Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brecon and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,487 in Brecon, rent and utilities included – about $18,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

120

Cost of Living Index in Brecon
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Brecon Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Brecon

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,487

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,487 in Brecon versus $936 in Chiang Mai.

Brecon $2,487
Chiang Mai $936

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,590 in Brecon versus $1,457 in Chiang Mai.

Brecon $3,590
Chiang Mai $1,457

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,692 in Brecon versus $1,979 in Chiang Mai.

Brecon $4,692
Chiang Mai $1,979

Living in Brecon is roughly 166% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Brecon is 83% above, Chiang Mai is 31% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.64 £17.79

$2.24 ฿75.7

955.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.4 £59.7

$19.00 ฿642

317.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.35 £10.05

$5.55 ฿188

140.54%

Cappuccino

$4.92 £3.70

$1.67 ฿56.6

194.61%

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

$2.62 £1.97

$0.64 ฿21.56

309.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 £1.82

$0.31 ฿10.32

680.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.61 £4.98

$2.36 ฿79.6

180.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.93 £4.46

$3.66 ฿124

62.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.29

$1.95 ฿65.8

-11.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.88 £1.42

$1.44 ฿48.51

30.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 £1.54

$1.33 ฿45.07

54.14%

Eggs

$4.29 £3.22

$2.28 ฿77.1

88.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.33 £7.02

$16.45 ฿556

-43.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.39 £7.82

$2.78 ฿94.0

273.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.36 £15.32

$9.31 ฿314

118.69%

Apples (1kg)

$4.22 £3.18

$2.35 ฿79.5

79.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 £1.13

$0.97 ฿32.82

54.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 £1.42

$1.60 ฿53.9

18.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.54 £2.66

$1.50 ฿50.7

136.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 £1.15

$1.28 ฿43.15

19.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 £1.38

$1.10 ฿37.22

67.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 £1.20

$0.71 ฿23.84

123.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 £1.08

$0.49 ฿16.38

193.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.26 £17.51

$4.14 ฿140

461.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.39 £8.57

$17.52 ฿592

-34.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.21 £2.42

$1.61 ฿54.5

99.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.02 £2.27

$2.78 ฿94.0

8.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.49 £2.63

$0.87 ฿29.33

301.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.8 £72.8

$54.1 ฿1,827

78.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.03 £3.79

$1.16 ฿39.08

333.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.07 £1.56

$0.53 ฿17.82

290.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.24 £19.75

$2.42 ฿81.8

984.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 £1.59

$1.45 ฿48.93

45.52%

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

$39.0K £29.3K

$21.1K ฿711.2K

84.99%

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

$40.3K £30.3K

$26.9K ฿909.8K

49.53%

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

$381 £286

$62.2 ฿2,100

512.14%

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

$24.31 £18.30

$12.17 ฿411

99.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.71 £37.41

$20.12 ฿680

147.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.81 £34.48

$37.31 ฿1,260

22.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$18.03 £13.57

$6.49 ฿219

177.81%

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

$1,338 £1,007

$736 ฿24.9K

81.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.2K £16.7K

$14.8K ฿498.6K

50.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.8 £50.2

$53.4 ฿1,802

25.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.02 £34.64

$24.64 ฿832

86.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.3 £55.9

$91.5 ฿3,089

-18.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.6 £59.1

$71.9 ฿2,429

9.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,224 £921

$482 ฿16.3K

153.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,017 £766

$309 ฿10.4K

229.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,098 £1,579

$1,006 ฿34.0K

108.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,635 £1,231

$633 ฿21.4K

158.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,974 £3,744

$2,363 ฿79.8K

110.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,819 £2,874

$1,589 ฿53.7K

140.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,622 £2,726

$590 ฿19.9K

514.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

5.57

-5.75%

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

Last update for Brecon: 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

Brecon

$1K 40.9%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 69.6% $709

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brecon

$455 18.3%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 79.2% $360

Eating Out

Brecon

$353 14.2%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 78% $276

Groceries & Markets

Brecon

$335 13.5%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 30% $100

Getting Around

Brecon

$126 5.1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 51.4% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Brecon

$120 4.8%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 9.1% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Brecon

$82 3.3%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 38.6% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,224 in Brecon and $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brecon pays about 6.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $79 in Brecon vs $19 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $335 vs $234 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Brecon

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

22:16 10:16 PM

05:16 5:16 AM

7 h ahead of Brecon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,200

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.753 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.838 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Brecon Chiang Mai 9,190 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Brecon
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

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

Chiang Mai is about 62% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Brecon is about 6.1 times higher, 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: $1,224 in Brecon versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $19 versus $79 in Brecon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,487 per month in Brecon versus $936 in Chiang Mai – Chiang Mai is about 62% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Chiang Mai is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Brecon and Chiang Mai are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Brecon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.