Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pontianak and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Pontianak: $484 a month against $938 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Pontianak
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Pontianak Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Pontianak

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$484

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $484 per month in Pontianak vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Pontianak $484
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $600 per month in Pontianak vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Pontianak $600
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $717 per month in Pontianak vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Pontianak $717
Chiang Mai $1,914

Pontianak is about 48% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Pontianak and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Pontianak 64% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.77 Rp 31.9K

$2.26 ฿75.4

-21.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.14 Rp 146.4K

$19.18 ฿641

-57.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.99 Rp 53.8K

$5.59 ฿187

-46.51%

Cappuccino

$1.24 Rp 22.3K

$1.72 ฿57.6

-27.91%

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

$0.46 Rp 8,327

$0.64 ฿21.54

-28.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.21 Rp 3,762

$0.33 ฿11.18

-36.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.81 Rp 50.6K

$2.36 ฿78.7

19.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 Rp 67.1K

$3.90 ฿130

-4.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.08 Rp 19.4K

$2.05 ฿68.6

-47.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 Rp 25.5K

$1.40 ฿46.70

1.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.94 Rp 16.9K

$1.28 ฿42.89

-26.56%

Eggs

$1.49 Rp 26.9K

$2.25 ฿75.3

-33.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.94 ฿566

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.32 Rp 59.7K

$2.74 ฿91.6

21.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.36 ฿313

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 Rp 54.8K

$2.40 ฿80.3

27.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.92 Rp 34.6K

$1.01 ฿33.92

90.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 Rp 39.6K

$1.61 ฿53.9

36.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 ฿50.7

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿42.90

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.22

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.09

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 Rp 8,633

$0.52 ฿17.54

-7.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.82 Rp 50.7K

$4.33 ฿145

-34.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.55 Rp 405.9K

$17.73 ฿593

27.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 Rp 32.0K

$1.63 ฿54.4

9.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 Rp 40.1K

$2.85 ฿95.3

-21.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 Rp 4,796

$0.85 ฿28.31

-68.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.9 ฿1,801

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.17 ฿39.18

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿19.00

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.37 ฿79.2

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.73 Rp 13.2K

$1.45 ฿48.32

-49.66%

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

$20.5K ฿684.3K

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

$26.5K ฿886.1K

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

$68.5 Rp 1.2M

$62.3 ฿2,083

9.88%

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

$5.51 Rp 99.2K

$12.27 ฿410

-55.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.14 Rp 398.4K

$19.97 ฿668

10.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.86 Rp 429.5K

$37.91 ฿1,267

-37.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.79 Rp 212.2K

$3.76 ฿126

213.56%

Cinema Ticket

$3.73 Rp 67.1K

$6.71 ฿224

-44.41%

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

$797 ฿26.6K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿495.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.12 Rp 596.2K

$53.3 ฿1,780

-37.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.53 Rp 603.5K

$25.05 ฿837

33.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.6 ฿3,062

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.5 ฿2,455

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$169 Rp 3.0M

$464 ฿15.5K

-63.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$113 Rp 2.0M

$305 ฿10.2K

-62.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$915 ฿30.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 ฿18.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,912 ฿63.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,438 ฿48.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$262 Rp 4.7M

$595 ฿19.9K

-56.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

79.53%

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

Last update for Pontianak: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Pontianak

$151 * 31.2%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 57.6% $87

Accommodation & Living

Pontianak

$113 23.3%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 170% $192

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pontianak

$96 19.8%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 1.6% $1.6

Eating Out

Pontianak

$62 12.8%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 27.1% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Pontianak

$31 6.5%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 63.9% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Pontianak

$30 * 6.2%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 265% $80

Getting Around

Pontianak

$1.1 * 0.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 5630% $60

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $169 in Pontianak versus $464 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 run about 128% higher in Chiang Mai, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $8.00 in Pontianak versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $151 vs $238 – making Pontianak the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Pontianak

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

11:08 11:08 AM

Same time as Pontianak

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

672,440

127,240

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Pontianak Chiang Mai 2,380 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Pontianak
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 94% more than Pontianak, 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 $727 per month in Pontianak and $1,408 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Pontianak, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $484 in Pontianak and $938 in Chiang Mai. That's a gap of about 94%.

Groceries cost about 58% more in Chiang Mai, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Pontianak, where all-in costs run around $484, than in Chiang Mai at $938. In Pontianak it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Pontianak costs $484 versus $938 in Chiang Mai. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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