Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brighton and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $2,950 in Brighton, rent and utilities included – about $24,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

143

Cost of Living Index in Brighton
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Brighton Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Brighton

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,950

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,950 in Brighton versus $925 in Chiang Mai.

Brighton $2,950
Chiang Mai $925

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,214 in Brighton versus $1,414 in Chiang Mai.

Brighton $4,214
Chiang Mai $1,414

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,479 in Brighton versus $1,903 in Chiang Mai.

Brighton $5,479
Chiang Mai $1,903

Living in Brighton is roughly 219% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Brighton is 118% above, Chiang Mai is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.54 £19.16

$2.29 ฿76.5

1015.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$92.8 £69.6

$19.64 ฿656

372.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.77 £7.33

$5.61 ฿188

74.15%

Cappuccino

$5.33 £4.00

$1.66 ฿55.6

221.08%

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

$3.93 £2.95

$0.70 ฿23.40

461.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.33 £2.50

$0.31 ฿10.24

974.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.96 £6.72

$2.41 ฿80.4

271.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.49 £7.12

$3.71 ฿124

155.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 £1.47

$1.95 ฿65.3

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.54

$1.41 ฿47.03

46.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.12 £1.59

$1.31 ฿43.62

61.83%

Eggs

$4.53 £3.40

$2.18 ฿72.9

107.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.10 £9.08

$16.65 ฿556

-27.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.40 £7.05

$2.76 ฿92.2

240.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.08 £11.31

$9.11 ฿304

65.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 £2.22

$2.39 ฿80.0

23.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 £1.43

$1.03 ฿34.26

85.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.90 £2.17

$1.63 ฿54.4

77.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.76 £2.82

$1.50 ฿50.0

150.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 £1.68

$1.29 ฿43.13

73.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 £1.35

$1.11 ฿37.03

62.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$0.72 ฿24.08

66.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 £1.24

$0.53 ฿17.59

211.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.98 £17.99

$4.31 ฿144

456.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.11 £8.33

$17.95 ฿600

-38.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.08 £2.31

$1.58 ฿52.9

94.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 £2.43

$2.84 ฿95.0

14.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.94 £2.96

$0.86 ฿28.86

358.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$128 £96.4

$53.3 ฿1,780

141.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.07 £3.81

$1.21 ฿40.29

319.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.62 £1.96

$0.57 ฿18.99

359.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.62 £29.72

$2.35 ฿78.6

1585.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 £1.57

$1.44 ฿47.96

45.14%

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

$38.4K £28.8K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

85.26%

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

$41.1K £30.9K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

53.50%

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

$291 £218

$62.3 ฿2,083

366.98%

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

$16.90 £12.68

$12.11 ฿405

39.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.87 £33.66

$19.94 ฿666

125.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.2 £38.38

$37.07 ฿1,239

37.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.89 £20.17

$3.78 ฿126

611.38%

Cinema Ticket

$17.32 £12.99

$6.50 ฿217

166.46%

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

$2,062 £1,547

$793 ฿26.5K

160.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.8K £23.1K

$14.8K ฿494.9K

107.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 £67.5

$53.7 ฿1,796

67.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.51 £34.14

$24.62 ฿823

84.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £76.8

$90.9 ฿3,036

12.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.7 £68.1

$71.1 ฿2,378

27.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,887 £1,416

$455 ฿15.2K

314.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,480 £1,110

$298 ฿9,954

396.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,833 £2,125

$908 ฿30.4K

211.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

$554 ฿18.5K

303.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,467 £6,352

$1,931 ฿64.5K

338.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,148 £4,612

$1,445 ฿48.3K

325.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,380 £2,536

$591 ฿19.7K

472.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.12

5.57

-8.08%

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

Last update for Brighton: October 18, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brighton

$1.5K 50.2%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 79.9% $1.2K

Eating Out

Brighton

$390 13.2%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 79.9% $312

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brighton

$353 12%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 73.3% $258

Groceries & Markets

Brighton

$331 11.2%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 28.8% $95

Getting Around

Brighton

$162 5.5%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 62.6% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Brighton

$148 5%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 26.8% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Brighton

$86 2.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 41.6% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,887 in Brighton and $455 in Chiang Mai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brighton pays 472% 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: $93.0 in Brighton vs $20.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $331 vs $235 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Brighton

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

12:39 12:39 PM

18:39 6:39 PM

6 h ahead of Brighton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

256,000

127,240

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Brighton Chiang Mai 9,020 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Brighton
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

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

Brighton and Chiang Mai differ by about 219% in total monthly costs ($2,950 vs $925 including rent). Chiang Mai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 472% higher in Brighton, 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: $1,887 in Brighton versus $455 in Chiang Mai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,062 in Brighton versus $793 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 41% higher in Brighton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $925 in Chiang Mai versus $2,950 in Brighton, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Brighton. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Brighton 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 219% less than in Brighton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.