Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tulcán and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living costs are similar in Tulcán and in Chiang Mai: $920 and $936 a month, rent and utilities included.

43

Cost of Living Index in Tulcán
Learn more

Tulcán Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

Tulcán

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$920

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $920 per month in Tulcán vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tulcán $920
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,503 per month in Tulcán vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tulcán $1,503
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $2,086 per month in Tulcán vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tulcán $2,086
Chiang Mai $1,979

Tulcán and Chiang Mai have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Tulcán and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Tulcán 32% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.41 $5.41

$2.24 ฿75.5

141.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.1 $54.1

$19.00 ฿640

184.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.44 $7.44

$5.55 ฿187

34.05%

Cappuccino

$3.29 $3.29

$1.67 ฿56.4

97.01%

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

$1.44 $1.44

$0.64 ฿21.51

125.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.04 $1.04

$0.31 ฿10.29

235.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 $3.40

$2.36 ฿79.5

44.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.14 $6.14

$3.66 ฿123

67.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 $1.10

$1.95 ฿65.7

-43.59%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 $1.56

$1.44 ฿48.41

8.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 $1.51

$1.33 ฿44.97

13.53%

Eggs

$2.07 $2.07

$2.28 ฿77.0

-9.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.24 $6.24

$16.45 ฿554

-62.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.19 $5.19

$2.78 ฿93.8

86.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.61 $7.61

$9.31 ฿314

-18.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 $2.26

$2.35 ฿79.3

-3.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.23 $1.23

$0.97 ฿32.75

26.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.26 $1.26

$1.60 ฿53.8

-21.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.10 $1.10

$1.50 ฿50.6

-26.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 $1.24

$1.28 ฿43.06

-3.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.10 ฿37.14

-7.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 $0.87

$0.71 ฿23.79

22.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 $0.99

$0.49 ฿16.34

102.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.09 $6.09

$4.14 ฿140

47.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.41 $8.41

$17.52 ฿590

-52.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 $1.52

$1.61 ฿54.4

-5.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 $3.18

$2.78 ฿93.8

14.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 $0.39

$0.87 ฿29.27

-55.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.16 ฿39.00

32.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 $1.54

$0.53 ฿17.78

190.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.05 $10.05

$2.42 ฿81.6

315.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 $0.87

$1.45 ฿48.82

-40.00%

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

$23.1K $23.1K

$21.1K ฿709.7K

9.91%

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

$29.5K $29.5K

$26.9K ฿907.9K

9.40%

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

$28.27 $28.27

$62.2 ฿2,095

-54.53%

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

$17.94 $17.94

$12.17 ฿410

47.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.72 $28.72

$20.12 ฿678

42.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.61 $31.61

$37.31 ฿1,257

-15.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.41 $14.41

$3.77 ฿127

282.23%

Cinema Ticket

$6.56 $6.56

$6.49 ฿219

1.08%

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

$750 $750

$736 ฿24.8K

1.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,960 $8,960

$14.8K ฿497.6K

-39.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.7 $70.7

$53.4 ฿1,799

32.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.23 $49.23

$24.64 ฿830

99.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 $114

$91.5 ฿3,083

24.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 $107

$71.9 ฿2,424

49.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$483 $483

$482 ฿16.3K

0.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$302 $302

$309 ฿10.4K

-2.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$786 $786

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-21.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$545 $545

$633 ฿21.3K

-13.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.12

5.57

81.69%

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

Last update for Tulcán: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tulcán

$302 32.9%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 2.1% $6.5

Groceries & Markets

Tulcán

$189 20.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 23.7% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Tulcán

$153 16.7%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 29.1% $45

Eating Out

Tulcán

$144 15.7%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 46.2% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tulcán

$75 8.2%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 26% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Tulcán

$45 4.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 12.4% $5.6

Getting Around

Tulcán

$11 * 1.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 469% $51

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $483 in Tulcán 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $54 in Tulcán versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $189 in Tulcán vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Tulcán wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Tulcán

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

00:01 12:01 AM

12:01 12:01 PM

12 h ahead of Tulcán

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

82,734

127,240

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.65 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 November 3, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.77 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tulcán Chiang Mai 17,810 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Tulcán
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

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

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,380 per month in Tulcán and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $483 in Tulcán and $482 in Chiang Mai. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Groceries cost about 24% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $54 in Tulcán and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $920 in Tulcán and $936 in Chiang Mai, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $920 in Tulcán to $936 in Chiang Mai. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.