Chiang Mai, Thailand, is characterized by reasonably priced housing. According to our city rankings, this is a good place to live with high ratings in cost of living, safety and taxation.
Chiang Mai is one of the top ten city matches for 0.3% of Teleport users.
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Housing| Large apartment | $590.00 |
|---|---|
| Medium apartment | $430.00 |
| Rent index [score] | 0.95 |
| Small apartment | $280.00 |
Cost of Living| 5km taxi ride | $2.50 |
|---|---|
| A Cappuccino | $1.70 |
| A beer | $2.00 |
| A kilogram of Apples | $2.50 |
| Bread | $0.84 |
| Inflation [score] | 0.83 |
| Lunch | $2.10 |
| Monthly fitness club membership | $38.00 |
| Monthly public transport | $33.00 |
| Movie ticket | $4.50 |
| Price of a meal at a restaurant | $22.73 |
Startups| Average monthly increase in number of startups [score] | 0.10 |
|---|---|
| Coworking spaces [score] | 0.47 |
| Coworking spaces on WorkFrom.co | 18 |
| Meetups [score] | 0.12 |
| Meetups groups | 11 |
| Meetups members | 1354 |
| Number of investors | 1 |
| Number of startup events in the last 12 months | 25 |
| Number of upcoming meetup events | 1 |
| Startup climate scene [score] | 0.29 |
| Startup events | 1 |
| Startup events [score] | 0.10 |
| Startups [score] | 0.26 |
| Total number of startups | 7 |
Venture CapitalTravel Connectivity| Airport hub | 26 |
|---|---|
| Airport hub [score] | 0.19 |
| Intercity train connectivity [score] | 0.15 |
Commute| Traffic handling [score] | 0.67 |
|---|
Business Freedom| Business freedom | 76.30 |
|---|---|
| Business freedom [score] | 0.69 |
| Freedom from corruption | 38.00 |
| Freedom from corruption [score] | 0.28 |
| Lack of labor restrictions | 62.50 |
| Lack of labor restrictions [score] | 0.49 |
| Time to open a business | 25.50 |
| Time to open a business [score] | 0.71 |
Safety| Crime rate [score] | 0.78 |
|---|---|
| Gun-related deaths per 100,000 residents per year | 2 |
| Guns per 100 residents | 16 |
| Lack of gun related deaths [score] | 0.96 |
| Lack of guns [score] | 0.93 |
| Lack of guns and gun-related deaths [score] | 0.94 |
Healthcare| Healthcare expenditure [score] | 0.29 |
|---|---|
| Healthcare quality [score] | 0.79 |
| Life expectancy (years) | 74.88 |
| Life expectancy [score] | 0.49 |
Education| Best university in ranking | Chiang Mai University |
|---|---|
| Best university ranking | 700 |
| Country mean scores in PISA math test | 418.52 |
| Country mean scores in PISA reading test | 441.22 |
| Country mean scores in PISA science test | 444.00 |
| PISA math ranking (high school) | 42 |
| PISA ranking | 47 |
| PISA ranking (high school) [score] | 0.24 |
| PISA reading (high school) | 43 |
| PISA science (high school) | 43 |
| Percent of happy students | 0.93 |
| Percent of low performers in PISA math test | 0.50 |
| Percent of low performers in PISA reading test | 0.33 |
| Percent of low performers in PISA science test | 0.34 |
| Percent of top performers in PISA math test | 0.03 |
| Percent of top performers in PISA reading test | 0.01 |
| Percent of top performers in PISA science test | 0.01 |
| University quality [score] | 0.10 |
Environmental Quality| Air quality [score] | 0.21 |
|---|---|
| Cleanliness [score] | 0.58 |
| Drinking water quality [score] | 0.45 |
| Urban greenery [score] | 0.37 |
Economy| Currency exchange rate per US dollar for urban area | 33.24 |
|---|---|
| Currency for urban area | THB |
| GDP growth rate | 0.01 |
| GDP growth rate [score] | 0.23 |
| GDP per capita | $14354.30 |
| GDP per capita [score] | 0.24 |
Taxation| Effective company profit tax rate on payouts as dividends [score] | 0.75 |
|---|---|
| Income tax level [score] | 0.60 |
| Profit tax (% of profit) | 0.33 |
| Time overhead to file company taxes | 266 |
| VAT (Sales Tax) | 0.10 |
Internet Access| Download speed (Mbps) | 16.07 |
|---|---|
| Internet access (download) [score] | 0.39 |
| Internet access (upload) [score] | 0.32 |
| Upload speed (Mbps) | 6.58 |
Leisure & Culture| Art galleries | 102 |
|---|---|
