Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sale, Morocco and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Sale: $625 a month against $935 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Sale
Learn more

Sale Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

Sale

🇲🇦 Morocco

$625

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $625 per month in Sale vs $935 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Sale $625
Chiang Mai $935

A couple spends around $1,030 per month in Sale vs $1,467 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Sale $1,030
Chiang Mai $1,467

A family of three spends $1,434 per month in Sale vs $1,999 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Sale $1,434
Chiang Mai $1,999

Sale is about 33% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Sale and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Sale 54% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.58 MAD 35.03

$2.13 ฿71.8

68.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.72 MAD 173

$18.62 ฿626

-4.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.08 MAD 69.2

$5.60 ฿188

26.43%

Cappuccino

$1.82 MAD 17.74

$1.66 ฿55.9

9.64%

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

$0.53 MAD 5.13

$0.65 ฿21.75

-18.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 MAD 2.93

$0.30 ฿10.25

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.60 MAD 25.46

$2.32 ฿78.1

12.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 MAD 30.32

$3.67 ฿123

-15.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.88 MAD 8.57

$2.02 ฿67.8

-56.44%

White Bread (500g)

$0.62 MAD 6.02

$1.41 ฿47.34

-56.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.95 MAD 19.04

$1.39 ฿46.79

40.29%

Eggs

$1.89 MAD 18.51

$2.37 ฿79.6

-20.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.30 MAD 110

$16.52 ฿555

-31.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.51 MAD 63.6

$2.67 ฿89.8

143.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.09 MAD 118

$9.02 ฿303

34.04%

Apples (1kg)

$1.38 MAD 13.45

$2.40 ฿80.6

-42.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 MAD 11.83

$1.04 ฿35.01

16.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.94 MAD 9.22

$1.66 ฿55.8

-43.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.88 MAD 8.65

$1.56 ฿52.4

-43.59%

Potato (1kg)

$0.70 MAD 6.88

$1.24 ฿41.61

-43.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.73 MAD 7.14

$1.09 ฿36.53

-33.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.43 MAD 4.19

$0.76 ฿25.61

-43.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 MAD 6.03

$0.51 ฿17.29

21.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.81 MAD 37.20

$4.12 ฿139

-7.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.50 MAD 43.94

$17.93 ฿603

-74.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.12 MAD 20.71

$1.62 ฿54.6

30.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 MAD 20.88

$2.82 ฿94.9

-24.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.54 MAD 5.27

$0.93 ฿31.42

-41.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.81 MAD 223

$52.9 ฿1,778

-56.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 MAD 7.21

$1.18 ฿39.56

-37.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 MAD 5.21

$0.17 ฿5.76

211.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.06 MAD 39.65

$1.81 ฿60.9

124.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 MAD 14.26

$1.47 ฿49.51

-0.68%

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

$30.3K MAD 295.8K

$21.0K ฿706.4K

44.05%

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

$29.8K MAD 291.2K

$26.5K ฿891.4K

12.38%

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

$37.19 MAD 364

$62.6 ฿2,103

-40.55%

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

$10.04 MAD 98.1

$11.60 ฿390

-13.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.87 MAD 399

$20.30 ฿683

101.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.01 MAD 156

$37.88 ฿1,274

-57.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$40.98 MAD 401

$3.70 ฿124

1007.57%

Cinema Ticket

$5.03 MAD 49.19

$6.51 ฿219

-22.73%

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

$101 MAD 986

$727 ฿24.4K

-86.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,838 MAD 57.1K

$16.6K ฿557.2K

-64.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.59 MAD 309

$53.5 ฿1,800

-41.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.56 MAD 455

$24.80 ฿834

87.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.8 MAD 701

$90.4 ฿3,039

-20.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.4 MAD 629

$72.0 ฿2,420

-10.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$205 MAD 1,999

$481 ฿16.2K

-57.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$100 MAD 978

$310 ฿10.4K

-67.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$356 MAD 3,478

$1,058 ฿35.6K

-66.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$256 MAD 2,504

$659 ฿22.1K

-61.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,126 MAD 11.0K

$2,418 ฿81.3K

-53.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$812 MAD 7,936

$1,609 ฿54.1K

-49.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$508 MAD 4,962

$595 ฿20.0K

-14.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-10.23%

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

Last update for Sale: October 31, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Sale

$192 30.7%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 23.3% $45

Accommodation & Living

Sale

$100 16%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1% 210% $210

Clothing & Footwear

Sale

$96 15.4%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 12.3% $12

Eating Out

Sale

$94 15.1%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 18.7% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sale

$88 14.1%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 7.2% $6.4

Getting Around

Sale

$28 4.5%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 107% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Sale

$26 4.2%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 95.2% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $205 in Sale 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 17% higher in Chiang Mai, 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 $18 in Sale versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $192 vs $237 – making Sale the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇦 Sale

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

18:31 6:31 PM

01:31 1:31 AM

7 h ahead of Sale

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

890,403

127,240

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.23 USD

100 MAD = 9.13 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 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 November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 9.77 MAD (1 MAD = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.13 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.69 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to MAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

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

From you

Sale
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 50% more than Sale, 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 $938 per month in Sale 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 Sale, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $205 there versus $481 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $101 per month in Sale and $727 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 23% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Sale, where all-in costs run around $625, than in Chiang Mai at $935. In Sale it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Sale – 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.

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