How it's scored: each area is rated 1–10 on eight factors — value, infrastructure & services, university & campus access, quiet, transport access (roads only; there is no airport and no railway station open yet, though one is under construction), rental depth, walkability and family suitability — and the BAANLYY Area Score is their average on a 0–100 scale. Structured property data for this province is thin even though the rental market is unusually deep (see the where-to-live guide), so these scores are deliberately conservative and directional rather than precise. It's a transparent comparison starting point, not investment advice — weight the factors that matter to you.
Maha Sarakham areas by overall score
| # | Area | Score | Value | Infrastructure & services | University & campus access | Transport access (road only — no airport, and no railway open yet) | Rental depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mueang Maha Sarakham (Talat) & Kae Dam The provincial capital — Maha Sarakham Hospital and Mahasarakham University's Suddhavej teaching hospital both in Talat subdistrict, the university's downtown campus, Rajabhat Maha Sarakham University, the bus terminal and Kaeng Loeng Chan | 76 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 9 |
| 2 | Kantharawichai, Chiang Yuen & Chuen Chom — the Khamriang campus north Mahasarakham University's main Khamriang campus at Tha Khon Yang, about 7km north of town — the densest purpose-built student housing in Isaan outside the big four cities, in a district that is otherwise farmland | 70 | 8 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 8 |
| 3 | Kosum Phisai, Borabue & Kut Rang — the Khon Kaen side The province's largest district by population and its road link west to Khon Kaen on Highway 208 — the Bung Ling macaque forest park on the Chi, and Kut Rang, where ground was broken on the province's first railway station in 2023 | 56 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 3 |
| 4 | Wapi Pathum & Phayakkhaphum Phisai — the Thung Kula corner The province's two big southern districts — Phayakkhaphum Phisai is one of the thirteen districts of the Thung Kula Rong Hai rice plain, and Wapi Pathum is the largest district town in the south | 51 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| 5 | Na Dun, Na Chueak & Yang Sisurat — the heritage south Phra That Na Dun and the Dvaravati town of Champasri that produced the relics it was built to house, the Khmer ruin at Ku Santarat, mudmee silk weaving, and the quietest farming districts in the province | 49 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
Top area by factor
University & campus access
Kantharawichai, Chiang Yuen & Chuen Chom — the Khamriang campus north · 10/10Transport access (road only — no airport, and no railway open yet)
Mueang Maha Sarakham (Talat) & Kae Dam · 7/10Frequently asked
What is the BAANLYY Maha Sarakham Area Score?The BAANLYY Area Score is a transparent 0–100 rating for each of Maha Sarakham's five core living areas, which between them cover all thirteen districts. It's the average of eight lived-experience factors — value, infrastructure & services, university & campus access, quiet, transport access, rental depth, walkability and family suitability — each scored out of 10 from BAANLYY's Maha Sarakham dataset, then converted to a 100-point scale. Province-specific structured property data is thin here even though the rental market is unusually deep, so these are conservative editorial estimates derived from each area's real geography and role, not a precise benchmark. It's a starting point for comparison, not investment advice.
Which Maha Sarakham area scores highest?On the current overall score, Mueang Maha Sarakham (Talat) & Kae Dam leads with a BAANLYY Area Score of 76, followed by Kantharawichai, Chiang Yuen & Chuen Chom — the Khamriang campus north (70) and Kosum Phisai, Borabue & Kut Rang — the Khon Kaen side (56). Scores balance all eight factors — your personal best area depends on whether you weigh the two teaching hospitals and everyday services, proximity to the main university campus, or cost and quiet.
Why is there a "university & campus access" factor instead of a culture factor?Because in this province it is the variable that changes the most about what an area is like to live in, and no other factor comes close. Maha Sarakham's own provincial motto ends with ตักสิลานคร, Taksila Nakhon — "the city of Taxila" — and Mahasarakham University's own published figure was around 41,000 students in 2017, in a province of 929,952 people, alongside Rajabhat Maha Sarakham University and a Thailand National Sports University campus. Proximity to a campus determines whether an area has purpose-built rental stock at all, what it costs, what the food and nightlife look like, and whether it empties in the long break. Culture and heritage are real here too — Phra That Na Dun and the Dvaravati town of Champasri are genuinely significant — but they do not reorganise daily life the way the campuses do, so they are covered in the area tags and the things-to-do guide rather than given a scoring column.
Why does the transport factor say "no airport, and no railway open yet"?Because both halves are literally true, and the second half has a qualifier that matters. There is no airport anywhere in Maha Sarakham — the nearest are Roi Et (ROI) about 52 kilometres east and Khon Kaen (KKC) about 62 kilometres northwest — and there is no operating railway station in the province either, because the Northeastern Line runs north through Khon Kaen province and misses it, leaving Ban Phai about 61 kilometres away as the nearest station. But unlike Roi Et next door, where a railway is only proposed, Maha Sarakham's is genuinely under construction: the 355-kilometre Ban Phai–Nakhon Phanom double track broke ground on a station at Kut Rang inside this province on 28 April 2023, several stations are planned within the province, and the budget is about 66.8 billion baht. It is also years behind, at roughly 24.5 per cent complete on the relevant section in April 2026 against a plan above 70 per cent, with a revised delivery deadline of November 2029. So the factor scores what exists today, which is roads, and the label says "not open yet" rather than "none", because the difference is real and a reader making a ten-year decision deserves it.
Why does a rural farming district score so well on rental depth?Because of where a university put its campus. Kantharawichai is a farming district of ten subdistricts that was called Khok Phra until 1939, and it is rural by any ordinary measure — but Mahasarakham University's New Campus at Khamriang in Tha Khon Yang, established in 1988 on about 1,300 rai seven kilometres north of the provincial town, is now the university's administrative headquarters and carries most of its faculties. Our August 2026 portal check found about 55 apartment listings in that single district, out of about 128 province-wide, with the cheapest formal rent in Maha Sarakham starting around 1,300 baht a month. That is more rental supply than several entire provinces BAANLYY has surveyed. It scores high on rental depth and university access and correspondingly low on infrastructure and family suitability, which is exactly the right shape: a dense band of single-room student housing in open country is a real housing option and it is not a town.
Sources & References
The BAANLYY Area Score itself is BAANLYY's proprietary editorial dataset; the official sources above provide the underlying tourism and demographic context. Ratings are editorial estimates that change as areas evolve — not investment, legal or financial advice.
The BAANLYY Area Score is a proprietary, transparent composite of BAANLYY's own area ratings, provided for general comparison only — not investment, legal or financial advice. Ratings are editorial estimates that change as areas evolve. Hero photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels.
Founder of BAANLYY · International real estate broker, investor & relocation specialist
Last updated 18 August 2026 · Last reviewed 18 August 2026