Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zhubei City and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,029 in Zhubei City, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. The total is higher in Zhubei City despite lower rent and utilities.

50

Cost of Living Index in Zhubei City
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Zhubei City Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Zhubei City

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,029

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,029 per month in Zhubei City vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Zhubei City $1,029
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,814 per month in Zhubei City vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Zhubei City $1,814
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $2,599 per month in Zhubei City vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Zhubei City $2,599
Chiang Mai $1,979

Zhubei City costs about 10% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Zhubei City and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Zhubei City 24% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.73 NT$154

$2.24 ฿75.6

111.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.28 NT$890

$19.00 ฿641

43.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.11 NT$167

$5.55 ฿187

-7.93%

Cappuccino

$2.79 NT$90.8

$1.67 ฿56.5

67.07%

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

$0.91 NT$29.51

$0.64 ฿21.55

42.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 NT$18.62

$0.31 ฿10.31

83.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.86 NT$60.7

$2.36 ฿79.6

-21.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 NT$71.9

$3.66 ฿124

-39.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.76 NT$90.1

$1.95 ฿65.8

41.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.77 NT$57.8

$1.44 ฿48.48

22.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.50 NT$147

$1.33 ฿45.04

238.35%

Eggs

$2.74 NT$89.3

$2.28 ฿77.1

20.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$24.58 NT$801

$16.45 ฿555

49.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.13 NT$265

$2.78 ฿93.9

192.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.77 NT$808

$9.31 ฿314

166.06%

Apples (1kg)

$4.08 NT$133

$2.35 ฿79.4

73.62%

Banana (1kg)

$2.44 NT$79.5

$0.97 ฿32.80

151.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 NT$88.9

$1.60 ฿53.9

70.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.31 NT$108

$1.50 ฿50.6

120.67%

Potato (1kg)

$3.05 NT$99.4

$1.28 ฿43.12

138.28%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 NT$65.7

$1.10 ฿37.19

83.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.97 NT$64.3

$0.71 ฿23.82

177.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 NT$43.00

$0.49 ฿16.37

169.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.94 NT$129

$4.14 ฿140

-4.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.10 NT$297

$17.52 ฿591

-48.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 NT$45.88

$1.61 ฿54.5

-12.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 NT$73.5

$2.78 ฿94.0

-19.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.59 NT$19.18

$0.87 ฿29.31

-32.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,826

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 NT$101

$1.16 ฿39.06

165.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.59 NT$19.10

$0.53 ฿17.80

11.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.28 NT$302

$2.42 ฿81.8

283.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 NT$33.33

$1.45 ฿48.90

-29.66%

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

$33.2K NT$1.1M

$21.1K ฿710.7K

57.88%

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

$24.0K NT$783.2K

$26.9K ฿909.3K

-10.84%

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

$98.5 NT$3,211

$62.2 ฿2,098

58.42%

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

$18.80 NT$613

$12.17 ฿411

54.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.96 NT$749

$20.12 ฿679

14.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.27 NT$1,019

$37.31 ฿1,259

-16.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$9.95 NT$325

$6.49 ฿219

53.31%

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

$642 NT$20.9K

$736 ฿24.8K

-12.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K NT$537.1K

$14.8K ฿498.3K

11.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.1 NT$1,830

$53.4 ฿1,801

5.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.46 NT$993

$24.64 ฿831

23.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.7 NT$2,926

$91.5 ฿3,087

-1.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.4 NT$3,207

$71.9 ฿2,428

36.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$495 NT$16.1K

$482 ฿16.3K

2.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$208 NT$6,773

$309 ฿10.4K

-32.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,060 NT$34.6K

$1,006 ฿33.9K

5.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$776 NT$25.3K

$633 ฿21.4K

22.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$15.8K NT$514.7K

$2,363 ฿79.8K

568.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$9,406 NT$306.7K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

491.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,393 NT$78.0K

$590 ฿19.9K

305.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.4

5.57

-56.91%

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

Last update for Zhubei City: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Zhubei City

$392 38.1%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 40.2% $158

Accommodation & Living

Zhubei City

$208 20.2%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 48.7% $101

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zhubei City

$140 13.6%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 32.6% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Zhubei City

$124 12%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 12.1% $15

Eating Out

Zhubei City

$106 10.3%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 27% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Zhubei City

$51 5%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 1.8% $0.9

Getting Around

Zhubei City

$8.4 * 0.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 633% $53

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $495 in Zhubei City 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 in Zhubei City are about 4.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27 in Zhubei City versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $392 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Zhubei City

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

15:11 3:11 PM

14:11 2:11 PM

1 h behind Zhubei City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

211,746

127,240

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.07 USD

100 TWD = 2.75 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 32.61 TWD (100 TWD = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 36.41 TWD (100 TWD = 2.75 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to TWD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Zhubei City Chiang Mai 2,370 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Zhubei City
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

Zhubei City vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zhubei City costs about 10% more than Chiang Mai, 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 $1,544 per month in Zhubei City 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 $495 in Zhubei City and $482 in Chiang Mai. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27 in Zhubei City 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 67% more in Zhubei City, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,029 in Zhubei City and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $1,029 in Zhubei City. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Zhubei City makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.