Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tikrit and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Tikrit: $679 a month against $938 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Tikrit
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Tikrit Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Tikrit

🇮🇶 Iraq

$679

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $679 per month in Tikrit vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tikrit $679
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $1,048 per month in Tikrit vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tikrit $1,048
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $1,417 per month in Tikrit vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tikrit $1,417
Chiang Mai $1,914

Tikrit is about 28% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Tikrit and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Tikrit 50% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.85 IQD 5,819

$2.26 ฿75.4

70.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.66 IQD 31.2K

$19.18 ฿641

7.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.74 IQD 8,666

$5.59 ฿187

2.68%

Cappuccino

$2.18 IQD 3,301

$1.72 ฿57.6

26.74%

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

$0.38 IQD 570

$0.64 ฿21.54

-40.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.19 IQD 293

$0.33 ฿11.18

-42.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.29 IQD 4,975

$2.36 ฿78.7

39.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 IQD 3,558

$3.90 ฿130

-39.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 IQD 1,609

$2.05 ฿68.6

-48.29%

White Bread (500g)

$0.66 IQD 996

$1.40 ฿46.70

-52.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.34 IQD 2,020

$1.28 ฿42.89

4.69%

Eggs

$1.31 IQD 1,981

$2.25 ฿75.3

-41.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.17 IQD 6,304

$16.94 ฿566

-75.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.93 IQD 5,946

$2.74 ฿91.6

43.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.29 IQD 15.5K

$9.36 ฿313

9.94%

Apples (1kg)

$1.09 IQD 1,646

$2.40 ฿80.3

-54.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.01 IQD 1,528

$1.01 ฿33.92

Oranges (1kg)

$0.98 IQD 1,482

$1.61 ฿53.9

-39.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.65 IQD 982

$1.52 ฿50.7

-57.24%

Potato (1kg)

$0.48 IQD 731

$1.28 ฿42.90

-62.50%

Onion (1kg)

$0.56 IQD 842

$1.11 ฿37.22

-49.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.53 IQD 808

$0.72 ฿24.09

-26.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 IQD 656

$0.52 ฿17.54

-17.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.52 IQD 2,289

$4.33 ฿145

-64.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.19 IQD 16.9K

$17.73 ฿593

-36.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 IQD 2,299

$1.63 ฿54.4

-6.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 IQD 2,668

$2.85 ฿95.3

-37.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 IQD 584

$0.85 ฿28.31

-54.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.45 IQD 27.9K

$53.9 ฿1,801

-65.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.76 IQD 2,663

$1.17 ฿39.18

50.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 IQD 2,077

$0.57 ฿19.00

140.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.14 IQD 7,774

$2.37 ฿79.2

116.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 IQD 951

$1.45 ฿48.32

-56.55%

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

$16.2K IQD 24.5M

$20.5K ฿684.3K

-20.74%

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

$17.3K IQD 26.1M

$26.5K ฿886.1K

-34.89%

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

$99.3 IQD 150.0K

$62.3 ฿2,083

59.25%

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

$13.27 IQD 20.1K

$12.27 ฿410

8.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.71 IQD 34.3K

$19.97 ฿668

13.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.12 IQD 63.6K

$37.91 ฿1,267

11.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$9.03 IQD 13.6K

$6.71 ฿224

34.58%

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

$157 IQD 236.8K

$797 ฿26.6K

-80.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,647 IQD 4.0M

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-82.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$21.87 IQD 33.0K

$53.3 ฿1,780

-58.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.81 IQD 29.9K

$25.05 ฿837

-20.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.7 IQD 76.6K

$91.6 ฿3,062

-44.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$30.74 IQD 46.4K

$73.5 ฿2,455

-58.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$154 IQD 233.4K

$464 ฿15.5K

-66.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$149 IQD 224.7K

$305 ฿10.2K

-51.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$429 IQD 647.7K

$915 ฿30.6K

-53.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$331 IQD 499.9K

$552 ฿18.5K

-40.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$742 IQD 1.1M

$1,912 ฿63.9K

-61.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$496 IQD 749.8K

$1,438 ฿48.1K

-65.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$308 IQD 465.5K

$595 ฿19.9K

-48.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.33

5.57

-40.22%

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

Last update for Tikrit: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Tikrit

$153 22.6%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 55.5% $85

Accommodation & Living

Tikrit

$149 21.9%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 105% $156

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tikrit

$135 19.9%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 30.1% $41

Eating Out

Tikrit

$98 14.4%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 19.1% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Tikrit

$60 8.9%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 14.7% $8.8

Clothing & Footwear

Tikrit

$55 8.2%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 97.7% $54

Getting Around

Tikrit

$29 4.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 114% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $154 in Tikrit 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 93% higher in Chiang Mai, 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 $21.00 in Tikrit versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $153 in Tikrit vs $238 in Chiang Mai – so Tikrit wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇮🇶 Tikrit

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

20:35 8:35 PM

00:35 12:35 AM

4 h ahead of Tikrit

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

260,000

127,240

💱 Currency

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.89 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IQD – Iraqi Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇶 Iraqi Dinar (ع.د)

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,699 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.89 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to IQD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tikrit Chiang Mai 5,690 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Tikrit
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 38% more than Tikrit, 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 $1,018 per month in Tikrit 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 Tikrit, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $157 per month in Tikrit 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 56% more in Chiang Mai, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Tikrit, where all-in costs run around $679, than in Chiang Mai at $938. In Tikrit it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Tikrit costs $679 versus $938 in Chiang Mai. 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 Tikrit. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chiang Mai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.