Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santiago and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,163 in Santiago, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

56

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,163

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,163 per month in Santiago vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santiago $1,163
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,844 per month in Santiago vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santiago $1,844
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $2,525 per month in Santiago vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santiago $2,525
Chiang Mai $1,979

Santiago costs about 24% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Santiago and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Santiago 15% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.93 CLP 9,771

$2.24 ฿75.7

343.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.88 CLP 49.1K

$19.00 ฿642

162.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.64 CLP 8,502

$5.55 ฿188

55.68%

Cappuccino

$3.16 CLP 3,110

$1.67 ฿56.6

89.22%

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

$1.65 CLP 1,626

$0.64 ฿21.56

157.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.24 CLP 1,223

$0.31 ฿10.32

300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.12 CLP 4,052

$2.36 ฿79.6

74.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 CLP 4,530

$3.66 ฿124

25.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 CLP 1,203

$1.95 ฿65.8

-37.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.82 CLP 1,786

$1.44 ฿48.51

26.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 CLP 1,557

$1.33 ฿45.07

18.80%

Eggs

$4.04 CLP 3,975

$2.28 ฿77.1

77.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.96 CLP 10.8K

$16.45 ฿556

-33.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.66 CLP 6,552

$2.78 ฿94.0

139.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.32 CLP 10.2K

$9.31 ฿314

10.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.02 CLP 1,983

$2.35 ฿79.5

-14.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 CLP 1,464

$0.97 ฿32.82

53.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.58 CLP 1,553

$1.60 ฿53.9

-1.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.72 CLP 1,688

$1.50 ฿50.7

14.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 CLP 1,027

$1.28 ฿43.15

-18.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.51 CLP 1,485

$1.10 ฿37.22

37.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 CLP 1,198

$0.71 ฿23.84

71.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 CLP 1,082

$0.49 ฿16.38

124.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.10 CLP 5,014

$4.14 ฿140

23.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.93 CLP 5,834

$17.52 ฿592

-66.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 CLP 1,456

$1.61 ฿54.5

-8.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 CLP 2,211

$2.78 ฿94.0

-19.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.84 CLP 824

$0.87 ฿29.33

-3.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.64 CLP 40.0K

$54.1 ฿1,827

-24.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.38 CLP 375

$1.16 ฿39.08

-67.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.82 CLP 805

$0.53 ฿17.82

54.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.53 CLP 11.3K

$2.42 ฿81.8

376.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 CLP 1,500

$1.45 ฿48.93

4.83%

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

$16.8K CLP 16.6M

$21.1K ฿711.2K

-20.08%

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

$24.9K CLP 24.5M

$26.9K ฿909.8K

-7.50%

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

$146 CLP 143.3K

$62.2 ฿2,100

134.36%

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

$12.20 CLP 12.0K

$12.17 ฿411

0.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.80 CLP 18.5K

$20.12 ฿680

-6.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.41 CLP 31.9K

$37.31 ฿1,260

-13.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.68 CLP 11.5K

$3.77 ฿127

209.81%

Cinema Ticket

$7.58 CLP 7,461

$6.49 ฿219

16.80%

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

$440 CLP 432.6K

$736 ฿24.9K

-40.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K CLP 10.5M

$14.8K ฿498.6K

-27.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.81 CLP 48.0K

$53.4 ฿1,802

-8.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.87 CLP 28.4K

$24.64 ฿832

17.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.4 CLP 63.3K

$91.5 ฿3,089

-29.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.9 CLP 79.6K

$71.9 ฿2,429

12.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$497 CLP 488.9K

$482 ฿16.3K

3.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 CLP 367.4K

$309 ฿10.4K

20.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$989 CLP 972.6K

$1,006 ฿34.0K

-1.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$750 CLP 737.8K

$633 ฿21.4K

18.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,960 CLP 2.9M

$2,363 ฿79.8K

25.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,517 CLP 2.5M

$1,589 ฿53.7K

58.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$771 CLP 758.5K

$590 ฿19.9K

30.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

5.57

-3.23%

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

Last update for Santiago: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santiago

$373 32.1%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 17.3% $65

Groceries & Markets

Santiago

$232 19.9%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 1.1% $2.5

Eating Out

Santiago

$185 15.9%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 58% $107

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santiago

$177 15.2%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 46.5% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Santiago

$100 8.6%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 8.3% $8.3

Getting Around

Santiago

$48 4.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 26.6% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Santiago

$48 4.1%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 5.7% $2.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $497 in Santiago 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 run about 31% higher in Santiago. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50 in Santiago versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $232 in Santiago vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Santiago wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Santiago

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

08:07 8:07 AM

18:07 6:07 PM

10 h ahead of Santiago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,139,087 Capital

127,240

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.17 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.13 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CLP – Chilean Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,095 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.13 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Santiago Chiang Mai 18,090 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Santiago
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

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

Santiago costs about 24% 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 $1,745 per month in Santiago and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $497 in Santiago and $482 in Chiang Mai. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50 in Santiago and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 25% less in Santiago. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,163 in Santiago 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 $1,163 in Santiago. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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