Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cesis and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,102 in Cesis, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Cesis
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Cesis Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Cesis

🇱🇻 Latvia

$1,102

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,102 in Cesis versus $938 in Chiang Mai.

Cesis $1,102
Chiang Mai $938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,829 in Cesis versus $1,426 in Chiang Mai.

Cesis $1,829
Chiang Mai $1,426

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,556 in Cesis versus $1,914 in Chiang Mai.

Cesis $2,556
Chiang Mai $1,914

Living in Cesis is roughly 17% more expensive than in Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cesis 18% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.49 €14.67

$2.26 ฿75.4

629.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.9 €59.5

$19.18 ฿641

248.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.00 €8.01

$5.59 ฿187

61.00%

Cappuccino

$3.68 €3.28

$1.72 ฿57.6

113.95%

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

$1.62 €1.44

$0.64 ฿21.54

153.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.18 €1.05

$0.33 ฿11.18

257.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.63 €5.00

$2.36 ฿78.7

138.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.08 €4.52

$3.90 ฿130

30.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.06

$2.05 ฿68.6

-41.95%

White Bread (500g)

$1.48 €1.31

$1.40 ฿46.70

5.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 €2.21

$1.28 ฿42.89

94.53%

Eggs

$2.73 €2.43

$2.25 ฿75.3

21.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.66 €9.48

$16.94 ฿566

-37.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.42 €7.49

$2.74 ฿91.6

207.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.46 €11.98

$9.36 ฿313

43.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$2.40 ฿80.3

-14.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.01 ฿33.92

78.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.47 €2.20

$1.61 ฿53.9

53.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.97 €2.65

$1.52 ฿50.7

95.39%

Potato (1kg)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.28 ฿42.90

-35.94%

Onion (1kg)

$0.90 €0.80

$1.11 ฿37.22

-18.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.73 €1.54

$0.72 ฿24.09

140.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 €0.82

$0.52 ฿17.54

76.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.80 €6.05

$4.33 ฿145

57.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.92 €7.05

$17.73 ฿593

-55.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 €1.52

$1.63 ฿54.4

4.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 €1.80

$2.85 ฿95.3

-28.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 ฿28.31

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.9 ฿1,801

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 €2.92

$1.17 ฿39.18

180.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 €0.87

$0.57 ฿19.00

71.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.96 €15.97

$2.37 ฿79.2

657.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.45 ฿48.32

40.69%

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

$27.3K €24.3K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

33.44%

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

$30.3K €27.0K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

14.29%

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

$368 €328

$62.3 ฿2,083

491.16%

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

$19.14 €17.02

$12.27 ฿410

55.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.72 €17.54

$19.97 ฿668

-1.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.91 ฿1,267

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$11.34 €10.09

$6.71 ฿224

69.00%

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

$683 €608

$797 ฿26.6K

-14.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.2K €16.2K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

22.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.9 €60.4

$53.3 ฿1,780

27.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.0 €45.32

$25.05 ฿837

103.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.6 €75.2

$91.6 ฿3,062

-7.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$136 €121

$73.5 ฿2,455

85.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$464 ฿15.5K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$305 ฿10.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$915 ฿30.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$283 €252

$552 ฿18.5K

-48.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,912 ฿63.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,438 ฿48.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,095 €974

$595 ฿19.9K

84.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

5.57

-14.36%

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

Last update for Cesis: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cesis

$407 37%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 76.8% $313

Groceries & Markets

Cesis

$259 23.5%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 8% $21

Eating Out

Cesis

$253 22.9%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 68.7% $174

Clothing & Footwear

Cesis

$153 13.9%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 28.3% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Cesis

$23 * 2.1%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 126% $29

Getting Around

Cesis

$8.2 * 0.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 652% $53

Accommodation & Living

Cesis

- * 0%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5%

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

Cost Breakdown

Cesis pays 84% 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: $67.0 in Cesis vs $19.00 in Chiang Mai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $259 vs $238 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇻 Cesis

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

23:30 11:30 PM

03:30 3:30 AM

4 h ahead of Cesis

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,673

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

Cesis Chiang Mai 7,280 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cesis
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

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

Chiang Mai is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 17% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 84% higher in Cesis, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Childcare runs $683 in Cesis versus $797 in Chiang Mai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $19.00 versus $67.0 in Cesis. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $938 in Chiang Mai versus $1,102 in Cesis, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Cesis. 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 Cesis, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cesis 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 17% less than in Cesis. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.