4K

222.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,058 £1,527

$1,058 ฿35.6K

94.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,661 £1,232

$659 ฿22.1K

152.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,557 £3,380

$2,418 ฿81.3K

88.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,005 £2,970

$1,609 ฿54.1K

148.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.61

5.57

0.72%

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

Last update for Newtown: 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

Newtown

$1,000 45.5%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1% 69% $690

Eating Out

Newtown

$314 14.3%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 75.6% $238

Groceries & Markets

Newtown

$304 13.8%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 22% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Newtown

$267 12.2%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 64.6% $172

Getting Around

Newtown

$123 5.6%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 52.2% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Newtown

$115 5.3%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 6% $6.9

Sport & Entertainment

Newtown

$74 3.4%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 30.9% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,264 in Newtown 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $80 in Newtown versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $304 vs $237 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Newtown

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

18:43 6:43 PM

01:43 1:43 AM

7 h ahead of Newtown

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,357

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.742 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.831 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.69 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Newtown Chiang Mai 9,160 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Newtown
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

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

Newtown costs about 135% 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 $3,294 per month in Newtown 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 $1,264 in Newtown.

Kindergarten costs $1,932 per month in Newtown and $727 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 28% more in Newtown, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,196 in Newtown and $935 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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

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

For expats, Chiang Mai is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 57% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.