Cost of Living Comparison Between Tulum and Chiang Mai Cost of Living Comparison Between Tulum and Chiang Mai

🙂 Solo nomad: Tulum is 1.5% cheaper than Chiang Mai without rent, and 20.4% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Tulum is 7.5% more expensive than Chiang Mai without rent, and 48% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.69 MX$202
$2.02 ฿65.3
429.21%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$50.5 MX$955
$18.78 ฿608
169.01%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$7.97 MX$151
$7.67 ฿248
3.91%
Cappuccino
$3.84 MX$72.6
$1.98 ฿64.2
93.94%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.17 MX$22.11
$0.82 ฿26.64
42.68%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.12 MX$21.21
$0.33 ฿10.58
239.39%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.7 MX$51
$2.12 ฿68.6
27.36%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.93 MX$74.4
$3.73 ฿121
5.36%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.44 MX$27.21
$1.64 ฿53.2
-12.20%
White Bread (500g)
$1.18 MX$22.22
$1.57 ฿50.9
-24.84%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.57 MX$29.76
$1.19 ฿38.62
31.93%
Eggs
$1.93 MX$36.56
$1.98 ฿64.1
-2.53%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$5.24 MX$99
$15.99 ฿517
-67.23%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.88 MX$130
$3.12 ฿101
120.51%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.2 MX$117
$11.16 ฿361
-44.44%
Apples (1kg)
$2.13 MX$40.34
$2.76 ฿89.2
-22.83%
Banana (1kg)
$1.35 MX$25.49
$1.22 ฿39.5
10.66%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.41 MX$26.72
$1.71 ฿55.4
-17.54%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.4 MX$26.56
$1.55 ฿50.2
-9.68%
Potato (1kg)
$2.18 MX$41.24
$1.34 ฿43.21
62.69%
Onion (1kg)
$1.97 MX$37.18
$1.21 ฿39.23
62.81%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.09 MX$20.55
$0.72 ฿23.2
51.39%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.96 MX$18.18
$0.53 ฿17.05
81.13%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.16 MX$78.6
$4.72 ฿153
-11.86%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.96 MX$151
$18.39 ฿595
-56.72%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.33 MX$25.11
$1.79 ฿57.9
-25.70%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.31 MX$24.72
$3.21 ฿104
-59.19%
🚌 Getting Around
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.15 MX$21.83
$0.94 ฿30.44
22.34%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$18.9 ฿612
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.17 MX$41.08
$1.42 ฿46.08
52.82%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.24 MX$42.34
$1.35 ฿43.53
65.93%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.18 MX$97.9
$7.85 ฿254
-34.01%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.32 MX$24.94
$1.25 ฿40.4
5.60%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$15.8K MX$299.6K
$21.2K ฿684.9K
-25.12%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$21.1K MX$398.3K
$21.8K ฿706.8K
-3.55%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$83.9 MX$1,586
$70.6 ฿2,285
18.79%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.57 MX$427
$13.72 ฿444
64.50%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$29.48 MX$557
$17.56 ฿568
67.88%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$33.44 MX$632
$41.64 ฿1,347
-19.69%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$15.59 MX$295
$6.9 ฿223
125.94%
Cinema Ticket
$4.69 MX$88.7
$5.8 ฿188
-19.14%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$209 MX$3,942
$308 ฿9,963
-32.28%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,910 MX$55K
$14.7K ฿475.8K
-80.21%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$26.24 MX$496
$55.4 ฿1,793
-52.64%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$31.51 MX$596
$26.4 ฿854
19.36%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$78.7 MX$1,487
$85.1 ฿2,755
-7.59%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$46.04 MX$870
$71.8 ฿2,323
-35.86%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$700 MX$13.2K
$434 ฿14K
61.21%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$399 MX$7,546
$235 ฿7,610
69.72%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,436 MX$27.1K
$821 ฿26.6K
74.86%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,256 MX$23.7K
$498 ฿16.1K
152.01%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,773 MX$33.5K
$2,180 ฿70.6K
-18.69%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,753 MX$33.1K
$1,543 ฿49.9K
13.62%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Tulum
Chiang Mai
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$725 MX$13.7K
$703 ฿22.8K
3.13%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11
5
120.00%

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

Last update for Tulum: October 28, 2025

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 29, 2025

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