Cost of Living Comparison Between Sandakan, Sabah and Chiang Mai Cost of Living Comparison Between Sandakan, Sabah and Chiang Mai

🙂 Solo nomad: Sandakan, Sabah is 6.6% cheaper than Chiang Mai without rent, and 4% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Sandakan, Sabah is 16.2% cheaper than Chiang Mai without rent, and 4.7% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.42 MYR 9.81

$1.97 ฿62.0

22.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.94 MYR 76.9

$18.68 ฿587

1.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.59 MYR 18.65

$7.92 ฿249

-42.05%

Cappuccino

$2.64 MYR 10.73

$2.02 ฿63.7

30.69%

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

$0.65 MYR 2.65

$0.84 ฿26.45

-22.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 MYR 1.02

$0.35 ฿11.07

-28.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 MYR 9.78

$2.22 ฿69.9

8.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.56 MYR 14.45

$3.59 ฿113

-0.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 MYR 6.82

$1.67 ฿52.4

0.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.24 MYR 5.05

$1.62 ฿51.1

-23.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.21 MYR 4.90

$1.20 ฿37.83

0.83%

Eggs

$2.75 MYR 11.16

$1.93 ฿60.8

42.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.29 MYR 62.1

$16.00 ฿503

-4.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.59 MYR 14.57

$3.16 ฿99.2

13.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.19 MYR 29.19

$10.93 ฿344

-34.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.54 MYR 10.29

$2.67 ฿83.8

-4.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.16 MYR 4.71

$1.18 ฿36.99

-1.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.17 MYR 12.86

$1.64 ฿51.5

93.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.92 MYR 7.79

$1.59 ฿49.83

20.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.84

$1.32 ฿41.64

-9.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.31 MYR 5.32

$1.19 ฿37.49

10.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 MYR 4.41

$0.71 ฿22.20

53.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 MYR 2.07

$0.56 ฿17.75

-8.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MYR 16.85

$4.64 ฿146

-10.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.00 MYR 73.1

$18.96 ฿596

-5.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 MYR 7.72

$1.77 ฿55.7

7.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 MYR 6.87

$3.20 ฿101

-47.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 MYR 2.75

$0.90 ฿28.32

-24.44%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.80 MYR 47.90

$19.24 ฿605

-38.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 MYR 4.72

$1.36 ฿42.78

-14.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 MYR 4.00

$1.35 ฿42.37

-27.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.99 MYR 24.33

$8.15 ฿256

-26.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.46 MYR 1.87

$1.22 ฿38.43

-62.30%

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

$29.6K MYR 120.0K

$21.4K ฿671.8K

38.36%

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

$27.2K MYR 110.5K

$21.7K ฿683.8K

25.09%

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

$46.59 MYR 189

$70.3 ฿2,210

-33.73%

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

$3.64 MYR 14.78

$13.91 ฿437

-73.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.74 MYR 96.4

$18.00 ฿566

31.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.54 MYR 148

$41.78 ฿1,314

-12.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.77 MYR 23.41

$6.80 ฿214

-15.15%

Cinema Ticket

$2.88 MYR 11.70

$5.72 ฿180

-49.65%

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

$95.3 MYR 387

$308 ฿9,693

-69.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,547 MYR 18.5K

$14.8K ฿465.7K

-69.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.0 MYR 240

$55.9 ฿1,756

5.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.74 MYR 92.3

$26.71 ฿840

-14.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.1 MYR 289

$84.5 ฿2,658

-15.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.7 MYR 380

$70.8 ฿2,227

32.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$384 MYR 1,560

$431 ฿13.5K

-10.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$274 MYR 1,114

$237 ฿7,439

16.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$654 MYR 2,657

$811 ฿25.5K

-19.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$468 MYR 1,899

$501 ฿15.7K

-6.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,451 MYR 5,893

$2,202 ฿69.2K

-34.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$903 MYR 3,667

$1,600 ฿50.3K

-43.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$752 MYR 3,052

$684 ฿21.5K

9.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

-40.00%

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

Last update for Sandakan, Sabah: January 10, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: January 13, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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