Cost of Living Comparison Between Panajachel and Chiang Mai Cost of Living Comparison Between Panajachel and Chiang Mai

🙂 Solo nomad: Panajachel is 3.1% cheaper than Chiang Mai without rent, and 23.3% cheaper with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Panajachel is 7.1% more expensive than Chiang Mai without rent, and 16.8% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.60 Q 35.33
$2.03 ฿63.8
126.60%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$33.13 Q 254
$18.59 ฿585
78.21%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.17 Q 47.36
$7.48 ฿235
-17.51%
Cappuccino
$2.68 Q 20.59
$2.00 ฿62.8
34.00%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.17 Q 8.99
$0.85 ฿26.63
37.65%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.93 Q 7.12
$0.35 ฿11.05
165.71%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.64 Q 20.27
$2.21 ฿69.5
19.46%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.52 Q 34.70
$3.76 ฿118
20.21%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.11 Q 16.19
$1.72 ฿54.0
22.67%
White Bread (500g)
$1.52 Q 11.70
$1.63 ฿51.4
-6.75%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.10 Q 16.16
$1.16 ฿36.42
81.03%
Eggs
$1.73 Q 13.30
$1.98 ฿62.2
-12.63%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.80 Q 59.9
$15.93 ฿501
-51.04%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.56 Q 65.7
$3.17 ฿99.6
170.03%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.05 Q 77.2
$10.90 ฿343
-7.80%
Apples (1kg)
$3.64 Q 27.98
$2.65 ฿83.2
37.36%
Banana (1kg)
$1.52 Q 11.65
$1.22 ฿38.45
24.59%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.02 Q 23.20
$1.70 ฿53.4
77.65%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.12 Q 8.60
$1.59 ฿49.99
-29.56%
Potato (1kg)
$1.07 Q 8.20
$1.32 ฿41.63
-18.94%
Onion (1kg)
$2.30 Q 17.65
$1.17 ฿36.74
96.58%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.63 Q 4.85
$0.68 ฿21.31
-7.35%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.23 Q 9.47
$0.56 ฿17.52
119.64%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.73 Q 28.64
$4.51 ฿142
-17.29%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.09 Q 62.1
$19.07 ฿600
-57.58%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.62 Q 12.41
$1.77 ฿55.7
-8.47%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.42 Q 18.56
$3.18 ฿100.0
-23.90%
🚌 Getting Around
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$0.96 ฿30.27
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$18.90 ฿594
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.08 Q 39.00
$1.36 ฿42.69
273.53%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.63 Q 4.86
$1.35 ฿42.51
-53.33%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$15.92 Q 122
$8.03 ฿253
98.26%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.08 Q 8.26
$1.24 ฿39.08
-12.90%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$19.9K Q 153.2K
$21.2K ฿665.4K
-5.74%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$25.2K Q 193.4K
$21.8K ฿684.0K
15.76%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$33.05 Q 254
$71.2 ฿2,240
-53.61%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$26.58 Q 204
$14.09 ฿443
88.64%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$46.84 Q 360
$17.47 ฿549
168.12%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$42.07 ฿1,323
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$6.88 ฿216
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.05 Q 54.1
$5.94 ฿187
18.69%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$246 Q 1,886
$307 ฿9,664
-20.10%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,912 Q 45.4K
$14.8K ฿465.1K
-60.04%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.70 Q 382
$55.7 ฿1,750
-10.72%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.8 Q 413
$26.79 ฿842
100.90%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$116 Q 889
$83.2 ฿2,617
39.11%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$120 Q 922
$70.1 ฿2,204
71.29%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$427 ฿13.4K
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$237 ฿7,454
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$802 ฿25.2K
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$503 ฿15.8K
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$2,061 ฿64.8K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$1,533 ฿48.2K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Panajachel
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$654 ฿20.6K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
8.9
5
78.00%

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

Last update for Panajachel: March 2, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: March 1, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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