Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barisal and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Barisal: $304 a month against $925 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

15

Cost of Living Index in Barisal
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Barisal Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
Learn more

Chiang Mai Living Index

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Barisal

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$304

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $304 per month in Barisal vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Barisal $304
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $492 per month in Barisal vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Barisal $492
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $681 per month in Barisal vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Barisal $681
Chiang Mai $1,903

Barisal is about 67% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Barisal and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Barisal 78% lower, Chiang Mai 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.44 ৳178

$2.29 ฿76.5

-37.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.51 ৳1,298

$19.64 ฿656

-46.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.34 ৳536

$5.61 ฿188

-22.64%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.60 ৳322

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ৳569

Cappuccino

$1.89 ৳234

$1.66 ฿55.6

13.86%

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

$0.29 ৳35.86

$0.70 ฿23.40

-58.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 ৳14.94

$0.31 ฿10.24

-61.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 ฿80.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.71 ฿124

Milk (1 liter)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$1.95 ฿65.3

-64.62%

White Bread (500g)

$0.63 ৳77.5

$1.41 ฿47.03

-55.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.55 ৳67.8

$1.31 ฿43.62

-58.02%

Eggs

$1.13 ৳140

$2.18 ฿72.9

-48.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.17 ৳762

$16.65 ฿556

-62.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.27 ৳280

$2.76 ฿92.2

-17.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.48 ৳800

$9.11 ฿304

-28.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$2.39 ฿80.0

-2.09%

Banana (1kg)

$0.92 ৳113

$1.03 ฿34.26

-10.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 ৳239

$1.63 ฿54.4

18.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 ৳68.9

$1.50 ฿50.0

-62.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.29 ৳35.34

$1.29 ฿43.13

-77.52%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$1.11 ฿37.03

-58.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.41 ৳51.0

$0.72 ฿24.08

-43.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.29 ৳36.17

$0.53 ฿17.59

-45.28%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$6.97 ৳862

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.74 ৳462

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ৳554

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.30 ৳408

$4.31 ฿144

-23.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.95 ฿600

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ฿52.9

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.0

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.43 ৳52.6

$0.86 ฿28.86

-50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,780

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.37 ৳169

$1.21 ฿40.29

13.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 ৳53.0

$0.57 ฿18.99

-24.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.80 ৳345

$2.35 ฿78.6

19.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ৳131

$1.44 ฿47.96

-26.39%

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

$30.1K ৳3.7M

$20.7K ฿692.8K

45.40%

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

$32.8K ৳4.0M

$26.8K ฿895.7K

22.25%

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

$20.35 ৳2,514

$62.3 ฿2,083

-67.35%

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

$5.16 ৳638

$12.11 ฿405

-57.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.38 ৳1,282

$19.94 ฿666

-47.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$7.24 ৳894

$37.07 ฿1,239

-80.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.99 ৳1,481

$3.78 ฿126

217.20%

Cinema Ticket

$4.86 ৳600

$6.50 ฿217

-25.23%

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

$13.34 ৳1,648

$793 ฿26.5K

-98.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$700 ৳86.5K

$14.8K ฿494.9K

-95.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.69 ৳2,063

$53.7 ฿1,796

-68.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.57 ৳2,294

$24.62 ฿823

-24.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$32.54 ৳4,021

$90.9 ฿3,036

-64.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$24.09 ৳2,976

$71.1 ฿2,378

-66.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$73.1 ৳9,036

$455 ฿15.2K

-83.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$51.8 ৳6,403

$298 ฿9,954

-82.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$908 ฿30.4K

-85.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$86.5 ৳10.7K

$554 ฿18.5K

-84.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$688 ৳85.1K

$1,931 ฿64.5K

-64.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$309 ৳38.2K

$1,445 ฿48.3K

-78.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$184 ৳22.7K

$591 ฿19.7K

-68.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

5.57

88.15%

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

Last update for Barisal: October 19, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Barisal

$104 34.2%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 127% $132

Accommodation & Living

Barisal

$52 17.1%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 475% $246

Eating Out

Barisal

$49 16.1%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 60.9% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Barisal

$41 13.6%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 162% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barisal

$36 11.8%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 163% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Barisal

$17 5.6%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 195% $33

Getting Around

Barisal

$5.2 * 1.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 1067% $56

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $73.1 in Barisal 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.

Salaries run about 222% higher in Chiang Mai, 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 $11.00 in Barisal versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $104 vs $235 – making Barisal the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Barisal

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

16:52 4:52 PM

17:52 5:52 PM

1 h ahead of Barisal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

339,308

127,240

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇩 Bangladeshi Taka (৳)

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 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 BDT in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barisal Chiang Mai 1,000 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Barisal
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

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

Yes – Chiang Mai is pricier by about 204%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $456 per month in Barisal 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 Barisal, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $304 in Barisal and $925 in Chiang Mai. That's a gap of about 204%.

Kindergarten costs $13.34 per month in Barisal and $793 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Barisal, where all-in costs run around $304, than in Chiang Mai at $925. In Barisal it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Barisal – 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 Barisal. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chiang Mai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.