How Much I Actually Spend Living in Chiang Mai, Thailand
Everyone says Chiang Mai is cheap. And compared to the U.S., it absolutely can be. But how cheap is it actually to live here?
I moved to Chiang Mai this year, and here’s a breakdown of my average monthly expenses as someone who isn’t living a minimalist lifestyle but also definitely isn’t living luxuriously. I’m extremely comfortable, I’m not depriving myself of anything, and I’m still somehow not spending nearly what I would back home.
Obviously, this is just my current lifestyle, so what you spend can (and probably will) look completely different depending on how you live. I’ll break everything down below so you can get a better idea of what your own monthly budget might look like. :)
*Also — please keep in mind that Southeast Asia being “cheap” is very relative. It can be extremely affordable for a lot of foreigners, but these prices are still normal, if not expensive, for many locals. Just because something feels cheap to us doesn’t mean it’s cheap for everyone.
Rent
I currently pay ฿13,000.00 per month for a month-to-month lease on a 35m² studio apartment in Nimman area. It’s a modern, recently renovated unit in a prime location that I’m super comfortable living in. My unit also comes with a 2-in-1 washer & dryer. The building does not have any amenities besides 24/7 doorman but there are coffee shops, restaurants, salons, etc all next to the building. I can walk pretty much anywhere I need to living in this area which was a big selling point for me.
*If you’re willing to sign a 6- or 12-month lease, your rent will usually decrease by a few thousand baht.
Utilities
Water for my apartment is comical and I love it - ฿36.00 per month. You can’t even buy a drink at the gas station in the U.S. for that price.
Electricity varies depending on how much you use your A/C. I pretty much keep it on all night + a few hours during the day so my costs sits a bit higher at ฿1,033.48 per month.
Phone
When I arrived to Thailand, I went to the True Mobile store at the mall to buy an eSim for my phone. I bought the highest package I could in regard to internet + calling (I don’t rmr the specs) but I paid ฿2,750.00 for 1 year of usage which equates to ฿230.00 per month and I’ve never come close to running out. My phone bill being handled for an entire year at that price is beautiful.
Groceries
I buy groceries 2-3x per month. And by groceries I mean sandwich stuff, snacks, water, protein drinks / bars, household items, etc. I don’t actually buy any real groceries because I don’t cook in Thailand. There’s no need! So I typically pay around ฿2,000.00 per month.
I typically shop at a Western grocery store, Rimping Market in Maya mall or order delivery via Tops supermarket. The delivery option is perfect especially when I’m getting a bunch of water bc it’s HEAVY :/ (there are better ways to do this).
Eating Out / Ordering Food
I eat maybe 70% western food / 30% thai food. Thai food is typically very affordable and can be anywhere from ฿40.00 to ฿120.00 per meal whereas Western food is closer to ฿300.00-฿500.00 for a meal and of course can go much higher depending on the restaurant. I also go to a lot of coffee shops, which is probably worth mentioning (especially ones with cats to hang out with).
Entertainment / Misc.
I kind of just left this category as a catch all with nothing specific in mind when I was tracking everything. Maybe the occasional weed gummies, boxing match, entry fee. I wanted to be safe and label this at ฿2,200.00 per month. That sounds right.
Bars / Alcohol
I’m a bar gal. If I’m in Austin, TX, it’s Sagebrush. If I’m in Chiang Mai, TH, it’s The Yoda Corner. I’m very much a social drinker and I quickly make friends with the local bartenders. I also don’t drink much beer — I’m more of a liquor or wine girl. I typically go to a bar about twice a week, and then I’ll occasionally have a drink with dinner maybe once a week. On average, I spend around ฿5,600 per month on bars/alcohol (if we’re being real).
Again, there are obviously cheaper options — including the revolutionary option of ~ not drinking ~ — but this is just my personal lifestyle and something I choose to spend money on.
Shopping
I don’t shop much here but I’ll occasionally buy something from a market or via Shopee so ฿2,000.00 a month felt safe number for me to use. I purged and got rid of 95% of my life back home so I’m trying really hard to keep minimal belongings. (My version of minimal is still excessive, btw, but I’m trying)!!!!!!
Beauty
I get my nails + toes done 1-2x per month, get my eyelash extensions refilled + some waxing about once a month, and then the occasional haircut, blowout or massage. All below prices include the tip in the total price.
For nails, I bounce back and forth getting extensions, gel, acrylic, or a different type of gel that I don’t know the name of and I’d say it’s likely ฿500.00 for nails or toes. My eyelash fills are around ฿600.00 per a fill (wild). Waxing is usually ฿300.00 per section. A haircut or shampoo + blowout are usually around ฿300.00 per session and then massages are anywhere ฿250.00-฿800.00 per an hour depending on the type of massage.
The total monthly cost being around ฿2,500.00 per month which is insane since that’s what I would typically pay just for my finger nails back in Austin — without tip.
Fitness
I try to go to Muay Thai classes 2x per week which comes out to ฿350.00 per class or ฿2,800.00 per month. Other than Muay Thai, I mostly just walk around the city or areas like Ang Kaew at CMU or PAO park (free)!
Grab Rides (Transportation)
I use Grab for pretty much all of my daily transportation. It’s quick, affordable, and gets me where I need to go without me having to figure out public transportation. I’d say I use about 85% motorbikes / 15% cars when using Grab.
Rides around the city are typically ฿20–฿100 per ride, depending on the distance and whether I’m taking a motorbike or car.
I will say that July was a busier month for me because I was teaching 5 days a week, which meant I was taking Grab much more often than I normally would. That’s typically not my schedule.
On an average day, I probably take 2–5 Grab rides, although some days I take zero because I can walk almost everywhere I need to go!
Health Insurance
I have nomad health insurance through Genki and pay $60.00 month (USD). It’s the best company I’ve found and luckily I have not had to use it yet.
So... How Much Do I Actually Spend a month?
After adding everything up, my average monthly spending in Chiang Mai comes out to around ฿45,662.08 — or roughly $1,395.97 USD.
And honestly? I’m pretty happy with that. I’m not living a super frugal lifestyle, but I’m also not living super luxuriously. I eat out constantly, order Grab whenever I feel like it, get my nails done, go for massages, drink at bars, go to Muay Thai, buy random things I absolutely do not need, and generally don’t think too hard about whether I should spend ฿100 on something.
Could I spend less? Absolutely. But that’s not really the point of this post.
This is what it costs me to live a comfortable life in Chiang Mai without feeling like I’m constantly budgeting or depriving myself of things I enjoy. Someone else could easily spend significantly less (or significantly more) depending on their lifestyle.
For me, one of the biggest differences compared to living in the U.S. is that I don’t feel like I have to choose between having a life and saving money. I can go get a massage, meet a friend for dinner, take a Grab across town, get my nails done all in one day and still not feel like I just spent $200.
So, is Chiang Mai actually cheap to live in? For me, yes.
But I think the bigger takeaway is that Chiang Mai gives you the option to spend your money differently. You can live extremely cheaply here if you want to (you can 100% live on less than ฿15,000 per month) , but you can also spend more and have a very comfortable lifestyle without getting anywhere close to what the same lifestyle might cost in the U.S. And that’s what I’ve chosen to do.
