Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Queretaro and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,417 in Queretaro, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

69

Cost of Living Index in Queretaro
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Queretaro Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Queretaro

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,417

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,417 per month in Queretaro vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Queretaro $1,417
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $2,165 per month in Queretaro vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Queretaro $2,165
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $2,913 per month in Queretaro vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Queretaro $2,913
Chiang Mai $1,914

Queretaro costs about 51% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Queretaro sits 5% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.14 MX$206

$2.26 ฿75.4

392.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.1 MX$1,148

$19.18 ฿641

223.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 MX$176

$5.59 ฿187

69.95%

Cappuccino

$3.66 MX$67.7

$1.72 ฿57.6

112.79%

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

$1.59 MX$29.35

$0.64 ฿21.54

148.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$19.97

$0.33 ฿11.18

227.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 MX$60.6

$2.36 ฿78.7

38.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.41 MX$100

$3.90 ฿130

38.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 MX$36.26

$2.05 ฿68.6

-4.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.74 MX$50.5

$1.40 ฿46.70

95.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 MX$37.11

$1.28 ฿42.89

57.03%

Eggs

$2.65 MX$48.95

$2.25 ฿75.3

17.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.64 MX$160

$16.94 ฿566

-49.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.82 MX$163

$2.74 ฿91.6

221.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.45 MX$249

$9.36 ฿313

43.70%

Apples (1kg)

$3.46 MX$64.0

$2.40 ฿80.3

44.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.64 MX$30.31

$1.01 ฿33.92

62.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 MX$40.45

$1.61 ฿53.9

36.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.97 MX$36.36

$1.52 ฿50.7

29.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 MX$34.30

$1.28 ฿42.90

45.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 MX$32.18

$1.11 ฿37.22

56.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 MX$27.43

$0.72 ฿24.09

105.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$22.09

$0.52 ฿17.54

130.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.45 MX$82.2

$4.33 ฿145

2.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.98 MX$332

$17.73 ฿593

1.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 MX$39.99

$1.63 ฿54.4

32.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.82 MX$70.6

$2.85 ฿95.3

34.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.58 MX$10.70

$0.85 ฿28.31

-31.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.87 MX$478

$53.9 ฿1,801

-52.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.20 MX$59.1

$1.17 ฿39.18

173.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.54 MX$46.95

$0.57 ฿19.00

345.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.92 MX$202

$2.37 ฿79.2

360.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 MX$28.70

$1.45 ฿48.32

6.90%

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

$21.5K MX$397.5K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

5.06%

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

$23.6K MX$436.3K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

-10.94%

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

$57.2 MX$1,057

$62.3 ฿2,083

-8.26%

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

$26.92 MX$497

$12.27 ฿410

119.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.48 MX$452

$19.97 ฿668

22.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.5 MX$1,063

$37.91 ฿1,267

51.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.36 MX$450

$3.76 ฿126

547.87%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 MX$137

$6.71 ฿224

10.73%

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

$263 MX$4,869

$797 ฿26.6K

-66.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,015 MX$92.7K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-66.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 MX$956

$53.3 ฿1,780

-2.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.24 MX$818

$25.05 ฿837

76.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.9 MX$1,847

$91.6 ฿3,062

9.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.7 MX$1,843

$73.5 ฿2,455

35.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$836 MX$15.4K

$464 ฿15.5K

80.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$554 MX$10.2K

$305 ฿10.2K

81.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,463 MX$27.0K

$915 ฿30.6K

59.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$824 MX$15.2K

$552 ฿18.5K

49.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,253 MX$41.6K

$1,912 ฿63.9K

17.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,275 MX$23.6K

$1,438 ฿48.1K

-11.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$910 MX$16.8K

$595 ฿19.9K

52.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.99

5.57

115.26%

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

Last update for Queretaro: October 12, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Queretaro

$554 39.1%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 45% $249

Groceries & Markets

Queretaro

$305 21.6%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 22.1% $68

Eating Out

Queretaro

$199 14.1%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 60.4% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Queretaro

$133 9.4%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 17.7% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Queretaro

$109 7.7%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 12.9% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Queretaro

$72 5.1%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 29.1% $21

Getting Around

Queretaro

$44 3.1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 39.1% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $836 in Queretaro 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 53% higher in Queretaro, 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 $62.0 in Queretaro versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $305 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Queretaro

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

06:52 6:52 AM

19:52 7:52 PM

13 h ahead of Queretaro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

804,663

127,240

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.78 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Queretaro Chiang Mai 15,150 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Queretaro
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

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

Queretaro costs about 51% 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 $2,125 per month in Queretaro 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 Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $263 per month in Queretaro and $797 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 28% more in Queretaro, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $938, than in Queretaro at $1,417. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Queretaro it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,417 in Queretaro. 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 Chiang Mai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Queretaro makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.