Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rabat and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Rabat: $857 a month against $938 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $970 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Rabat
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Rabat Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Rabat

🇲🇦 Morocco

$857

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $857 per month in Rabat vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Rabat $857
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $1,484 per month in Rabat vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Rabat $1,484
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $2,111 per month in Rabat vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Rabat $2,111
Chiang Mai $1,914

Rabat is about 9% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Rabat and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Rabat 36% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.06 MAD 39.57

$2.26 ฿75.4

79.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.05 MAD 400

$19.18 ฿641

114.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.27 MAD 70.8

$5.59 ฿187

30.05%

Cappuccino

$1.92 MAD 18.73

$1.72 ฿57.6

11.63%

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

$0.54 MAD 5.26

$0.64 ฿21.54

-15.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 MAD 3.58

$0.33 ฿11.18

12.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.20 MAD 50.7

$2.36 ฿78.7

120.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 MAD 31.72

$3.90 ฿130

-16.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.84 MAD 8.23

$2.05 ฿68.6

-59.02%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 MAD 6.38

$1.40 ฿46.70

-53.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.91 MAD 18.65

$1.28 ฿42.89

49.22%

Eggs

$1.88 MAD 18.35

$2.25 ฿75.3

-16.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.35 MAD 111

$16.94 ฿566

-33.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 MAD 64.5

$2.74 ฿91.6

141.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.13 MAD 118

$9.36 ฿313

29.59%

Apples (1kg)

$1.64 MAD 15.98

$2.40 ฿80.3

-31.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 MAD 14.26

$1.01 ฿33.92

44.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.85 MAD 8.28

$1.61 ฿53.9

-47.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.84 MAD 8.20

$1.52 ฿50.7

-44.74%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 MAD 6.94

$1.28 ฿42.90

-44.53%

Onion (1kg)

$0.78 MAD 7.64

$1.11 ฿37.22

-29.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.38 MAD 3.66

$0.72 ฿24.09

-47.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 MAD 5.90

$0.52 ฿17.54

17.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.24 MAD 41.29

$4.33 ฿145

-2.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.74 MAD 75.4

$17.73 ฿593

-56.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.70 MAD 26.36

$1.63 ฿54.4

65.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 MAD 26.52

$2.85 ฿95.3

-4.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 MAD 5.41

$0.85 ฿28.31

-35.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.09 MAD 254

$53.9 ฿1,801

-51.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.71 MAD 6.92

$1.17 ฿39.18

-39.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 MAD 7.62

$0.57 ฿19.00

36.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.09 MAD 39.83

$2.37 ฿79.2

72.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 MAD 15.41

$1.45 ฿48.32

8.97%

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

$31.1K MAD 303.4K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

52.00%

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

$31.1K MAD 303.7K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

17.49%

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

$36.64 MAD 357

$62.3 ฿2,083

-41.22%

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

$10.41 MAD 101

$12.27 ฿410

-15.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.79 MAD 329

$19.97 ฿668

69.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.95 MAD 282

$37.91 ฿1,267

-23.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.25 MAD 236

$3.76 ฿126

544.95%

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 MAD 61.3

$6.71 ฿224

-6.41%

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

$182 MAD 1,775

$797 ฿26.6K

-77.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,632 MAD 93.9K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-35.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.69 MAD 475

$53.3 ฿1,780

-8.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.28 MAD 403

$25.05 ฿837

64.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 MAD 898

$91.6 ฿3,062

0.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.6 MAD 639

$73.5 ฿2,455

-10.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$517 MAD 5,037

$464 ฿15.5K

11.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$272 MAD 2,653

$305 ฿10.2K

-10.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,002 MAD 9,766

$915 ฿30.6K

9.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$710 MAD 6,924

$552 ฿18.5K

28.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,960 MAD 19.1K

$1,912 ฿63.9K

2.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,169 MAD 11.4K

$1,438 ฿48.1K

-18.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$709 MAD 6,913

$595 ฿19.9K

19.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.55

5.57

-18.31%

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

Last update for Rabat: 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

Rabat

$272 31.7%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 12% $33

Groceries & Markets

Rabat

$205 23.9%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 16% $33

Eating Out

Rabat

$113 13.2%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 30.4% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Rabat

$111 13%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 1.7% $1.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rabat

$81 9.4%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 17% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Rabat

$42 4.8%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 23.7% $9.8

Getting Around

Rabat

$33 3.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 86.2% $28

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $517 in Rabat 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 19% higher in Rabat, 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 $41.00 in Rabat versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $205 in Rabat vs $238 in Chiang Mai – so Rabat wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇦 Rabat

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

11:49 11:49 AM

17:49 5:49 PM

6 h ahead of Rabat

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

573,895 Capital

127,240

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MAD – Moroccan Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham (د.م.)

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 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 MAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rabat Chiang Mai 10,220 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Rabat
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 9% more than Rabat, 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 $1,286 per month in Rabat 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 Rabat, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $182 per month in Rabat 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 16% 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 $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Rabat, where all-in costs run around $857, than in Chiang Mai at $938. In Rabat 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. Rabat costs $857 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 Rabat. 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.