Chiang Rai vs Phayao: Company Count and Revenue Compared (2026)
In short
Chiang Rai has 18,652 registered companies, against 4,408 in neighbouring Phayao, as of 17 July 2026. That is 4.2 times as many firms. Chiang Rai reports 293 billion baht in revenue, against 28 billion baht. That is 10.6 times as much. The revenue gap is more than double the company gap, because the average Chiang Rai firm books 2.5 times the revenue of its Phayao counterpart.
Which province is bigger, and by how much?
Chiang Rai, by a wide margin. It holds 18,652 registered companies to Phayao's 4,408 (DBD, 2026). That is a ratio of 4.2 to 1. Revenue stretches the gap much further. Chiang Rai's filed statements add up to 293.0 billion baht, while Phayao's add up to 27.6 billion baht. The ratio there is 10.6 to 1. These two upper-north neighbours sit much further apart in money than a head count of firms suggests.
Total reported revenue, Chiang Rai and Phayao
- Chiang Rai293
- Phayao28
Figures in billion baht.
Chiang Rai reports 10.6 times Phayao's revenue from 4.2 times as many companies.
Chiang Rai and Phayao side by side
| Measure | Chiang Rai | Phayao | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered companies | 18,652 | 4,408 | 4.23 |
| Rank by company count | 16th | 52nd | n/a |
| Reported revenue, billion baht | 293.0 | 27.6 | 10.63 |
| Rank by reported revenue | 20th | 72nd | n/a |
| Revenue per company, million baht | 15.7 | 6.3 | 2.51 |
| Share of national companies | 0.94% | 0.22% | 4.23 |
| Share of national revenue | 0.37% | 0.03% | 10.63 |
Company count, reported revenue and national shares, as of 17 Jul 2026.
Why revenue pulls ahead of head count
Divide revenue by companies and the story sharpens. The average Chiang Rai company books 15.7 million baht. The average Phayao company books 6.3 million baht. So Chiang Rai gets a 4.2 times advantage from having more firms, and another 2.5 times from each firm being bigger. Multiply the two and you land at 10.6. Neither province punches above its weight nationally, because Bangkok alone books 50.5 trillion baht. Chiang Rai holds 0.94 percent of the country's companies. It holds only 0.37 percent of national revenue. Phayao holds 0.22 percent of companies. Its share of revenue is just 0.03 percent. These are averages, so a few large filers in either province can move them a lot.
Why this matters
Anyone who sizes a northern market by counting firms will overstate Phayao and understate Chiang Rai. A supplier, lender or retailer choosing where to open a branch should ask two questions, how many buyers are there and how much does each one spend. Chiang Rai answers both better. Phayao ranks 52nd for company count but 72nd for revenue, so it falls twenty places once money is counted instead of names. The lesson reaches past these two provinces. When a company count and a revenue total disagree, the gap itself tells you about the typical firm.
Definitions
- Registered company
- A juristic person listed in the DBD registry with a registered address in the province.
- Reported revenue
- The sum of revenue in filed financial statements for companies in the province.
- Revenue per company
- Total provincial revenue divided by the number of registered companies, including those that have not filed.
- Aggregate
- A total or ratio computed across a whole group of companies rather than an average of individual firms.
Assumptions
- Province is the registered address, which may differ from where a company operates.
- Revenue includes only companies that filed a statement, so true provincial activity is higher.
- Revenue of firms headquartered elsewhere but operating in these provinces is booked at their registered address.
- A few large filers can move a small province's totals sharply.
Methodology
Company counts and revenue totals come from the Department of Business Development registry, aggregated by province of registered address as of 17 July 2026. Revenue is the sum of revenue reported in filed financial statements, so companies that have not filed add to the count but not to revenue. Ranks cover 77 areas, the 76 provinces plus Bangkok, and exclude 572 companies with no province recorded. Shares use the national totals of 1,989,709 companies and 80.15 trillion baht in revenue. Per-company revenue divides total revenue by all registered companies in the province, not only filers, so it understates the typical filer.
How we verified this
- Company ratio: 18,652 divided by 4,408 equals 4.231, shown as 4.2 and 4.23.
- Revenue ratio: 292,968,493,878 divided by 27,572,918,514 equals 10.625, shown as 10.6 and 10.63.
- Revenue per company: 292,968,493,878 divided by 18,652 equals 15.71 million baht, and 27,572,918,514 divided by 4,408 equals 6.26 million baht, a ratio of 2.51.
- Decomposition: 4.231 multiplied by 2.511 equals 10.62, matching the revenue ratio.
- Company shares: 18,652 divided by 1,989,709 equals 0.94 percent, and 4,408 divided by 1,989,709 equals 0.22 percent.
- Revenue shares: 292.97 billion divided by 80,146.5 billion equals 0.37 percent, and 27.57 billion divided by 80,146.5 billion equals 0.03 percent.
- Ranks were computed in the database across 77 areas: Chiang Rai 16th by count and 20th by revenue, Phayao 52nd by count and 72nd by revenue.
References
- Department of Business Development. (2026). Registered juristic persons and financial statement aggregates. Ministry of Commerce, Thailand. https://www.dbd.go.th/
Frequently asked questions
How many companies are registered in Chiang Rai and Phayao?
Chiang Rai has 18,652 and Phayao has 4,408, as of 17 July 2026 (DBD, 2026).
Which of the two has higher revenue?
Chiang Rai, with 293.0 billion baht against 27.6 billion baht for Phayao, a ratio of 10.6 to 1.
Why is the revenue gap larger than the company gap?
The average Chiang Rai company reports 15.7 million baht in revenue against 6.3 million baht in Phayao, a 2.5 times difference that compounds the 4.2 times gap in company count.
Cite this page
Chatpong L. (2026). Chiang Rai vs Phayao: Company Count and Revenue Compared (2026). Max Data Insights. https://maxdatathailand.com/insights/chiang-rai-vs-phayao-business-comparison-2026
Data & corrections
Download the data (CSV)Spot something off, or want to ask about the data? Email insights@maxsolutions.co.th. We publish corrections.
Written by
Chatpong L.Founder, Max Data, Max Solutions Co., Ltd.
Chatpong L. leads Max Data, a company-intelligence platform built on Thailand's official business registry. He writes about the structure of the Thai economy using primary registry data. His work covers company formation, industry concentration, and regional business activity.
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This page reports company-level and aggregate statistics only. It names no individuals and makes no claims about any person. Figures are provided for information and may be revised as source data updates.