Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shiraz and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Shiraz: $542 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

26

Cost of Living Index in Shiraz
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Shiraz Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Shiraz

🇮🇷 Iran

$542

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $542 per month in Shiraz vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Shiraz $542
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $813 per month in Shiraz vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Shiraz $813
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,084 per month in Shiraz vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Shiraz $1,084
Chiang Mai $1,979

Shiraz is about 42% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Shiraz and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Shiraz 60% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.63 $4.63

$2.24 ฿75.5

106.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.20 $13.20

$19.00 ฿640

-30.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.07 $4.07

$5.55 ฿187

-26.67%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.98 $0.98

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 $1.80

Cappuccino

$1.21 $1.21

$1.67 ฿56.4

-27.54%

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

$0.62 $0.62

$0.64 ฿21.51

-3.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.29

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿123

Milk (1 liter)

$0.70 $0.70

$1.95 ฿65.7

-64.10%

White Bread (500g)

$0.41 $0.41

$1.44 ฿48.41

-71.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 $1.88

$1.33 ฿44.97

41.35%

Eggs

$1.18 $1.18

$2.28 ฿77.0

-48.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.27 $2.27

$16.45 ฿554

-86.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.98 $2.98

$2.78 ฿93.8

7.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.58 $9.58

$9.31 ฿314

2.90%

Apples (1kg)

$1.11 $1.11

$2.35 ฿79.3

-52.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 $1.55

$0.97 ฿32.75

59.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.89 $0.89

$1.60 ฿53.8

-44.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.60 $0.60

$1.50 ฿50.6

-60.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.57 $0.57

$1.28 ฿43.06

-55.47%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 $0.52

$1.10 ฿37.14

-52.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.47 $0.47

$0.71 ฿23.79

-33.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.21 $0.21

$0.49 ฿16.34

-57.14%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.89 $0.89

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 $0.60

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 $1.73

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 $3.04

$4.14 ฿140

-26.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿590

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.8

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.11 $0.11

$0.87 ฿29.27

-87.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$2.95 $2.95

$54.1 ฿1,823

-94.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.41 $0.41

$1.16 ฿39.00

-64.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.20 $0.20

$0.53 ฿17.78

-62.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 $3.43

$2.42 ฿81.6

41.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.82

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

$64.9K $64.9K

$21.1K ฿709.7K

208.16%

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

$53.3K $53.3K

$26.9K ฿907.9K

97.89%

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

$23.44 $23.44

$62.2 ฿2,095

-62.30%

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

$1.98 $1.98

$12.17 ฿410

-83.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.86 $16.86

$20.12 ฿678

-16.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.75 $18.75

$37.31 ฿1,257

-49.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.68 $13.68

$3.77 ฿127

262.86%

Cinema Ticket

$2.02 $2.02

$6.49 ฿219

-68.88%

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

$102 $102

$736 ฿24.8K

-86.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,401 $2,401

$14.8K ฿497.6K

-83.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.72 $22.72

$53.4 ฿1,799

-57.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.07 $18.07

$24.64 ฿830

-26.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.8 $93.8

$91.5 ฿3,083

2.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.6 $55.6

$71.9 ฿2,424

-22.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$293 $293

$482 ฿16.3K

-39.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$218 $218

$309 ฿10.4K

-29.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$526 $526

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-47.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$325 $325

$633 ฿21.3K

-48.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,127 $1,127

$2,363 ฿79.6K

-52.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$517 $517

$1,589 ฿53.6K

-67.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$243 $243

$590 ฿19.9K

-58.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

24.3

5.57

336.27%

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

Last update for Shiraz: 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

Shiraz

$218 40.2%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 41.9% $91

Groceries & Markets

Shiraz

$102 18.9%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 129% $132

Clothing & Footwear

Shiraz

$86 15.8%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 27% $23

Eating Out

Shiraz

$66 * 12.2%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 17.1% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shiraz

$42 7.8%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 123% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Shiraz

$23 4.2%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 121% $27

Getting Around

Shiraz

$4.8 0.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 1181% $57

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $293 in Shiraz 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 Chiang Mai are about 2.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $13 in Shiraz versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $102 vs $234 – making Shiraz the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇷 Shiraz

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

09:59 9:59 AM

13:29 1:29 PM

3 h 30 min ahead of Shiraz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,565,572

127,240

💱 Currency

USD USD

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Shiraz Chiang Mai 4,830 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Shiraz
Chiang Mai

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

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

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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

Chiang Mai costs about 73% more than Shiraz, 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 $813 per month in Shiraz 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 Shiraz, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $293 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $102 per month in Shiraz 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 129% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Shiraz. 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.