Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Papeete and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,283 in Papeete, rent and utilities included – about $16,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

109

Cost of Living Index in Papeete
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Papeete Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Papeete

🇵🇫 French Polynesia

$2,283

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,283 per month in Papeete vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Papeete $2,283
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $3,451 per month in Papeete vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Papeete $3,451
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $4,620 per month in Papeete vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Papeete $4,620
Chiang Mai $1,979

Papeete costs about 144% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Papeete sits 68% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.56 CFPF 1,983

$2.24 ฿75.5

728.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$95.4 CFPF 10.2K

$19.00 ฿640

402.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.54 CFPF 1,553

$5.55 ฿187

161.98%

Cappuccino

$3.41 CFPF 364

$1.67 ฿56.4

104.19%

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

$2.62 CFPF 280

$0.64 ฿21.51

309.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 CFPF 347

$0.31 ฿10.29

948.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 CFPF 358

$2.36 ฿79.5

41.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.76 CFPF 402

$3.66 ฿123

2.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 CFPF 159

$1.95 ฿65.7

-23.59%

White Bread (500g)

$2.75 CFPF 293

$1.44 ฿48.41

90.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 CFPF 172

$1.33 ฿44.97

21.05%

Eggs

$6.36 CFPF 679

$2.28 ฿77.0

178.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$27.25 CFPF 2,911

$16.45 ฿554

65.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.12 CFPF 1,616

$2.78 ฿93.8

443.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.88 CFPF 2,872

$9.31 ฿314

188.72%

Apples (1kg)

$4.79 CFPF 512

$2.35 ฿79.3

103.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.42 CFPF 258

$0.97 ฿32.75

149.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.39 CFPF 683

$1.60 ฿53.8

299.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.76 CFPF 830

$1.50 ฿50.6

417.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.64 CFPF 282

$1.28 ฿43.06

106.25%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 CFPF 233

$1.10 ฿37.14

98.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.65 CFPF 390

$0.71 ฿23.79

414.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 CFPF 121

$0.49 ฿16.34

132.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.97 CFPF 1,386

$4.14 ฿140

213.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.00 CFPF 2,244

$17.52 ฿590

19.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.69 CFPF 288

$1.61 ฿54.4

67.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 CFPF 340

$2.78 ฿93.8

14.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.91 CFPF 204

$0.87 ฿29.27

119.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$9.23 CFPF 986

$1.16 ฿39.00

695.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.78

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.6

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 CFPF 162

$1.45 ฿48.82

4.14%

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

$18.4K CFPF 2.0M

$21.1K ฿709.7K

-12.67%

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

$27.8K CFPF 3.0M

$26.9K ฿907.9K

3.11%

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

$179 CFPF 19.2K

$62.2 ฿2,095

188.58%

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

$19.50 CFPF 2,084

$12.17 ฿410

60.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.8 CFPF 7,560

$20.12 ฿678

251.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$84.0 CFPF 8,976

$37.31 ฿1,257

125.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$14.21 CFPF 1,518

$6.49 ฿219

118.95%

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

$461 CFPF 49.3K

$736 ฿24.8K

-37.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,248 CFPF 988.1K

$14.8K ฿497.6K

-37.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.2 CFPF 7,390

$53.4 ฿1,799

29.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.5 CFPF 7,528

$24.64 ฿830

185.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.7 CFPF 8,299

$91.5 ฿3,083

-15.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 CFPF 9,543

$71.9 ฿2,424

24.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,328 CFPF 141.9K

$482 ฿16.3K

175.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$947 CFPF 101.2K

$309 ฿10.4K

206.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,806 CFPF 193.0K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

79.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,513 CFPF 161.6K

$633 ฿21.3K

138.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,081 CFPF 756.6K

$2,363 ฿79.6K

199.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,507 CFPF 802.1K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

372.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,222 CFPF 237.4K

$590 ฿19.9K

276.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.5

5.57

-19.21%

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

Last update for Papeete: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Papeete

$947 41.5%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 67.4% $639

Groceries & Markets

Papeete

$517 22.7%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 54.7% $283

Eating Out

Papeete

$281 12.3%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 72.4% $203

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Papeete

$270 11.8%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 65% $175

Clothing & Footwear

Papeete

$138 6%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 21.3% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Papeete

$112 4.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 55.3% $62

Getting Around

Papeete

$17 * 0.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 264% $45

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,328 in Papeete versus $482 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 Papeete are about 3.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $95 in Papeete versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $517 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇫 Papeete

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

19:27 7:27 PM

12:27 12:27 PM

17 h ahead of Papeete

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

26,050 Capital

127,240

💱 Currency

CFP Franc XPF Fr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 XPF = 9.36 USD

1,000 XPF = 8.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to XPF – CFP Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🌐 CFP Franc (Fr)

CFP Franc exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 107 XPF (1,000 XPF = 9.36 USD). 1 EUR = 119 XPF (1,000 XPF = 8.41 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

USD to XPF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Papeete Chiang Mai 12,820 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Papeete
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

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

Papeete costs about 144% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,424 per month in Papeete 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 $482 there versus $1,328 in Papeete.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $95 in Papeete 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 121% more in Papeete, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,283 in Papeete and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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, Papeete makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.