Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Leandro, CA and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $3,483 in San Leandro, CA, rent and utilities included – about $30,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

166

Cost of Living Index in San Leandro, CA
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San Leandro, CA Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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San Leandro, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,483

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,483 per month in San Leandro, CA vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

San Leandro, CA $3,483
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $5,059 per month in San Leandro, CA vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

San Leandro, CA $5,059
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $6,634 per month in San Leandro, CA vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

San Leandro, CA $6,634
Chiang Mai $1,979

San Leandro, CA costs about 272% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

San Leandro, CA sits 156% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.50 $25.50

$2.24 ฿75.7

1038.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$111 $111

$19.00 ฿642

485.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.84 $14.84

$5.55 ฿188

167.39%

Cappuccino

$6.10 $6.10

$1.67 ฿56.6

265.27%

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

$3.21 $3.21

$0.64 ฿21.56

401.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$0.31 ฿10.32

796.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.90 $7.90

$2.36 ฿79.6

234.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.84 $8.84

$3.66 ฿124

141.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.95 ฿65.8

-9.74%

White Bread (500g)

$5.24 $5.24

$1.44 ฿48.51

263.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.86 $4.86

$1.33 ฿45.07

265.41%

Eggs

$5.84 $5.84

$2.28 ฿77.1

156.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.22 $15.22

$16.45 ฿556

-7.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.05 $13.05

$2.78 ฿94.0

369.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.80 $22.80

$9.31 ฿314

144.90%

Apples (1kg)

$6.07 $6.07

$2.35 ฿79.5

158.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 $1.53

$0.97 ฿32.82

57.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.42 $4.42

$1.60 ฿53.9

176.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.46 $6.46

$1.50 ฿50.7

330.67%

Potato (1kg)

$3.00 $3.00

$1.28 ฿43.15

134.38%

Onion (1kg)

$2.72 $2.72

$1.10 ฿37.22

147.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.03 $2.03

$0.71 ฿23.84

185.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.99 $1.99

$0.49 ฿16.38

306.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.95 $11.95

$4.14 ฿140

188.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.36 $14.36

$17.52 ฿592

-18.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$1.61 ฿54.5

8.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 $3.70

$2.78 ฿94.0

33.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.70 $5.70

$0.87 ฿29.33

555.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.6 $97.6

$54.1 ฿1,827

80.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.23 $4.23

$1.16 ฿39.08

264.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.00 $2.00

$0.53 ฿17.82

277.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.81 $38.81

$2.42 ฿81.8

1503.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 $1.56

$1.45 ฿48.93

7.59%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$21.1K ฿711.2K

29.24%

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

$26.2K $26.2K

$26.9K ฿909.8K

-2.77%

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

$240 $240

$62.2 ฿2,100

286.65%

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

$50.9 $50.9

$12.17 ฿411

318.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$77.0 $77.0

$20.12 ฿680

282.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.58 $49.58

$37.31 ฿1,260

32.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$16.03 $16.03

$6.49 ฿219

147.00%

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

$2,923 $2,923

$736 ฿24.9K

297.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$43.1K $43.1K

$14.8K ฿498.6K

191.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.4 $66.4

$53.4 ฿1,802

24.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.43 $39.43

$24.64 ฿832

60.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.3 $88.3

$91.5 ฿3,089

-3.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 $121

$71.9 ฿2,429

67.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,357 $2,357

$482 ฿16.3K

388.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,882 $1,882

$309 ฿10.4K

509.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,652 $3,652

$1,006 ฿34.0K

263.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,985 $2,985

$633 ฿21.4K

371.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,091 $5,091

$2,363 ฿79.8K

115.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,028 $4,028

$1,589 ฿53.7K

153.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,390 $5,390

$590 ฿19.9K

813.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.76

5.57

21.36%

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

Last update for San Leandro, CA: 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

San Leandro, CA

$1.9K 54%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 83.6% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

San Leandro, CA

$473 13.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 50.4% $238

Eating Out

San Leandro, CA

$403 11.6%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 80.7% $325

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Leandro, CA

$368 10.6%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 74.3% $274

Clothing & Footwear

San Leandro, CA

$142 4.1%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 23.3% $33

Getting Around

San Leandro, CA

$135 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 54.4% $73

Sport & Entertainment

San Leandro, CA

$82 2.3%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 38.4% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,357 in San Leandro, CA 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 San Leandro, CA are about 9.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $111 in San Leandro, CA versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $473 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 San Leandro, CA

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

15:14 3:14 PM

05:14 5:14 AM

14 h ahead of San Leandro, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

88,815

127,240

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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San Leandro, CA Chiang Mai 12,400 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

San Leandro, CA
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

San Leandro, CA vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Leandro, CA costs about 272% 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 $5,225 per month in San Leandro, CA 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 $2,357 in San Leandro, CA.

Kindergarten costs $2,923 per month in San Leandro, CA 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 102% more in San Leandro, CA, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,483 in San Leandro, CA and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Chiang Mai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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