Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Papua New Guinea and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $906 a month against $1,325 in Papua New Guinea, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea
$1,325
/mo nomad
Chiang Mai
🇹🇭 Thailand
$906
/mo nomad
😐 Solo nomad: Papua New Guinea is 42.2% more expensive than Chiang Mai without rent, and 46.3% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Papua New Guinea is 45.1% more expensive than Chiang Mai without rent, and 62.5% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$7.14 PGK 31.29
$2.13 ฿71.4
235.21%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.69 PGK 196
$19.40 ฿649
130.36%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.55 PGK 24.32
$5.47 ฿183
1.46%
Cappuccino
$2.34 PGK 10.24
$1.68 ฿56.4
39.29%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.76 PGK 3.33
$0.66 ฿22.10
15.15%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.65 PGK 2.86
$0.34 ฿11.52
91.18%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.62 PGK 11.47
$2.42 ฿81.0
8.26%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.86 PGK 16.90
$3.73 ฿125
3.49%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.92 PGK 8.43
$2.06 ฿68.9
-6.80%
White Bread (500g)
$1.53 PGK 6.73
$1.46 ฿48.78
4.79%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.36 PGK 5.96
$1.35 ฿45.09
0.74%
Eggs
$3.81 PGK 16.69
$2.27 ฿76.0
67.84%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$6.27 PGK 27.49
$16.31 ฿546
-61.56%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.00 PGK 26.29
$2.70 ฿90.3
122.22%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.33 PGK 40.88
$9.20 ฿308
1.41%
Apples (1kg)
$4.01 PGK 17.56
$2.39 ฿80.1
67.78%
Banana (1kg)
$3.35 PGK 14.69
$1.04 ฿34.66
222.12%
Oranges (1kg)
$6.17 PGK 27.05
$1.60 ฿53.7
285.63%
Tomato (1kg)
$5.13 PGK 22.47
$1.44 ฿48.37
256.25%
Potato (1kg)
$3.65 PGK 16.00
$1.30 ฿43.59
180.77%
Onion (1kg)
$2.74 PGK 12.03
$1.11 ฿37.29
146.85%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.00 PGK 8.77
$0.70 ฿23.55
185.71%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.14 PGK 4.97
$0.51 ฿16.99
123.53%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.37 PGK 27.94
$4.13 ฿138
54.24%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.54 PGK 46.21
$17.78 ฿595
-40.72%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.58 PGK 11.29
$1.63 ฿54.7
58.28%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.66 PGK 16.03
$2.87 ฿96.0
27.53%
🚌 Getting Around
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.43 PGK 1.87
$0.86 ฿28.76
-50.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$25.43 PGK 111
$53.2 ฿1,780
-52.15%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.95 PGK 21.70
$1.22 ฿40.81
305.74%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.23 PGK 9.78
$0.56 ฿18.81
298.21%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$14.19 PGK 62.2
$2.31 ฿77.5
514.29%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.95 PGK 4.15
$1.50 ฿50.2
-36.67%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.7K PGK 125.6K
$20.9K ฿698.3K
37.46%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$22.7K PGK 99.6K
$26.7K ฿895.0K
-15.01%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$93.1 PGK 408
$61.3 ฿2,051
51.94%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.52 PGK 121
$12.50 ฿419
120.16%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$116 PGK 506
$20.36 ฿682
467.53%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$63.5 PGK 278
$37.94 ฿1,270
67.37%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$24.15 PGK 106
$3.77 ฿126
540.58%
Cinema Ticket
$8.99 PGK 39.42
$6.60 ฿221
36.21%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$526 PGK 2,307
$774 ฿25.9K
-32.00%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$5,532 PGK 24.2K
$14.4K ฿483.2K
-61.67%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$35.26 PGK 155
$54.8 ฿1,835
-35.66%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$30.74 PGK 135
$25.26 ฿846
21.69%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$69.0 PGK 302
$90.6 ฿3,032
-23.87%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$92.3 PGK 404
$73.3 ฿2,453
25.96%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,597 PGK 6,998
$459 ฿15.4K
248.08%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$444 PGK 1,946
$294 ฿9,835
51.12%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,846 PGK 12.5K
$919 ฿30.8K
209.68%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,033 PGK 4,525
$552 ฿18.5K
87.11%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,005 PGK 8,789
$1,917 ฿64.2K
4.59%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,785 PGK 16.6K
$1,445 ฿48.4K
162.04%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Papua New Guinea
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$418 PGK 1,833
$592 ฿19.8K
-29.38%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
13.67
5.57
145.42%

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

Last update for Papua New Guinea: October 3, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Papua New Guinea
$444
Chiang Mai
$294 33.8% $150
Groceries & Markets
Papua New Guinea
$302
Chiang Mai
$236 21.8% $66
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Papua New Guinea
$236
Chiang Mai
$94 60.1% $142
Eating Out
Papua New Guinea
$128
Chiang Mai
$77 39.8% $51
Clothing & Footwear
Papua New Guinea
$102
Chiang Mai
$110 7.3% $7.5
Sport & Entertainment
Papua New Guinea
$81
Chiang Mai
$51 37.3% $30
Getting Around
Papua New Guinea
$43
Chiang Mai
$61 40.2% $17
Good to know
🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea
🇹🇭 Chiang Mai
🕒 Local time
15:59 3:59 PM
12:59 12:59 PM
3 h behind Papua New Guinea
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
8,935,000
127,240
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PGK – Papua New Guinean Kina Converter

Papua New Guinean Kina exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.38 PGK (1 PGK = 0.228 USD). 1 EUR = 4.92 PGK (1 PGK = 0.203 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Papua New Guinea Chiang Mai 6,150 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Papua New Guinea
  • 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

Papua New Guinea vs other spots: cost of living compared

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