Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Southwark and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,486 in Southwark, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. The total is higher in Southwark despite lower rent and utilities.

72

Cost of Living Index in Southwark
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Southwark Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Southwark

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,486

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,486 per month in Southwark vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Southwark $1,486
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $4,262 per month in Southwark vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Southwark $4,262
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $7,038 per month in Southwark vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Southwark $7,038
Chiang Mai $1,903

Southwark costs about 61% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Southwark sits 10% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.00 £18.76

$2.29 ฿76.5

991.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 £75.6

$19.64 ฿656

413.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.67 £8.00

$5.61 ฿188

90.20%

Cappuccino

$5.70 £4.28

$1.66 ฿55.6

243.37%

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

$3.05 £2.29

$0.70 ฿23.40

335.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 £1.95

$0.31 ฿10.24

738.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.29 £6.97

$2.41 ฿80.4

285.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.28 £6.21

$3.71 ฿124

123.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.95 ฿65.3

-1.54%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 £1.54

$1.41 ฿47.03

45.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 £1.65

$1.31 ฿43.62

67.94%

Eggs

$4.38 £3.29

$2.18 ฿72.9

100.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.90 £8.93

$16.65 ฿556

-28.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.07 £6.80

$2.76 ฿92.2

228.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.57 £11.68

$9.11 ฿304

70.91%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 £2.29

$2.39 ฿80.0

27.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 £1.08

$1.03 ฿34.26

39.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.98 £2.24

$1.63 ฿54.4

82.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.52 £2.64

$1.50 ฿50.0

134.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.66 £1.25

$1.29 ฿43.13

28.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.79 £1.34

$1.11 ฿37.03

61.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 £1.02

$0.72 ฿24.08

88.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.86 £1.39

$0.53 ฿17.59

250.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.44 £17.59

$4.31 ฿144

443.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.16 £9.12

$17.95 ฿600

-32.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.05 £2.29

$1.58 ฿52.9

93.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 £2.42

$2.84 ฿95.0

13.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.89 £2.92

$0.86 ฿28.86

352.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$157 £118

$53.3 ฿1,780

194.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.97 £3.73

$1.21 ฿40.29

310.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.72 £2.04

$0.57 ฿18.99

377.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.66 £29.75

$2.35 ฿78.6

1587.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 £1.62

$1.44 ฿47.96

49.31%

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

$37.9K £28.4K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

82.58%

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

$39.9K £30.0K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

49.06%

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

$335 £251

$62.3 ฿2,083

436.96%

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

$18.37 £13.78

$12.11 ฿405

51.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.35 £30.27

$19.94 ฿666

102.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.07 ฿1,239

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$18.05 £13.54

$6.50 ฿217

177.69%

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

$2,557 £1,919

$793 ฿26.5K

222.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.4K £22.8K

$14.8K ฿494.9K

105.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.1 £69.9

$53.7 ฿1,796

73.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.53 £34.91

$24.62 ฿823

88.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 £77.5

$90.9 ฿3,036

13.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.0 £67.5

$71.1 ฿2,378

26.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,307 £1,731

$455 ฿15.2K

406.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ฿9,954

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,586 £4,190

$908 ฿30.4K

514.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,792 £2,844

$554 ฿18.5K

584.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,931 ฿64.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,185 £3,140

$591 ฿19.7K

608.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.12

5.57

-8.08%

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

Last update for Southwark: October 18, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Southwark

$393 26.5%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 76% $299

Eating Out

Southwark

$386 26%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 79.6% $307

Groceries & Markets

Southwark

$329 22.2%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 28.5% $94

Getting Around

Southwark

$191 12.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 68.2% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Southwark

$150 10.1%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 27.8% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Southwark

$36 * 2.4%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 38.7% $14

Accommodation & Living

Southwark

- * 0%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,307 in Southwark versus $455 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 608% higher in Southwark, 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 $101 in Southwark versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $329 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Southwark

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

11:51 11:51 AM

17:51 5:51 PM

6 h ahead of Southwark

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

71,552

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Southwark Chiang Mai 8,990 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Southwark
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

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

Southwark costs about 61% 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 $2,229 per month in Southwark and $1,388 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 $2,557 per month in Southwark and $793 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 40% more in Southwark, 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 $925, than in Southwark at $1,486. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Southwark it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $1,486 in Southwark. 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, Southwark makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.