Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Puerto Ayora and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Puerto Ayora: $818 a month against $935 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Ayora
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Puerto Ayora Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

Puerto Ayora

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$818

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $818 per month in Puerto Ayora vs $935 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Puerto Ayora $818
Chiang Mai $935

A couple spends around $1,329 per month in Puerto Ayora vs $1,467 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Puerto Ayora $1,329
Chiang Mai $1,467

A family of three spends $1,839 per month in Puerto Ayora vs $1,999 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Puerto Ayora $1,839
Chiang Mai $1,999

Puerto Ayora is about 13% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Puerto Ayora and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Puerto Ayora 39% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.67 $3.67

$2.13 ฿72.0

72.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.60 $41.60

$18.62 ฿628

123.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.47 $6.47

$5.60 ฿189

15.54%

Cappuccino

$2.75 $2.75

$1.66 ฿56.1

65.66%

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

$0.89 $0.89

$0.65 ฿21.82

36.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.70 $0.70

$0.30 ฿10.29

133.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 $2.43

$2.32 ฿78.3

4.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.95 $3.95

$3.67 ฿124

7.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.09 $1.09

$2.02 ฿68.0

-46.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.75 $1.75

$1.41 ฿47.49

24.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.39 ฿46.94

10.79%

Eggs

$2.08 $2.08

$2.37 ฿79.9

-12.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.39 $6.39

$16.52 ฿557

-61.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.19 $5.19

$2.67 ฿90.1

94.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.30 $7.30

$9.02 ฿304

-19.07%

Apples (1kg)

$1.81 $1.81

$2.40 ฿80.9

-24.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.14 $1.14

$1.04 ฿35.12

9.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.66 ฿56.0

-23.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.09 $1.09

$1.56 ฿52.6

-30.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 $1.23

$1.24 ฿41.75

-0.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 $1.03

$1.09 ฿36.65

-5.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 $0.75

$0.76 ฿25.70

-1.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 $1.02

$0.51 ฿17.34

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.28 $5.28

$4.12 ฿139

28.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.05 $8.05

$17.93 ฿605

-55.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.62 ฿54.8

-9.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 $2.94

$2.82 ฿95.2

4.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 $0.36

$0.93 ฿31.52

-61.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,784

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.18 ฿39.69

24.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.32 $1.32

$0.17 ฿5.78

676.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.87 $9.87

$1.81 ฿61.1

445.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.82 $0.82

$1.47 ฿49.67

-44.22%

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

$22.9K $22.9K

$21.0K ฿708.7K

9.01%

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

$29.9K $29.9K

$26.5K ฿894.4K

12.82%

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

$34.59 $34.59

$62.6 ฿2,110

-44.71%

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

$13.30 $13.30

$11.60 ฿391

14.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.27 $26.27

$20.30 ฿685

29.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.25 $30.25

$37.88 ฿1,278

-20.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.39 $16.39

$3.70 ฿125

342.97%

Cinema Ticket

$6.83 $6.83

$6.51 ฿220

4.92%

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

$300 $300

$727 ฿24.5K

-58.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,729 $5,729

$16.6K ฿559.0K

-65.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.2 $61.2

$53.5 ฿1,806

14.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.90 $44.90

$24.80 ฿836

81.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 $108

$90.4 ฿3,049

19.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.7 $72.7

$72.0 ฿2,428

0.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$422 $422

$481 ฿16.2K

-12.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$267 $267

$310 ฿10.5K

-13.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$815 $815

$1,058 ฿35.7K

-23.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$501 $501

$659 ฿22.2K

-23.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,418 ฿81.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿54.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$807 $807

$595 ฿20.1K

35.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.09

5.57

81.15%

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

Last update for Puerto Ayora: November 2, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Puerto Ayora

$267 32.6%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1% 16% $43

Groceries & Markets

Puerto Ayora

$187 22.8%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 26.7% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Puerto Ayora

$129 15.8%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 16% $21

Eating Out

Puerto Ayora

$108 13.2%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 29.2% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Puerto Ayora

$74 9.1%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 27.4% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Puerto Ayora

$44 5.4%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 15.9% $7

Getting Around

Puerto Ayora

$9.5 * 1.2%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 516% $49

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $422 in Puerto Ayora versus $481 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 36% higher in Puerto Ayora, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $42 in Puerto Ayora versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $187 in Puerto Ayora vs $237 in Chiang Mai – so Puerto Ayora wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Puerto Ayora

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

20:42 8:42 PM

09:42 9:42 AM

13 h ahead of Puerto Ayora

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,696

127,240

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.894 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.894 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.72 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Puerto Ayora Chiang Mai 17,770 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Puerto Ayora
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

Puerto Ayora vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 14% more than Puerto Ayora, 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 $1,228 per month in Puerto Ayora 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 Puerto Ayora, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $422 there versus $481 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $42 in Puerto Ayora 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 27% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $818 in Puerto Ayora and $935 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Puerto Ayora – 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.