Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Riyadh and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,738 in Riyadh, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Riyadh
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Riyadh Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Riyadh

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,738

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,738 per month in Riyadh vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Riyadh $1,738
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $2,567 per month in Riyadh vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Riyadh $2,567
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $3,396 per month in Riyadh vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Riyadh $3,396
Chiang Mai $1,914

Riyadh costs about 85% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Riyadh sits 29% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 SAR 30.35

$2.26 ฿75.4

257.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.3 SAR 249

$19.18 ฿641

245.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.16 SAR 30.64

$5.59 ฿187

45.97%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.08 SAR 7.79

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 SAR 11.19

Cappuccino

$4.25 SAR 15.96

$1.72 ฿57.6

147.09%

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

$0.91 SAR 3.41

$0.64 ฿21.54

42.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 SAR 1.20

$0.33 ฿11.18

-3.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿78.7

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.90 ฿130

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 SAR 6.60

$2.05 ฿68.6

-14.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 SAR 4.72

$1.40 ฿46.70

-10.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.43 SAR 9.13

$1.28 ฿42.89

89.84%

Eggs

$3.13 SAR 11.76

$2.25 ฿75.3

39.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.69 SAR 40.11

$16.94 ฿566

-36.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.44 SAR 35.41

$2.74 ฿91.6

244.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.19 SAR 57.0

$9.36 ฿313

62.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.84 SAR 10.65

$2.40 ฿80.3

18.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 SAR 7.36

$1.01 ฿33.92

94.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.53 SAR 9.51

$1.61 ฿53.9

57.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.70 SAR 6.37

$1.52 ฿50.7

11.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 SAR 4.44

$1.28 ฿42.90

-7.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 SAR 4.81

$1.11 ฿37.22

15.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 SAR 6.37

$0.72 ฿24.09

136.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 SAR 2.12

$0.52 ฿17.54

9.62%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$7.83 SAR 29.38

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 SAR 6.77

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 SAR 8.95

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.50 SAR 28.15

$4.33 ฿145

73.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.73 ฿593

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ฿54.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.3

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.07 SAR 4.03

$0.85 ฿28.31

25.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.34 SAR 140

$53.9 ฿1,801

-30.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 SAR 11.69

$1.17 ฿39.18

165.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 SAR 6.79

$0.57 ฿19.00

217.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.23 SAR 49.66

$2.37 ฿79.2

458.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.65 SAR 2.44

$1.45 ฿48.32

-55.17%

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

$34.7K SAR 130.1K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

69.27%

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

$22.9K SAR 85.8K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

-13.72%

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

$106 SAR 396

$62.3 ฿2,083

69.26%

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

$29.61 SAR 111

$12.27 ฿410

141.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.7 SAR 265

$19.97 ฿668

254.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$91.6 SAR 344

$37.91 ฿1,267

141.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$56.9 SAR 214

$3.76 ฿126

1413.56%

Cinema Ticket

$13.09 SAR 49.11

$6.71 ฿224

95.08%

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

$523 SAR 1,963

$797 ฿26.6K

-34.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.2K SAR 38.4K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-30.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.8 SAR 221

$53.3 ฿1,780

10.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.1 SAR 199

$25.05 ฿837

112.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 SAR 379

$91.6 ฿3,062

10.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 SAR 386

$73.5 ฿2,455

40.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 SAR 4,425

$464 ฿15.5K

154.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$832 SAR 3,122

$305 ฿10.2K

173.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,227 SAR 8,359

$915 ฿30.6K

143.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,224 SAR 4,595

$552 ฿18.5K

121.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,996 SAR 11.2K

$1,912 ฿63.9K

56.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,913 SAR 7,177

$1,438 ฿48.1K

32.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,067 SAR 7,757

$595 ฿19.9K

247.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

5.57

-0.54%

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

Last update for Riyadh: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Riyadh

$832 47.9%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 63.4% $527

Groceries & Markets

Riyadh

$242 13.9%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 1.5% $3.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Riyadh

$206 11.8%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 54% $111

Eating Out

Riyadh

$145 8.4%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 45.6% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Riyadh

$142 8.2%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 22.9% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Riyadh

$118 6.8%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 56.4% $66

Getting Around

Riyadh

$54 3.1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 14% $7.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,179 in Riyadh 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 247% higher in Riyadh, 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 $66.0 in Riyadh versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $242 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Riyadh

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

08:41 8:41 AM

12:41 12:41 PM

4 h ahead of Riyadh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,188,286 Capital

127,240

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Riyadh Chiang Mai 5,410 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Riyadh
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

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

Riyadh costs about 85% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from utilities. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,607 per month in Riyadh 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 $523 per month in Riyadh 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 1% more in Riyadh, 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 Riyadh at $1,738. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Riyadh it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,738 in Riyadh. 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, Riyadh makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.