Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saguenay and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,427 in Saguenay, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

68

Cost of Living Index in Saguenay
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Saguenay Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Saguenay

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,427

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,427 per month in Saguenay vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Saguenay $1,427
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $2,280 per month in Saguenay vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Saguenay $2,280
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $3,132 per month in Saguenay vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Saguenay $3,132
Chiang Mai $1,979

Saguenay costs about 53% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Saguenay sits 5% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.39 CA$21.50

$2.24 ฿75.6

587.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.46 CA$60.7

$19.00 ฿641

128.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.53 CA$14.72

$5.55 ฿187

89.73%

Cappuccino

$3.84 CA$5.36

$1.67 ฿56.5

129.94%

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

$1.53 CA$2.14

$0.64 ฿21.55

139.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 CA$1.71

$0.31 ฿10.31

296.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 CA$7.61

$2.36 ฿79.6

130.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.30 CA$7.40

$3.66 ฿124

44.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.14 CA$2.99

$1.95 ฿65.8

9.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.88 CA$4.02

$1.44 ฿48.48

100.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.29 CA$6.00

$1.33 ฿45.04

222.56%

Eggs

$2.79 CA$3.90

$2.28 ฿77.1

22.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.63 CA$12.06

$16.45 ฿555

-47.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.17 CA$10.02

$2.78 ฿93.9

157.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.63 CA$14.85

$9.31 ฿314

14.18%

Apples (1kg)

$4.09 CA$5.72

$2.35 ฿79.4

74.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 CA$1.97

$0.97 ฿32.80

45.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.87 CA$5.41

$1.60 ฿53.9

141.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.14 CA$5.79

$1.50 ฿50.6

176.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.91 CA$4.06

$1.28 ฿43.12

127.34%

Onion (1kg)

$2.80 CA$3.92

$1.10 ฿37.19

154.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.45 CA$3.43

$0.71 ฿23.82

245.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 CA$1.06

$0.49 ฿16.37

55.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.22 CA$17.08

$4.14 ฿140

195.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.61 CA$16.22

$17.52 ฿591

-33.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.20 CA$4.46

$1.61 ฿54.5

98.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 CA$4.74

$2.78 ฿94.0

22.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.61 CA$3.64

$0.87 ฿29.31

200.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.5 CA$79.0

$54.1 ฿1,826

4.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.95 CA$4.12

$1.16 ฿39.06

154.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 CA$2.00

$0.53 ฿17.80

169.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.38 CA$39.65

$2.42 ฿81.8

1072.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 CA$1.69

$1.45 ฿48.90

-16.55%

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

$27.8K CA$38.9K

$21.1K ฿710.7K

32.21%

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

$19.6K CA$27.4K

$26.9K ฿909.3K

-27.19%

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

$64.4 CA$90.0

$62.2 ฿2,098

3.62%

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

$32.29 CA$45.11

$12.17 ฿411

165.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.01 CA$62.9

$20.12 ฿679

123.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.03 CA$34.96

$37.31 ฿1,259

-32.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.54 CA$27.30

$3.77 ฿127

418.30%

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 CA$13.31

$6.49 ฿219

46.69%

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

$702 CA$981

$736 ฿24.8K

-4.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,123 CA$12.7K

$14.8K ฿498.3K

-38.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.2 CA$78.6

$53.4 ฿1,801

5.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.19 CA$50.6

$24.64 ฿831

46.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.9 CA$117

$91.5 ฿3,087

-8.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 CA$150

$71.9 ฿2,428

49.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$618 CA$864

$482 ฿16.3K

28.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$470 CA$657

$309 ฿10.4K

52.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 CA$1,663

$1,006 ฿33.9K

18.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$970 CA$1,355

$633 ฿21.4K

53.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,670 CA$7,921

$2,363 ฿79.8K

139.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,522 CA$4,921

$1,589 ฿53.6K

121.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,554 CA$3,567

$590 ฿19.9K

332.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

5.57

-20.29%

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

Last update for Saguenay: 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

Saguenay

$470 33%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 34.3% $161

Groceries & Markets

Saguenay

$317 22.2%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 26% $82

Eating Out

Saguenay

$250 17.5%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 68.9% $172

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Saguenay

$142 9.9%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 33.3% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Saguenay

$128 9%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 15% $19

Getting Around

Saguenay

$77 5.4%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 20.4% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Saguenay

$44 3.1%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 14.1% $6.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $618 in Saguenay 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 Saguenay are about 4.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Saguenay versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $317 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Saguenay

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

05:13 5:13 AM

17:13 5:13 PM

12 h ahead of Saguenay

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

144,723

127,240

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Saguenay Chiang Mai 12,480 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Saguenay
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

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

Saguenay costs about 53% 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 $2,140 per month in Saguenay 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 $618 in Saguenay.

Kindergarten costs $702 per month in Saguenay 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 35% more in Saguenay, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,427 in Saguenay and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $1,427 in Saguenay. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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