Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aarau and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,813 in Aarau, rent and utilities included – about $22,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

134

Cost of Living Index in Aarau
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Aarau Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Aarau

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$2,813

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Aarau and in Chiang Mai

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Aarau and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,813 per month in Aarau vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Aarau $2,813
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $4,613 per month in Aarau vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Aarau $4,613
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $6,413 per month in Aarau vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Aarau $6,413
Chiang Mai $1,979

Aarau costs about 201% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Aarau sits 107% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.72 CHF 24.51

$2.24 ฿75.6

1226.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 CHF 88.6

$19.00 ฿641

465.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.33 CHF 15.12

$5.55 ฿187

230.27%

Cappuccino

$5.90 CHF 4.87

$1.67 ฿56.5

253.29%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.27 CHF 4.35

$0.64 ฿21.55

723.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.80 CHF 3.96

$0.31 ฿10.31

1448.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.95 CHF 4.91

$2.36 ฿79.6

152.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.48 CHF 5.35

$3.66 ฿124

77.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.07 CHF 1.71

$1.95 ฿65.8

6.15%

White Bread (500g)

$3.59 CHF 2.96

$1.44 ฿48.48

149.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 CHF 2.20

$1.33 ฿45.04

100.75%

Eggs

$7.06 CHF 5.82

$2.28 ฿77.1

209.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$31.59 CHF 26.06

$16.45 ฿555

92.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$29.34 CHF 24.20

$2.78 ฿93.9

955.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.32 CHF 34.08

$9.31 ฿314

343.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.86 CHF 2.36

$2.35 ฿79.4

21.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 CHF 1.40

$0.97 ฿32.80

75.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.41 CHF 1.99

$1.60 ฿53.9

50.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.75 CHF 4.74

$1.50 ฿50.6

283.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.70 CHF 1.40

$1.28 ฿43.12

32.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 CHF 1.60

$1.10 ฿37.19

76.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.29 CHF 1.89

$0.71 ฿23.82

222.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 CHF 0.91

$0.49 ฿16.37

126.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.84 CHF 8.94

$4.14 ฿140

161.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.46 CHF 8.62

$17.52 ฿591

-40.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.56 CHF 2.11

$1.61 ฿54.5

59.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 CHF 2.37

$2.78 ฿94.0

3.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.95 CHF 4.08

$0.87 ฿29.31

468.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$147 CHF 122

$54.1 ฿1,826

172.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 CHF 3.72

$1.16 ฿39.06

288.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.87 CHF 2.37

$0.53 ฿17.80

441.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$60.8 CHF 50.2

$2.42 ฿81.8

2412.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 CHF 1.81

$1.45 ฿48.90

51.03%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$38.6K CHF 31.8K

$21.1K ฿710.7K

83.19%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$38.6K CHF 31.9K

$26.9K ฿909.3K

43.40%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$121 CHF 99.6

$62.2 ฿2,098

94.15%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$28.73 CHF 23.69

$12.17 ฿411

136.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.3 CHF 47.25

$20.12 ฿679

184.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$97.2 CHF 80.1

$37.31 ฿1,259

160.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$61.5 CHF 50.7

$3.77 ฿127

1531.30%

Cinema Ticket

$21.92 CHF 18.08

$6.49 ฿219

237.75%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$3,172 CHF 2,616

$736 ฿24.8K

330.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.4K CHF 20.2K

$14.8K ฿498.3K

65.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.1 CHF 74.3

$53.4 ฿1,801

68.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$71.5 CHF 59.0

$24.64 ฿831

190.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 CHF 89.8

$91.5 ฿3,087

19.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$168 CHF 138

$71.9 ฿2,428

133.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,263 CHF 1,041

$482 ฿16.3K

161.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,041 CHF 859

$309 ฿10.4K

236.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,272 CHF 1,874

$1,006 ฿33.9K

125.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,155 CHF 1,777

$633 ฿21.4K

240.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$12.1K CHF 10.0K

$1,589 ฿53.6K

663.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,963 CHF 5,743

$590 ฿19.9K

1080.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.31

5.57

-58.53%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Aarau: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Aarau

$1K 37%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 70.3% $732

Groceries & Markets

Aarau

$595 21.1%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 60.6% $360

Eating Out

Aarau

$447 15.9%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 82.6% $369

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aarau

$207 7.4%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 54.3% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Aarau

$197 7%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 44.9% $89

Getting Around

Aarau

$186 6.6%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 67% $125

Sport & Entertainment

Aarau

$141 5%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 64.3% $91

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,263 in Aarau versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Aarau are about 12 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $107 in Aarau versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $595 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Aarau

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

04:16 4:16 AM

10:16 10:16 AM

6 h ahead of Aarau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,191

127,240

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.825 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.921 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Aarau Chiang Mai 8,550 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Aarau
Chiang Mai

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Aarau vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Aarau costs about 201% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,220 per month in Aarau and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $1,263 in Aarau.

Public transport costs about 63% less in Chiang Mai. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $3,172 per month in Aarau and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,813 in Aarau and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Chiang Mai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Aarau makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.