Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Balzan and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,939 in Balzan, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

92

Cost of Living Index in Balzan
Learn more

Balzan Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

Jump to prices

Balzan

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,939

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,939 per month in Balzan vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Balzan $1,939
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $2,927 per month in Balzan vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Balzan $2,927
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $3,915 per month in Balzan vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Balzan $3,915
Chiang Mai $1,979

Balzan costs about 107% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Balzan sits 42% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.68 €16.73

$2.24 ฿75.6

733.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.1 €81.6

$19.00 ฿641

379.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.10 €10.84

$5.55 ฿187

118.02%

Cappuccino

$3.09 €2.76

$1.67 ฿56.5

85.03%

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

$1.93 €1.73

$0.64 ฿21.54

201.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 €0.92

$0.31 ฿10.31

232.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.26 €2.92

$2.36 ฿79.5

38.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 €2.19

$3.66 ฿124

-33.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.12

$1.95 ฿65.7

-35.90%

White Bread (500g)

$0.97 €0.87

$1.44 ฿48.46

-32.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.52 €3.16

$1.33 ฿45.03

164.66%

Eggs

$4.30 €3.85

$2.28 ฿77.1

88.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 €9.23

$16.45 ฿555

-37.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.10 €8.15

$2.78 ฿93.9

227.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.40 €11.10

$9.31 ฿314

33.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.64 €2.37

$2.35 ฿79.4

12.34%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 €1.83

$0.97 ฿32.79

110.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.68 €1.51

$1.60 ฿53.9

5.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.50 ฿50.6

-23.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.86 €0.77

$1.28 ฿43.11

-32.81%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 €0.81

$1.10 ฿37.18

-17.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.85 €0.76

$0.71 ฿23.82

19.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 €0.89

$0.49 ฿16.36

102.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.09 €5.46

$4.14 ฿140

47.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.02 €5.39

$17.52 ฿591

-65.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.61 ฿54.5

-33.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.78 ฿93.9

-46.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.01 €2.70

$0.87 ฿29.30

245.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.23 €2.00

$1.16 ฿39.04

92.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.76 €1.58

$0.53 ฿17.80

232.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.03 €28.69

$2.42 ฿81.7

1223.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 €1.36

$1.45 ฿48.88

4.83%

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

$27.5K €24.6K

$21.1K ฿710.5K

30.48%

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

$32.2K €28.9K

$26.9K ฿909.0K

19.58%

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

$154 €138

$62.2 ฿2,098

147.93%

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

$19.90 €17.82

$12.17 ฿411

63.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.97 €25.95

$20.12 ฿679

43.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.6 €65.9

$37.31 ฿1,259

97.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$11.40 €10.21

$6.49 ฿219

75.65%

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

$280 €250

$736 ฿24.8K

-62.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K €10.9K

$14.8K ฿498.2K

-17.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.0 €52.0

$53.4 ฿1,801

8.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$69.1 €61.9

$24.64 ฿831

180.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 €98.5

$91.5 ฿3,087

20.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 €117

$71.9 ฿2,427

80.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,132 €1,014

$482 ฿16.3K

134.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$950 €851

$309 ฿10.4K

207.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,804 €1,615

$1,006 ฿33.9K

79.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,522 €1,364

$633 ฿21.4K

140.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,057 €3,633

$2,363 ฿79.7K

71.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,876 €2,575

$1,589 ฿53.6K

80.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,000 €896

$590 ฿19.9K

69.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

5.57

-27.29%

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

Last update for Balzan: 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

Balzan

$950 49%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 67.5% $641

Eating Out

Balzan

$256 13.2%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 69.7% $178

Groceries & Markets

Balzan

$245 12.6%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 4.4% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Balzan

$203 10.5%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 53.5% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Balzan

$165 8.5%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 34.3% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Balzan

$96 5%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 47.8% $46

Getting Around

Balzan

$23 * 1.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 166% $38

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,132 in Balzan 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 run about 70% higher in Balzan, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91 in Balzan versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $245 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Balzan

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

00:15 12:15 AM

06:15 6:15 AM

6 h ahead of Balzan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,700

127,240

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Balzan Chiang Mai 8,320 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Balzan
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $1,939 in Balzan, $936 in Chiang Mai – Chiang Mai comes out roughly 52% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,908 per month in Balzan 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 $1,132 in Balzan.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91 in Balzan and $19 in Chiang Mai. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 5% more in Balzan, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,939 in Balzan and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $1,939 in Balzan. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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, Balzan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.