Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santo Domingo, Ecuador and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Domingo: $723 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Santo Domingo
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Santo Domingo Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Santo Domingo

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$723

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $723 per month in Santo Domingo vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santo Domingo $723
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,190 per month in Santo Domingo vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santo Domingo $1,190
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,657 per month in Santo Domingo vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santo Domingo $1,657
Chiang Mai $1,979

Santo Domingo is about 23% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Santo Domingo and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Santo Domingo 47% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.96 $3.96

$2.24 ฿75.7

76.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.5 $51.5

$19.00 ฿642

170.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.15 $9.15

$5.55 ฿188

64.86%

Cappuccino

$1.98 $1.98

$1.67 ฿56.6

18.56%

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

$0.88 $0.88

$0.64 ฿21.56

37.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 $0.73

$0.31 ฿10.32

135.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.98 $1.98

$2.36 ฿79.6

-16.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.17 $4.17

$3.66 ฿124

13.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.95 ฿65.8

-47.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 $1.93

$1.44 ฿48.51

34.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 $1.31

$1.33 ฿45.07

-1.50%

Eggs

$2.01 $2.01

$2.28 ฿77.1

-11.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$16.45 ฿556

-73.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.99 $2.99

$2.78 ฿94.0

7.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$3.54 $3.54

$9.31 ฿314

-61.98%

Apples (1kg)

$1.51 $1.51

$2.35 ฿79.5

-35.74%

Banana (1kg)

$0.98 $0.98

$0.97 ฿32.82

1.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.60 ฿53.9

-36.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.92 $0.92

$1.50 ฿50.7

-38.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.98 $0.98

$1.28 ฿43.15

-23.44%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 $0.92

$1.10 ฿37.22

-16.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.82 $0.82

$0.71 ฿23.84

15.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 $0.99

$0.49 ฿16.38

102.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.87 $5.87

$4.14 ฿140

41.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.04 $5.04

$17.52 ฿592

-71.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 $1.50

$1.61 ฿54.5

-6.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 $2.13

$2.78 ฿94.0

-23.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.33 $0.33

$0.87 ฿29.33

-62.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.82 $2.82

$1.16 ฿39.08

143.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.80 $1.80

$0.53 ฿17.82

239.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.11 $12.11

$2.42 ฿81.8

400.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 $0.90

$1.45 ฿48.93

-37.93%

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

$23.1K $23.1K

$21.1K ฿711.2K

9.60%

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

$30.5K $30.5K

$26.9K ฿909.8K

13.24%

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

$34.76 $34.76

$62.2 ฿2,100

-44.09%

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

$9.83 $9.83

$12.17 ฿411

-19.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.21 $23.21

$20.12 ฿680

15.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.57 $32.57

$37.31 ฿1,260

-12.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.80 $17.80

$3.77 ฿127

372.15%

Cinema Ticket

$7.55 $7.55

$6.49 ฿219

16.33%

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

$379 $379

$736 ฿24.9K

-48.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,642 $5,642

$14.8K ฿498.6K

-61.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$19.97 $19.97

$53.4 ฿1,802

-62.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.92 $29.92

$24.64 ฿832

21.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.4 $50.4

$91.5 ฿3,089

-44.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.26 $49.26

$71.9 ฿2,429

-31.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$422 $422

$482 ฿16.3K

-12.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$274 $274

$309 ฿10.4K

-11.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 $832

$1,006 ฿34.0K

-17.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$499 $499

$633 ฿21.4K

-21.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$10.2K $10.2K

$1,589 ฿53.7K

541.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$401 $401

$590 ฿19.9K

-32.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.05

5.57

80.43%

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

Last update for Santo Domingo: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santo Domingo

$274 37.9%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 12.6% $35

Groceries & Markets

Santo Domingo

$145 20.1%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 61.3% $89

Eating Out

Santo Domingo

$108 14.9%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 27.9% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santo Domingo

$68 9.4%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 39.3% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Santo Domingo

$67 9.3%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 61.5% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Santo Domingo

$48 6.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 5.5% $2.6

Getting Around

Santo Domingo

$13 * 1.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 367% $48

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $422 in Santo Domingo 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 47% higher in Chiang Mai. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $51 in Santo Domingo versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $145 in Santo Domingo vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Santo Domingo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Santo Domingo

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

18:48 6:48 PM

06:48 6:48 AM

12 h ahead of Santo Domingo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

270,875

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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Between locations

Santo Domingo Chiang Mai 17,940 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Santo Domingo
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

Santo Domingo vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 29% more than Santo Domingo, 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 $1,085 per month in Santo Domingo 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 Santo Domingo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $422 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $51 in Santo Domingo and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 61% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Families tend to lean toward Santo Domingo – 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 Santo Domingo. 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.