Cost of living comparison

 Thailand
compared to
 Maldives
Maldives vs. Thailand Cost of Living Summary

Maldives is 56.8% more expensive than Thailand overall.

Restaurants
pay 61.0% more in Maldives
Groceries
pay 53.8% more in Maldives
Transportation
pay 18.3% more in Maldives
Housing
pay 3.0 times more in Maldives
Childcare
pay 59.3% less in Maldives
Entertainment and Sports
pay 74.8% more in Maldives
Clothing
pay 47.6% more in Maldives

The cost of housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, groceries, clothing, and transportation in Maldives are more expensive than in Thailand. Notably, housing is significantly more expensive in Maldives.

Maldives vs. Thailand Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Maldives instead of Thailand, you would:

pay 61.0% more for restaurants

 
Thailand
Maldives
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $2.33
THB77.23
$5.50
MVR84.94
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$6.02
THB199.27
$9.71
MVR149.89
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.70
THB23.32
$1.21
MVR18.74

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pay 53.8% more for groceries

 
Thailand
Maldives
Bread
1 loaf
$1.40
THB46.31
$1.54
MVR23.73
Local cheese (8 oz) $8.16
THB270.17
$5.65
MVR87.27
Milk (1 gallon) $6.68
THB221.26
$6.78
MVR104.73

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pay 18.3% more for transportation

 
Thailand
Maldives
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.47
THB147.87
$3.56
MVR54.92
Monthly public transit pass $25.43
THB841.83
$22.65
MVR349.74
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $31,362.48
THB1,038,098.06
$38,834.95
MVR599,557.28

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pay 3.0 times more for housing

 
Thailand
Maldives
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$17.13
THB567.15
$65.94
MVR1,018.00
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $389.22
THB12,883.18
$1,098.53
MVR16,959.70
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $225.23
THB7,455.26
$829.29
MVR12,803.05

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pay 59.3% less for childcare

 
Thailand
Maldives
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $341.66
THB11,308.89
$172.53
MVR2,663.66
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $10,344.18
THB342,392.29
$3,198.06
MVR49,373.54

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pay 74.8% more for entertainment and sports

 
Thailand
Maldives
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $2.20
THB72.81
$4.69
MVR72.45
Cappuccino in mid-range area $1.90
THB62.87
$3.24
MVR49.96
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$3.85
THB127.34
$7.12
MVR109.92

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pay 47.6% more for clothing

 
Thailand
Maldives
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$38.62
THB1,278.25
$55.89
MVR862.86
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$29.36
THB971.83
$58.79
MVR907.66
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$82.78
THB2,740.07
$101.13
MVR1,561.35

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: May 2025
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