Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bellinzona and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $3,572 in Bellinzona, rent and utilities included – about $31,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

171

Cost of Living Index in Bellinzona
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Bellinzona Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Bellinzona

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,572

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,572 per month in Bellinzona vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Bellinzona $3,572
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $5,491 per month in Bellinzona vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Bellinzona $5,491
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $7,411 per month in Bellinzona vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Bellinzona $7,411
Chiang Mai $1,979

Bellinzona costs about 282% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Bellinzona sits 162% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$34.79 CHF 28.86

$2.24 ฿75.7

1453.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$119 CHF 98.8

$19.00 ฿642

526.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.24 CHF 15.13

$5.55 ฿188

228.65%

Cappuccino

$4.80 CHF 3.99

$1.67 ฿56.6

187.43%

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

$5.28 CHF 4.38

$0.64 ฿21.56

725.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 CHF 3.71

$0.31 ฿10.32

1341.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.61 CHF 7.98

$2.36 ฿79.6

307.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.73 CHF 5.58

$3.66 ฿124

83.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.18 CHF 1.80

$1.95 ฿65.8

11.79%

White Bread (500g)

$4.14 CHF 3.43

$1.44 ฿48.51

187.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.11 CHF 3.41

$1.33 ฿45.07

209.02%

Eggs

$7.86 CHF 6.52

$2.28 ฿77.1

244.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.65 CHF 22.11

$16.45 ฿556

62.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$30.79 CHF 25.54

$2.78 ฿94.0

1007.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.82 CHF 34.70

$9.31 ฿314

349.19%

Apples (1kg)

$3.71 CHF 3.08

$2.35 ฿79.5

57.87%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 CHF 1.69

$0.97 ฿32.82

109.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 CHF 2.34

$1.60 ฿53.9

76.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.48 CHF 5.37

$1.50 ฿50.7

332.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.05 CHF 1.70

$1.28 ฿43.15

60.16%

Onion (1kg)

$2.20 CHF 1.83

$1.10 ฿37.22

100.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.45 CHF 2.03

$0.71 ฿23.84

245.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 CHF 1.08

$0.49 ฿16.38

165.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.98 CHF 9.11

$4.14 ฿140

165.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.12 CHF 15.03

$17.52 ฿592

3.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.86 CHF 2.37

$1.61 ฿54.5

77.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.97 CHF 3.29

$2.78 ฿94.0

42.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.75 CHF 2.28

$0.87 ฿29.33

216.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$122 CHF 101

$54.1 ฿1,827

125.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.40 CHF 6.14

$1.16 ฿39.08

537.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$5.48 CHF 4.55

$0.53 ฿17.82

933.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$36.65 CHF 30.40

$2.42 ฿81.8

1414.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.26 CHF 1.88

$1.45 ฿48.93

55.86%

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

$39.3K CHF 32.6K

$21.1K ฿711.2K

86.69%

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

$39.3K CHF 32.6K

$26.9K ฿909.8K

45.69%

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

$308 CHF 256

$62.2 ฿2,100

395.42%

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

$36.80 CHF 30.53

$12.17 ฿411

202.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.6 CHF 51.9

$20.12 ฿680

211.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$146 CHF 121

$37.31 ฿1,260

290.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$54.1 CHF 44.88

$3.77 ฿127

1335.01%

Cinema Ticket

$23.86 CHF 19.79

$6.49 ฿219

267.64%

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

$3,258 CHF 2,703

$736 ฿24.9K

342.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.1K CHF 29.1K

$14.8K ฿498.6K

137.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$198 CHF 164

$53.4 ฿1,802

270.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.72 CHF 40.42

$24.64 ฿832

97.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$163 CHF 135

$91.5 ฿3,089

77.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$172 CHF 143

$71.9 ฿2,429

139.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,574 CHF 1,306

$482 ฿16.3K

226.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,411 CHF 1,170

$309 ฿10.4K

356.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,491 CHF 2,067

$1,006 ฿34.0K

147.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,504 CHF 2,077

$633 ฿21.4K

295.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.8K CHF 11.4K

$2,363 ฿79.8K

483.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$10.3K CHF 8,581

$1,589 ฿53.7K

550.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,707 CHF 5,564

$590 ฿19.9K

1037.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.23

5.57

-59.96%

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

Last update for Bellinzona: October 24, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bellinzona

$1.4K 39.5%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 78.1% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Bellinzona

$639 17.9%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 63.3% $405

Eating Out

Bellinzona

$491 13.8%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 84.2% $414

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bellinzona

$407 11.4%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 76.8% $313

Clothing & Footwear

Bellinzona

$262 7.3%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 58.5% $153

Sport & Entertainment

Bellinzona

$194 5.4%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 74% $143

Getting Around

Bellinzona

$168 4.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 63.4% $106

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,574 in Bellinzona 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 in Bellinzona are about 11 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $119 in Bellinzona versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $639 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Bellinzona

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

22:51 10:51 PM

04:51 4:51 AM

6 h ahead of Bellinzona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

43,785

127,240

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.924 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bellinzona Chiang Mai 8,510 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Bellinzona
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

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

Monthly costs with rent: $3,572 in Bellinzona, $936 in Chiang Mai – Chiang Mai comes out roughly 74% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,357 per month in Bellinzona 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 $1,574 in Bellinzona.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,572 in Bellinzona and $936 in Chiang Mai. That makes Chiang Mai about 74% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 56% less in Chiang Mai. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,572 in Bellinzona and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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