Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Selangor and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,020 in Selangor, rent and utilities included – about $980 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Selangor
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Selangor Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Selangor

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,020

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,020 per month in Selangor vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Selangor $1,020
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $1,469 per month in Selangor vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Selangor $1,469
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $1,918 per month in Selangor vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Selangor $1,918
Chiang Mai $1,914

Selangor costs about 9% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Selangor and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Selangor 24% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.33 MYR 17.67

$2.26 ฿75.4

91.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.20 MYR 78.3

$19.18 ฿641

0.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.04 MYR 16.46

$5.59 ฿187

-27.73%

Cappuccino

$2.26 MYR 9.23

$1.72 ฿57.6

31.40%

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

$0.78 MYR 3.18

$0.64 ฿21.54

21.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 MYR 1.93

$0.33 ฿11.18

42.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.43 MYR 18.08

$2.36 ฿78.7

87.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.96 MYR 20.24

$3.90 ฿130

27.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.93 MYR 7.87

$2.05 ฿68.6

-5.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 MYR 4.30

$1.40 ฿46.70

-25.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 MYR 6.25

$1.28 ฿42.89

19.53%

Eggs

$1.92 MYR 7.82

$2.25 ฿75.3

-14.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.26 MYR 58.2

$16.94 ฿566

-15.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.36 MYR 17.78

$2.74 ฿91.6

59.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.60 MYR 39.16

$9.36 ฿313

2.56%

Apples (1kg)

$3.44 MYR 14.04

$2.40 ฿80.3

43.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 MYR 7.52

$1.01 ฿33.92

82.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 MYR 9.55

$1.61 ฿53.9

45.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.59 MYR 6.49

$1.52 ฿50.7

4.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.34 MYR 5.45

$1.28 ฿42.90

4.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 MYR 4.21

$1.11 ฿37.22

-7.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 MYR 4.52

$0.72 ฿24.09

54.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MYR 2.19

$0.52 ฿17.54

3.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.50 MYR 18.35

$4.33 ฿145

3.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.53 MYR 79.7

$17.73 ฿593

10.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.59 MYR 14.64

$1.63 ฿54.4

120.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.86 MYR 19.81

$2.85 ฿95.3

70.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 MYR 4.87

$0.85 ฿28.31

40.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.26 MYR 50.0

$53.9 ฿1,801

-77.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.24 MYR 5.06

$1.17 ฿39.18

5.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 MYR 5.10

$0.57 ฿19.00

119.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.34 MYR 17.72

$2.37 ฿79.2

83.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.73 MYR 2.99

$1.45 ฿48.32

-49.66%

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

$41.9K MYR 171.0K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

104.67%

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

$35.3K MYR 143.8K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

32.95%

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

$63.4 MYR 258

$62.3 ฿2,083

1.65%

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

$8.50 MYR 34.69

$12.27 ฿410

-30.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.97 MYR 106

$19.97 ฿668

30.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.09 MYR 168

$37.91 ฿1,267

8.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.87 MYR 28.04

$3.76 ฿126

82.71%

Cinema Ticket

$5.05 MYR 20.59

$6.71 ฿224

-24.74%

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

$122 MYR 499

$797 ฿26.6K

-84.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,175 MYR 29.3K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-51.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.8 MYR 289

$53.3 ฿1,780

33.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.40 MYR 169

$25.05 ฿837

65.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.1 MYR 315

$91.6 ฿3,062

-15.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.0 MYR 339

$73.5 ฿2,455

12.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$511 MYR 2,083

$464 ฿15.5K

10.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$346 MYR 1,413

$305 ฿10.2K

13.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$880 MYR 3,589

$915 ฿30.6K

-3.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$481 MYR 1,963

$552 ฿18.5K

-12.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,578 MYR 6,438

$1,912 ฿63.9K

-17.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$705 MYR 2,875

$1,438 ฿48.1K

-51.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,019 MYR 4,157

$595 ฿19.9K

71.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.96

5.57

-28.90%

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

Last update for Selangor: October 12, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Selangor

$346 34%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 12% $42

Groceries & Markets

Selangor

$266 26.1%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 10.6% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Selangor

$123 12%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 10.6% $13

Eating Out

Selangor

$111 10.9%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 28.8% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Selangor

$98 9.6%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 3.3% $3.3

Sport & Entertainment

Selangor

$51 5%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 0.3% $0.2

Getting Around

Selangor

$25 2.4%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 150% $37

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $511 in Selangor versus $464 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 71% higher in Selangor, 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 $19.00 in Selangor versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $266 in Selangor vs $238 in Chiang Mai – so Chiang Mai wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Selangor

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

07:25 7:25 AM

06:25 6:25 AM

1 h behind Selangor

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

281,717

127,240

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Selangor Chiang Mai 1,740 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Selangor
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

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

Selangor costs about 9% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,529 per month in Selangor and $1,408 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $122 per month in Selangor and $797 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 12% more in Selangor, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $938, than in Selangor at $1,020. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Selangor it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,020 in Selangor. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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