| Art galleries [score] | 0.65 |
| Cinemas | 75 |
| Cinemas [score] | 0.63 |
| Comedy clubs | 61 |
| Comedy clubs [score] | 0.72 |
| Concert venues | 107 |
| Concerts [score] | 0.59 |
| Historical sites | 80 |
| Historical sites [score] | 0.83 |
| Museums | 77 |
| Museums [score] | 0.54 |
| Performing art venues | 69 |
| Performing arts [score] | 0.41 |
| Sport venues | 43 |
| Sports [score] | 0.67 |
| Zoos | 20 |
| Zoos [score] | 0.90 |
Tolerance| LGBT Equality Index | 61.15 |
|---|---|
| LGBT Equality Index [score] | 0.61 |
| LGBT adoption rights | Married couples only |
| LGBT age of consent | ✔ Equal |
| LGBT blood donation regulations | ✖ Banned (indefinite deferral) |
| LGBT conversion therapy regulations | ✖ Not banned |
| LGBT discrimination legality | Illegal in some contexts |
| LGBT employment discrimination legality | ✔ Sexual orientation and gender identity |
| LGBT gender changing rights | ✖ Illegal |
| LGBT homosexuality rights | ✔ Legal |
| LGBT housing discrimination legality | ✔ Sexual orientation and gender identity |
| LGBT marriage rights | ✖ Unrecognized |
| Tolerance towards minorities [score] | 0.79 |
Outdoors| Elevation (hills or mountains) [score] | 0.53 |
|---|---|
| Median peak in meters | 1676.00 |
| Presence of hills in city | 1.00 |
| Presence of mountains in city | 1.00 |
| Urban area elevation (meters) | 315.00 |
| Water access [score] | 0.10 |
Costs of living in Chiang Mai are in the least expensive 20 percent of all 245 Teleport cities. Average living expenses are significantly lower compared to other cities, especially in the housing market. Moving to Chiang Mai will very likely decrease your daily costs of living. Sign up for free to get access to our cost of living index and use our international cost of living calculator to do cost comparison by city.
 Monthly fitness club membership | $38 |
|---|---|
 Movie ticket | $5 |
 Broadband internet connection | $19 |
 Monthly public transport | $33 |
 Lunch | $2 |
Software Engineer salaries in Chiang Mai are below average. For this job type, Chiang Mai ranks 175th for salaries among 265 cities. Get access to our salary comparison calculator by signing up. Compare salaries city by city with our free salary wizard and convert your own salary to a local salary in Chiang Mai.
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The overall crime rate puts Chiang Mai in position 64 of 265 Teleport Cities in a ranking for the safest cities.
Legal
Illegal
Illegal In Some Contexts
Unrecognized
Married Couples Only
12.5Chiang Mai (เชียงใหม่) is the hub of northern Thailand. With a population of over 170,000 in the city proper (but more than one million in the metropolitan area), it is Thailand's fourth-largest city. On a plain at an elevation of 316 m, surrounded by mountains and lush countryside, it is much greener and quieter than the capital and has a cosmopolitan air and a significant expatriate population, all factors which have led many from Bangkok to settle permanently in this "rose of the north".
Founded in 1296 CE, Chiang Mai is a culturally and historically interesting city, at one time the capital of the ancient Lanna kingdom. In the rolling foothills of the Himalayas 700 km north of Bangkok, until the 1920s it could only be reached by an arduous river journey or an elephant trek. This isolation helped preserve Chiang Mai's distinctive charm, which remains intact.
Chiang Mai's historical centre is the walled city ("city" is chiang in the northern Thai dialect while mai is "new", hence Chiang Mai translates as "new city"). Sections of the wall dating to their restoration a few decades ago remain at the gates and corners, but of the rest only the moat remains.
Read moreEvery city comes with a country. How is this one doing in terms of giving back to the global community? Our friends at The Good Country Index measure what each country on earth contributes to the common good of humanity, and what it takes away, relative to its size.
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