Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ballsh and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,182 in Ballsh, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Ballsh
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Ballsh Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

Ballsh

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,182

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,182 per month in Ballsh vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ballsh $1,182
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $1,821 per month in Ballsh vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ballsh $1,821
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $2,461 per month in Ballsh vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ballsh $2,461
Chiang Mai $1,903

Ballsh costs about 28% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ballsh and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Ballsh 13% lower, Chiang Mai 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.85 ALL 793

$2.29 ฿76.5

330.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ALL 4,422

$19.64 ฿656

179.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.88 ALL 554

$5.61 ฿188

22.64%

Cappuccino

$2.21 ALL 178

$1.66 ฿55.6

33.13%

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

$1.48 ALL 119

$0.70 ฿23.40

111.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 ALL 67.3

$0.31 ฿10.24

170.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.46 ALL 279

$2.41 ฿80.4

43.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.14 ALL 334

$3.71 ฿124

11.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.17 ALL 175

$1.95 ฿65.3

11.28%

White Bread (500g)

$1.14 ALL 92.1

$1.41 ฿47.03

-19.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.36 ALL 190

$1.31 ฿43.62

80.15%

Eggs

$3.76 ALL 303

$2.18 ฿72.9

72.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.74 ALL 1,026

$16.65 ฿556

-23.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.17 ALL 738

$2.76 ฿92.2

232.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.84 ALL 1,356

$9.11 ฿304

84.85%

Apples (1kg)

$1.87 ALL 151

$2.39 ฿80.0

-21.76%

Banana (1kg)

$2.45 ALL 197

$1.03 ฿34.26

137.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 ALL 177

$1.63 ฿54.4

34.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.81 ALL 146

$1.50 ฿50.0

20.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.00 ALL 80.8

$1.29 ฿43.13

-22.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.30 ALL 105

$1.11 ฿37.03

17.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 ALL 119

$0.72 ฿24.08

105.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 ALL 59.1

$0.53 ฿17.59

37.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.77 ALL 384

$4.31 ฿144

10.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.48 ALL 844

$17.95 ฿600

-41.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 ALL 125

$1.58 ฿52.9

-1.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ALL 166

$2.84 ฿95.0

-27.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.48 ALL 38.48

$0.86 ฿28.86

-44.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.90 ALL 1,603

$53.3 ฿1,780

-62.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ALL 297

$1.21 ฿40.29

204.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.65 ALL 294

$0.57 ฿18.99

540.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.04 ALL 1,453

$2.35 ฿78.6

667.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.32 ALL 187

$1.44 ฿47.96

61.11%

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

$33.4K ALL 2.7M

$20.7K ฿692.8K

61.34%

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

$36.0K ALL 2.9M

$26.8K ฿895.7K

34.46%

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

$97.3 ALL 7,839

$62.3 ฿2,083

56.17%

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

$17.99 ALL 1,448

$12.11 ฿405

48.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.89 ALL 1,602

$19.94 ฿666

-0.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.7 ALL 4,565

$37.07 ฿1,239

52.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$9.79 ALL 789

$6.50 ฿217

50.62%

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

$344 ALL 27.7K

$793 ฿26.5K

-56.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,407 ALL 677.0K

$14.8K ฿494.9K

-43.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.22 ALL 3,963

$53.7 ฿1,796

-8.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.80 ALL 3,849

$24.62 ฿823

94.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ALL 9,449

$90.9 ฿3,036

29.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 ALL 8,936

$71.1 ฿2,378

55.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$469 ALL 37.7K

$455 ฿15.2K

2.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 ALL 26.7K

$298 ฿9,954

11.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$699 ALL 56.3K

$908 ฿30.4K

-23.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$470 ALL 37.8K

$554 ฿18.5K

-15.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,864 ALL 150.1K

$1,931 ฿64.5K

-3.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,245 ALL 100.3K

$1,445 ฿48.3K

-13.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

5.57

-3.23%

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

Last update for Ballsh: October 20, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ballsh

$332 28.1%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 10.3% $34

Groceries & Markets

Ballsh

$287 24.3%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 18% $52

Eating Out

Ballsh

$161 13.6%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 51.1% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Ballsh

$146 12.4%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 26.1% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ballsh

$135 11.4%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 30.2% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Ballsh

$76 6.5%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 34.4% $26

Getting Around

Ballsh

$44 3.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 38.9% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $469 in Ballsh versus $455 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55.0 in Ballsh versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $287 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇱 Ballsh

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

13:39 1:39 PM

18:39 6:39 PM

5 h ahead of Ballsh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,000

127,240

💱 Currency

Albanian Lek ALL L

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to ALL – Albanian Lek Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇱 Albanian Lek (L)

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to ALL in detail →

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Between locations

Ballsh Chiang Mai 7,770 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Ballsh
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

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

Yes – Ballsh is pricier by about 28%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,773 per month in Ballsh and $1,388 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 22% more in Ballsh, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55.0 in Ballsh and $20.00 in Chiang Mai. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $925, than in Ballsh at $1,182. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ballsh it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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 have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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