If you’re tired of ‘big city’ life, are wanting a slower pace, or are just ready to get away from Bangkok’s constant noise and traffic, Chiang Mai might be the perfect relocation city for you and your family. In this article, we’ll go over the benefits of living in Chiang Mai, why it’s a good place to live, highlight the top schools, the cost of living, and more!
Why Chiang Mai is a Great Place to Live—The Advantages Over a Big City
With only 127, 240 people living in Chiang Mai, it’s no doubt that it’s much smaller than big cities in Southeast Asia, such as Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh. You can get to Chiang Mai a number of ways from Bangkok, but the quickest option is by plane (about a 1-2 hour flight north).
Over the years, Chiang Mai has become a popular destination for those looking to retire, work, raise a family, and get away from busy city-life. While the smaller size and population are definitely positive factors, another great thing about living in Chiang Mai is that it has a more relaxed feel while also providing you with everything you might need—access to cinemas, shopping centers, supermarkets, nature, delicious food options (like the famous northern curry dish, Khao Soi), and access to exceptional international schools.
Other benefits of living in Chiang Mai include:
✔ Rich culture
✔ Great food scene with many inexpensive options and access to western cuisines
✔ Low cost of living compared to Bangkok
✔ Great weather
✔ Easy to get around
✔ Lots of available apartments and places to live
✔ Good health care options
✔ Close to nature
✔ Very family-friendly
… and so much more!
Cost of Living in Chiang Mai
A big draw of Chiang Mai is the affordable cost of living. Of course, like any city, it really depends on your lifestyle, but, relatively speaking, Chiang Mai is extremely reasonably priced. From a budget-conscious solo traveler’s perspective, you can live in Chiang Mai for as little as around $650 USD a month!
According to Expatistan, here are the costs in USD (and THB) of some of the basics to give you a baseline for reference of the costs of living in Chiang Mai:
- Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in expensive area: $700 (24,181 THB)
- Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in normal area: $458 (15,821 THB)
- Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas …) for 2 people in a 85m2 flat: $47 (1,623 THB)
- Internet 8 mbps (1 month): $12 (414 THB)
- Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sq ft) furnished studio in expensive area: $367 (12,678 THB)
- Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district: $4.48 (154 THB)
- Combo meal in fast food restaurant (big mac meal or similar): $7 (241 THB)
- 500 gr (1 lb.) of boneless chicken breast: $1.17 (40 THB)
- 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk: $1.29 (43 THB)
- 12 eggs, large 66: $1.93 (66 THB)
- 2 tickets to the movies: $11 (380 THB)
- 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats): $24 (829 THB)
- Dinner for two at a nice Italian restaurant in the expat area including: appetizers, main course, wine and dessert: $37 (1,278 THB)
- 1 cocktail drink downtown: $4.32 (149)
As you can see from the above prices, it’s relatively inexpensive to afford a nice lifestyle in Chiang Mai. Now, let’s take a look at where you’d want to live.
Where to Live in Chiang Mai
Where you live in a city can make a huge impact on your quality of life and overall experience.
Ideally, you’ll want to visit Chiang Mai in person to explore the city and find out which area suits you and your family best. But, we know this isn’t always possible so you can connect with one of the many rental agencies to help you find a place that suits your needs.
Overall, we suggest you think about these types of questions before you decide on a property and location:
- What kind of property do I want to live in/can afford? (house, villa, apartment, condo, etc.)
- What type of area would I feel most comfortable in? (local, inner city, where other expats are, etc.)
- How close to work do I want to be? (if you need to commute to work).
- If my kids are going to school, how close do we want to be to the school?
- How long does it take to get to certain areas of interest from my property?
For example, if you are hoping to be close to LANNA International School, here are some communities within reach:
- Ban Nai Fun (ref. 141 N0) – very popular with our families; well maintained, good facilities
- Land & Houses (ref. 150 MR) – popular nice newer development, pool and fitness centre.
- Koolpunt Ville 5, 6, and 7 (ref. 163 NT through to 148NJ) – huge, slightly older development
- Koolpunt Ville 8 (ref. 138 OI) – very nice newer development with clubhouse and pool
- Koolpunt Ville 9 – neighborhood right across the street from LANNA
- Kwan Wiang (ref. OI 177) – off both sides of the main road; nice fairly newish development
- Lanna Thara (ref. 154 OC) – very nice newer development; large houses, leafy
- World Club Land (ref. 146 OD) – large; mix of old/new large/small; American community
- Ban Wang Tan (ref. 177 NR) – large leafy development; mixed styles, lots of open space
International Schools in Chiang Mai
If you are relocating to Chiang Mai with school-aged children, you’ll most likely be interested in the school options. When it comes to international schools in Chiang Mai, there are 16 great international schools to choose from and the tuition prices are typically less-expensive compared to schools in Bangkok.
Similarly to housing, we recommend you ask yourself (and your family) some very valuable questions before deciding on a school. Here are just a few things to keep in mind:
- What can we afford for tuition?
- What type of curriculum do we want our child(ren) to learn? (British, American, IB, etc.)
- Where is the school located?
- Does the school reflect our values? (community, religion, etc.)
- What does the school calendar look like?
- Are their teachers qualified and experienced?
- Are there after-school options or activities available to my child(ren)?
- What are the benefits of choosing this school over the others? (diplomas, higher chances of university acceptance, etc.)
LANNA International School
At LANNA International School, we can confidently help you answer all of these questions and more! If you’re convinced that relocating to Chiang Mai is the right decision for you and your family—and you have school-aged children—we encourage you to get in touch with our admissions team so we can help with your transition to our beautiful city.
Contact us today for more information about our school and Chiang Mai. We’ll happily walk you through our admissions process and answer any questions you might have.
If you want to know more about LANNA or Chiang Mai in general, we invite you to visit us at the Bangkok Education Fair on Saturday, March 25th.
