Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Vacoas and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Vacoas: $750 a month against $936 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $2,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Vacoas
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Vacoas Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Vacoas

🇲🇺 Mauritius

$750

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $750 per month in Vacoas vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Vacoas $750
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,104 per month in Vacoas vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Vacoas $1,104
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,458 per month in Vacoas vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Vacoas $1,458
Chiang Mai $1,979

Vacoas is about 20% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Vacoas and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Vacoas 45% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.95 MUR 280

$2.24 ฿75.6

165.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.47 MUR 1,530

$19.00 ฿641

70.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.31 MUR 297

$5.55 ฿187

13.69%

Cappuccino

$2.58 MUR 122

$1.67 ฿56.5

54.49%

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

$1.15 MUR 54.0

$0.64 ฿21.54

79.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 MUR 29.22

$0.31 ฿10.31

100.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.66 MUR 125

$2.36 ฿79.5

12.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 MUR 184

$3.66 ฿124

6.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.40 MUR 65.8

$1.95 ฿65.7

-28.21%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 MUR 34.38

$1.44 ฿48.46

-49.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.16 MUR 54.6

$1.33 ฿45.03

-12.78%

Eggs

$2.24 MUR 106

$2.28 ฿77.1

-1.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.71 MUR 128

$16.45 ฿555

-83.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.62 MUR 124

$2.78 ฿93.9

-5.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.51 MUR 542

$9.31 ฿314

23.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.59 MUR 122

$2.35 ฿79.4

10.21%

Banana (1kg)

$2.22 MUR 104

$0.97 ฿32.79

128.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.43 MUR 67.4

$1.60 ฿53.9

-10.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.90 MUR 136

$1.50 ฿50.6

93.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 MUR 47.88

$1.28 ฿43.11

-20.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 MUR 47.59

$1.10 ฿37.18

-8.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 MUR 35.16

$0.71 ฿23.82

5.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 MUR 33.96

$0.49 ฿16.36

46.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.30 MUR 297

$4.14 ฿140

52.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.42 MUR 303

$17.52 ฿591

-63.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 MUR 68.3

$1.61 ฿54.5

-9.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 MUR 112

$2.78 ฿93.9

-14.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.30 MUR 61.4

$0.87 ฿29.30

49.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.24 MUR 200

$1.16 ฿39.04

265.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.25 MUR 153

$0.53 ฿17.80

513.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.16 MUR 196

$2.42 ฿81.7

71.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 MUR 66.5

$1.45 ฿48.88

-2.76%

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

$29.6K MUR 1.4M

$21.1K ฿710.5K

40.54%

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

$31.5K MUR 1.5M

$26.9K ฿909.0K

16.91%

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

$44.84 MUR 2,113

$62.2 ฿2,098

-27.88%

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

$10.49 MUR 495

$12.17 ฿411

-13.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.48 MUR 1,154

$20.12 ฿679

21.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.26 MUR 1,191

$37.31 ฿1,259

-32.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$5.33 MUR 251

$6.49 ฿219

-17.87%

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

$126 MUR 5,934

$736 ฿24.8K

-82.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,579 MUR 357.2K

$14.8K ฿498.2K

-48.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.56 MUR 1,487

$53.4 ฿1,801

-40.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.24 MUR 1,802

$24.64 ฿831

55.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.3 MUR 3,030

$91.5 ฿3,087

-29.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$47.72 MUR 2,249

$71.9 ฿2,427

-33.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$262 MUR 12.4K

$482 ฿16.3K

-45.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$223 MUR 10.5K

$309 ฿10.4K

-27.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$472 MUR 22.3K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

-53.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$231 MUR 10.9K

$633 ฿21.4K

-63.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$688 MUR 32.4K

$590 ฿19.9K

16.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.67

5.57

19.75%

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

Last update for Vacoas: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Vacoas

$223 29.7%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 38.5% $86

Groceries & Markets

Vacoas

$179 23.8%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 31.2% $56

Eating Out

Vacoas

$126 16.7%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 38.2% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Vacoas

$82 10.9%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 32.8% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Vacoas

$80 10.6%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 18.3% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Vacoas

$36 4.8%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 39.9% $14

Getting Around

Vacoas

$26 * 3.4%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 139% $36

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $262 in Vacoas 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 run about 17% higher in Vacoas, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Vacoas versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $179 in Vacoas vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Vacoas wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇺 Vacoas

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

03:15 3:15 AM

06:15 6:15 AM

3 h ahead of Vacoas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

115,289

127,240

💱 Currency

Mauritian Rupee MUR ₨

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MUR = 2.12 USD

100 MUR = 1.9 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MUR – Mauritian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇺 Mauritian Rupee (₨)

Mauritian Rupee exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 47.13 MUR (100 MUR = 2.12 USD). 1 EUR = 52.62 MUR (100 MUR = 1.9 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to MUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Vacoas Chiang Mai 6,270 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Vacoas
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 25% more than Vacoas, 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 $1,126 per month in Vacoas 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 Vacoas, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $262 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Vacoas and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 31% more in Chiang Mai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Families tend to lean toward Vacoas – 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.