Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Poole and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,641 in Poole, rent and utilities included – about $20,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

127

Cost of Living Index in Poole
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Poole Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Poole

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,641

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,641 per month in Poole vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Poole $2,641
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $3,917 per month in Poole vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Poole $3,917
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $5,193 per month in Poole vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Poole $5,193
Chiang Mai $1,979

Poole costs about 182% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Poole sits 94% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.28 £17.38

$2.24 ฿75.6

939.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$102 £75.9

$19.00 ฿641

435.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.75 £8.03

$5.55 ฿187

93.69%

Cappuccino

$5.19 £3.87

$1.67 ฿56.5

210.78%

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

$3.08 £2.30

$0.64 ฿21.54

381.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 £1.68

$0.31 ฿10.31

625.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.86 £5.12

$2.36 ฿79.5

190.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.08 £5.29

$3.66 ฿124

93.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 £1.27

$1.95 ฿65.7

-12.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 £1.16

$1.44 ฿48.46

8.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.25 £1.68

$1.33 ฿45.03

69.17%

Eggs

$4.21 £3.14

$2.28 ฿77.1

84.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.50 £4.85

$16.45 ฿555

-60.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.76 £8.03

$2.78 ฿93.9

287.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.70 £9.48

$9.31 ฿314

36.41%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 £1.69

$2.35 ฿79.4

-3.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 £1.29

$0.97 ฿32.79

78.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.95 £1.46

$1.60 ฿53.9

21.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 £1.62

$1.50 ฿50.6

44.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.03 £1.51

$1.28 ฿43.11

58.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.50 £1.12

$1.10 ฿37.18

36.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 £1.33

$0.71 ฿23.82

150.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 £1.43

$0.49 ฿16.36

291.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.87 £17.82

$4.14 ฿140

476.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.72 £7.26

$17.52 ฿591

-44.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.01 £2.25

$1.61 ฿54.5

86.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 £1.84

$2.78 ฿93.9

-11.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.89 £2.90

$0.87 ฿29.30

347.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.0 £56.7

$54.1 ฿1,825

40.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 £2.45

$1.16 ฿39.04

182.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.45 £1.83

$0.53 ฿17.80

362.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.62 £16.15

$2.42 ฿81.7

793.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 £1.52

$1.45 ฿48.88

40.00%

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

$39.1K £29.2K

$21.1K ฿710.5K

85.45%

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

$40.5K £30.3K

$26.9K ฿909.0K

50.48%

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

$359 £268

$62.2 ฿2,098

477.32%

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

$20.32 £15.17

$12.17 ฿411

66.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.31 £32.33

$20.12 ฿679

115.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$80.8 £60.4

$37.31 ฿1,259

116.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$20.54 £15.34

$6.49 ฿219

216.49%

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

$2,128 £1,589

$736 ฿24.8K

189.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.8K £25.2K

$14.8K ฿498.2K

128.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.6 £65.4

$53.4 ฿1,801

64.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.27 £29.32

$24.64 ฿831

59.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £75.9

$91.5 ฿3,087

11.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.8 £62.6

$71.9 ฿2,427

16.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,176 £878

$482 ฿16.3K

143.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,210 £903

$309 ฿10.4K

291.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,272 £1,697

$1,006 ฿33.9K

125.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,093 £1,563

$633 ฿21.4K

230.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,119 £1,582

$1,589 ฿53.6K

33.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,307 £2,469

$590 ฿19.9K

460.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.96

5.57

-10.95%

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

Last update for Poole: October 27, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Poole

$1.2K 45.8%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 74.5% $901

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Poole

$423 16%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 77.6% $328

Eating Out

Poole

$351 13.3%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 77.9% $273

Groceries & Markets

Poole

$289 10.9%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 18.8% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Poole

$141 5.3%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 22.7% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Poole

$122 4.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 58.8% $72

Getting Around

Poole

$107 4.1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 42.7% $46

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,176 in Poole 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 Poole are about 5.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $102 in Poole versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $289 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Poole

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

00:08 12:08 AM

07:08 7:08 AM

7 h ahead of Poole

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

154,718

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 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 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Poole Chiang Mai 9,140 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Poole
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

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

Poole costs about 182% 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 $3,961 per month in Poole 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 $1,176 in Poole.

Kindergarten costs $2,128 per month in Poole and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 23% more in Poole, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,641 in Poole and $936 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.

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