Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelos and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,190 in Barcelos, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Barcelos
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Barcelos Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Barcelos

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,190

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,190 in Barcelos versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

Barcelos $1,190
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,885 in Barcelos versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

Barcelos $1,885
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,579 in Barcelos versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

Barcelos $2,579
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in Barcelos is roughly 27% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Barcelos 12% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.09 €9.86

$2.26 ฿75.4

390.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.16 €42.84

$19.18 ฿641

151.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.85 €7.87

$5.59 ฿187

58.32%

Cappuccino

$1.84 €1.63

$1.72 ฿57.6

6.98%

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

$1.93 €1.72

$0.64 ฿21.54

201.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 €1.18

$0.33 ฿11.18

300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.37 €3.00

$2.36 ฿78.7

42.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 €2.52

$3.90 ฿130

-27.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 €0.99

$2.05 ฿68.6

-45.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.40 ฿46.70

32.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.28 ฿42.89

39.84%

Eggs

$3.30 €2.94

$2.25 ฿75.3

46.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.93 €10.61

$16.94 ฿566

-29.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.15

$2.74 ฿91.6

193.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.83 €13.19

$9.36 ฿313

58.44%

Apples (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.40 ฿80.3

-17.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.01 ฿33.92

35.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.61 ฿53.9

15.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.52 €2.25

$1.52 ฿50.7

65.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.28 ฿42.90

34.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 €1.63

$1.11 ฿37.22

65.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 €1.37

$0.72 ฿24.09

113.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.87

$0.52 ฿17.54

86.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.84

$4.33 ฿145

51.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.58 €4.08

$17.73 ฿593

-74.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 €1.05

$1.63 ฿54.4

-26.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 €1.95

$2.85 ฿95.3

-22.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.29 €2.03

$0.85 ฿28.31

169.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.15 €19.70

$53.9 ฿1,801

-58.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.27 €3.80

$1.17 ฿39.18

264.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 €1.27

$0.57 ฿19.00

150.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.25 €14.46

$2.37 ฿79.2

585.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.45 ฿48.32

48.28%

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

$33.2K €29.5K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

62.10%

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

$37.8K €33.7K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

42.71%

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

$111 €98.8

$62.3 ฿2,083

78.16%

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

$17.73 €15.77

$12.27 ฿410

44.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.28 €39.39

$19.97 ฿668

121.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.52 €34.27

$37.91 ฿1,267

1.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.57 €5.84

$3.76 ฿126

74.73%

Cinema Ticket

$9.12 €8.11

$6.71 ฿224

35.92%

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

$339 €302

$797 ฿26.6K

-57.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,374 €5,670

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-57.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.5 €64.5

$53.3 ฿1,780

36.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.75 €33.58

$25.05 ฿837

50.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.7 €70.0

$91.6 ฿3,062

-14.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 €93.4

$73.5 ฿2,455

42.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 €439

$464 ฿15.5K

6.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 €318

$305 ฿10.2K

17.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$895 €796

$915 ฿30.6K

-2.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$696 €619

$552 ฿18.5K

25.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,651 €2,358

$1,912 ฿63.9K

38.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,510 €1,343

$1,438 ฿48.1K

4.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,072 €954

$595 ฿19.9K

80.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.7

5.57

-33.57%

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

Last update for Barcelos: October 10, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelos

$357 30%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 14.7% $53

Groceries & Markets

Barcelos

$255 21.4%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 6.6% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelos

$173 14.6%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 45.3% $78

Eating Out

Barcelos

$173 14.5%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 54.3% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelos

$132 11.1%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 17.2% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelos

$57 4.8%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 9.5% $5.4

Getting Around

Barcelos

$43 3.6%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 43.6% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $494 in Barcelos and $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelos pays 80% 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: $48.00 in Barcelos vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $255 vs $238 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Barcelos

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

02:03 2:03 AM

08:03 8:03 AM

6 h ahead of Barcelos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

116,766

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

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Between locations

Barcelos Chiang Mai 10,010 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelos
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

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

Chiang Mai is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 27% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 80% higher in Barcelos, 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: $494 in Barcelos versus $464 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in Barcelos. 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 $48.00 in Barcelos. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $1,190 in Barcelos, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Barcelos. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Chiang Mai is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Barcelos, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Barcelos 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 27% less than in Barcelos. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.