Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athlone and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $2,542 in Athlone, rent and utilities included – about $19,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Athlone
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Athlone Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Athlone

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,542

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,542 in Athlone versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

Athlone $2,542
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,749 in Athlone versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

Athlone $3,749
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,956 in Athlone versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

Athlone $4,956
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in Athlone is roughly 171% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athlone is 88% above, Chiang Mai is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.37 €19.90

$2.26 ฿75.4

889.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.0 €80.9

$19.18 ฿641

374.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.63 €11.23

$5.59 ฿187

125.94%

Cappuccino

$4.32 €3.84

$1.72 ฿57.6

151.16%

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

$2.92 €2.60

$0.64 ฿21.54

356.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.84 €1.64

$0.33 ฿11.18

457.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.41 €6.59

$2.36 ฿78.7

213.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.55 €5.82

$3.90 ฿130

67.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 €1.30

$2.05 ฿68.6

-28.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 €1.12

$1.40 ฿46.70

-10.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.66 €1.48

$1.28 ฿42.89

29.69%

Eggs

$3.91 €3.48

$2.25 ฿75.3

73.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.73 €9.55

$16.94 ฿566

-36.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.27 €10.02

$2.74 ฿91.6

311.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.85 €10.53

$9.36 ฿313

26.60%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 €2.27

$2.40 ฿80.3

6.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 €1.39

$1.01 ฿33.92

54.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.41 €2.14

$1.61 ฿53.9

49.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.85 €2.53

$1.52 ฿50.7

87.50%

Potato (1kg)

$2.29 €2.03

$1.28 ฿42.90

78.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.81 €1.61

$1.11 ฿37.22

63.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.72 ฿24.09

100.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.69

$0.52 ฿17.54

265.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.88 €15.90

$4.33 ฿145

312.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.10 €9.87

$17.73 ฿593

-37.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.44 €3.06

$1.63 ฿54.4

111.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.58 €3.18

$2.85 ฿95.3

25.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.06 €1.83

$0.85 ฿28.31

142.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.9 ฿1,801

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.08 €4.52

$1.17 ฿39.18

334.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.32

$0.57 ฿19.00

161.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.77 €24.70

$2.37 ฿79.2

1071.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.45 ฿48.32

40.00%

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

$39.6K €35.2K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

93.36%

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

$36.8K €32.7K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

38.82%

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

$241 €214

$62.3 ฿2,083

286.39%

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

$21.86 €19.45

$12.27 ฿410

78.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.22 €43.78

$19.97 ฿668

146.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.5 €52.1

$37.91 ฿1,267

54.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.69 €30.85

$3.76 ฿126

822.61%

Cinema Ticket

$10.95 €9.74

$6.71 ฿224

63.19%

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

$1,001 €891

$797 ฿26.6K

25.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,365 €4,772

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-63.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$92.9 €82.6

$53.3 ฿1,780

74.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.88 €36.36

$25.05 ฿837

63.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.6 €74.4

$91.6 ฿3,062

-8.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.7 €69.1

$73.5 ฿2,455

5.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,468 €1,306

$464 ฿15.5K

216.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,353 €1,203

$305 ฿10.2K

344.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,529 €2,249

$915 ฿30.6K

176.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,254 €2,005

$552 ฿18.5K

308.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,294 €2,930

$1,912 ฿63.9K

72.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,340 €2,971

$1,438 ฿48.1K

132.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,153 €2,804

$595 ฿19.9K

429.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.73

5.57

-33.03%

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

Last update for Athlone: 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

Athlone

$1.4K 53.2%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 77.5% $1K

Eating Out

Athlone

$338 13.3%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 76.6% $259

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athlone

$312 12.3%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 69.7% $217

Groceries & Markets

Athlone

$305 12%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 22% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Athlone

$133 5.2%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 17.5% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Athlone

$80 3.2%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 36.2% $29

Getting Around

Athlone

$21 * 0.8%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 196% $41

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,468 in Athlone and $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athlone pays 430% 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: $91.0 in Athlone vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $305 vs $238 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Athlone

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

11:32 11:32 AM

17:32 5:32 PM

6 h ahead of Athlone

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,000

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

Athlone Chiang Mai 9,410 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Athlone
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

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

Chiang Mai wins on cost – living expenses run 171% lower than in Athlone. 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 430% higher in Athlone, 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: $1,468 in Athlone versus $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 28% higher in Athlone. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,542 per month in Athlone versus $938 in Chiang Mai – a 171% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $2,542 in Athlone, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Athlone. 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, Athlone 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 171% less than in Athlone. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.