Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alicante and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,814 in Alicante, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Alicante
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Alicante Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Alicante

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,814

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Alicante 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 Alicante and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,814 in Alicante versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

Alicante $1,814
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,801 in Alicante versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

Alicante $2,801
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,788 in Alicante versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

Alicante $3,788
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in Alicante is roughly 93% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Alicante is 34% above, Chiang Mai is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.14 €17.03

$2.26 ฿75.4

746.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €58.7

$19.18 ฿641

244.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.24 €10.00

$5.59 ฿187

101.07%

Cappuccino

$2.21 €1.97

$1.72 ฿57.6

28.49%

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

$2.06 €1.83

$0.64 ฿21.54

221.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 €1.16

$0.33 ฿11.18

293.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.34 €2.97

$2.36 ฿78.7

41.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 €2.94

$3.90 ฿130

-15.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 €0.99

$2.05 ฿68.6

-45.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.40 ฿46.70

17.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 €1.43

$1.28 ฿42.89

25.78%

Eggs

$3.26 €2.90

$2.25 ฿75.3

44.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.37 €15.45

$16.94 ฿566

2.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.79 €8.71

$2.74 ฿91.6

257.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.86 €14.11

$9.36 ฿313

69.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.58 €2.30

$2.40 ฿80.3

7.50%

Banana (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.01 ฿33.92

105.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.61 ฿53.9

11.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.52 ฿50.7

73.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.28 ฿42.90

48.44%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 €1.79

$1.11 ฿37.22

81.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.23 €1.10

$0.72 ฿24.09

70.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 €0.58

$0.52 ฿17.54

26.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.46 €5.75

$4.33 ฿145

49.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.42 €4.82

$17.73 ฿593

-69.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.63 ฿54.4

-26.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 €1.83

$2.85 ฿95.3

-27.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 €1.47

$0.85 ฿28.31

94.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.30 €23.39

$53.9 ฿1,801

-51.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.10 €2.76

$1.17 ฿39.18

164.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 €1.16

$0.57 ฿19.00

128.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.96 €15.09

$2.37 ฿79.2

615.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.76 €1.56

$1.45 ฿48.32

21.38%

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

$35.6K €31.7K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

74.05%

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

$29.1K €25.9K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

9.86%

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

$141 €125

$62.3 ฿2,083

125.49%

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

$18.27 €16.25

$12.27 ฿410

48.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.69 €26.41

$19.97 ฿668

48.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.64 €36.15

$37.91 ฿1,267

7.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.59 €14.76

$3.76 ฿126

341.22%

Cinema Ticket

$9.07 €8.06

$6.71 ฿224

35.17%

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

$708 €629

$797 ฿26.6K

-11.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,120 €8,113

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-38.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.1 €76.5

$53.3 ฿1,780

61.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.13 €31.25

$25.05 ฿837

40.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.7 €83.3

$91.6 ฿3,062

2.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 €92.0

$73.5 ฿2,455

40.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,003 €892

$464 ฿15.5K

116.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$846 €752

$305 ฿10.2K

177.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,685 €1,499

$915 ฿30.6K

84.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,519 €1,351

$552 ฿18.5K

174.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,155 €3,696

$1,912 ฿63.9K

117.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,008 €1,786

$1,438 ฿48.1K

39.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,900 €1,690

$595 ฿19.9K

219.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.99

5.57

-46.32%

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

Last update for Alicante: October 12, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Alicante

$846 46.6%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 64% $541

Groceries & Markets

Alicante

$285 15.7%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 16.4% $47

Eating Out

Alicante

$250 13.8%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 68.4% $171

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alicante

$189 10.4%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 49.8% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Alicante

$143 7.9%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 23.5% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Alicante

$59 3.2%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 12.6% $7.4

Getting Around

Alicante

$43 2.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 44.2% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,003 in Alicante and $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Alicante pays 219% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $66.0 in Alicante vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $285 vs $238 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Alicante

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

23:14 11:14 PM

04:14 4:14 AM

5 h ahead of Alicante

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

349,282

127,240

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Alicante Chiang Mai 9,510 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Alicante
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

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

Chiang Mai wins on cost – living expenses run 93% lower than in Alicante. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Chiang Mai the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 219% higher in Alicante, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,003 in Alicante versus $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $708 in Alicante versus $797 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in Alicante. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $1,814 in Alicante, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Alicante. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Chiang Mai delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $938 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Chiang Mai hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Alicante and Chiang Mai are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 93% less than in Alicante. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.