Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arnhem and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $2,557 in Arnhem, rent and utilities included – about $19,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Arnhem
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Arnhem Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Arnhem

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,557

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,557 in Arnhem versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

Arnhem $2,557
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,743 in Arnhem versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

Arnhem $3,743
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,930 in Arnhem versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

Arnhem $4,930
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in Arnhem is roughly 172% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Arnhem is 89% above, Chiang Mai is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.91 €19.49

$2.26 ฿75.4

869.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.2 €75.8

$19.18 ฿641

344.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.98 €13.32

$5.59 ฿187

167.98%

Cappuccino

$4.07 €3.62

$1.72 ฿57.6

136.63%

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

$3.34 €2.97

$0.64 ฿21.54

421.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.83 €2.52

$0.33 ฿11.18

757.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.62 €5.00

$2.36 ฿78.7

138.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.47 €4.86

$3.90 ฿130

40.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 €1.32

$2.05 ฿68.6

-27.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.99 €1.77

$1.40 ฿46.70

42.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.29 €2.04

$1.28 ฿42.89

78.91%

Eggs

$5.21 €4.64

$2.25 ฿75.3

131.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 €11.33

$16.94 ฿566

-24.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.14 €12.58

$2.74 ฿91.6

416.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.77 €14.03

$9.36 ฿313

68.48%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 €2.50

$2.40 ฿80.3

17.50%

Banana (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.01 ฿33.92

151.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.61 ฿53.9

15.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.39 €4.79

$1.52 ฿50.7

254.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.88 €1.67

$1.28 ฿42.90

46.87%

Onion (1kg)

$2.39 €2.13

$1.11 ฿37.22

115.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 €1.08

$0.72 ฿24.09

69.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 €0.63

$0.52 ฿17.54

36.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.23 €12.65

$4.33 ฿145

228.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.15 €6.36

$17.73 ฿593

-59.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.63 ฿54.4

-11.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.85 ฿95.3

-7.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.35 €3.87

$0.85 ฿28.31

411.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$113 €100

$53.9 ฿1,801

109.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.00 €3.56

$1.17 ฿39.18

241.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.38 €2.12

$0.57 ฿19.00

317.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.86 €29.23

$2.37 ฿79.2

1286.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.39 €2.12

$1.45 ฿48.32

64.83%

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

$41.8K €37.2K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

104.29%

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

$39.7K €35.3K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

49.70%

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

$276 €245

$62.3 ฿2,083

342.18%

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

$22.71 €20.20

$12.27 ฿410

85.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.44 €37.75

$19.97 ฿668

112.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.30 €36.73

$37.91 ฿1,267

8.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.99 €9.78

$3.76 ฿126

192.29%

Cinema Ticket

$14.38 €12.79

$6.71 ฿224

114.31%

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

$1,259 €1,120

$797 ฿26.6K

58.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,925 €5,270

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-60.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.3 €84.8

$53.3 ฿1,780

79.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.13 €25.91

$25.05 ฿837

16.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 €94.8

$91.6 ฿3,062

16.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$152 €136

$73.5 ฿2,455

107.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,436 €1,278

$464 ฿15.5K

209.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,159 €1,031

$305 ฿10.2K

280.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,228 €1,982

$915 ฿30.6K

143.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,834 €1,632

$552 ฿18.5K

232.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,312 €4,725

$1,912 ฿63.9K

177.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,175 €3,714

$1,438 ฿48.1K

190.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,723 €3,312

$595 ฿19.9K

525.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.95

5.57

-29.08%

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

Last update for Arnhem: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arnhem

$1.2K 45.3%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 73.7% $855

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arnhem

$341 13.3%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 72.2% $246

Groceries & Markets

Arnhem

$335 13.1%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 29% $97

Eating Out

Arnhem

$333 13%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 76.3% $254

Clothing & Footwear

Arnhem

$173 6.8%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 36.5% $63

Getting Around

Arnhem

$146 5.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 58.1% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Arnhem

$70 2.7%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 26.7% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,436 in Arnhem and $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arnhem pays 526% 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: $85.0 in Arnhem vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $335 vs $238 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Arnhem

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

01:46 1:46 AM

06:46 6:46 AM

5 h ahead of Arnhem

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

165,770

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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Arnhem Chiang Mai 8,580 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Arnhem
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

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

Arnhem and Chiang Mai differ by about 172% in total monthly costs ($2,557 vs $938 including rent). Chiang Mai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 526% higher in Arnhem, 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: $1,436 in Arnhem versus $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 41% higher in Arnhem. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $19.00 versus $85.0 in Arnhem. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $2,557 in Arnhem, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Arnhem. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Arnhem 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 172% less than in Arnhem. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.