Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Aarschot

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,990 in Aarschot, rent and utilities included – about $12,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
96

Cost of Living Index in Aarschot
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Aarschot Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Aarschot

🇧🇪 Belgium

$1,990

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Aarschot

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Chiang Mai and in Aarschot actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $925 in Chiang Mai versus $1,990 in Aarschot.

Chiang Mai $925
Aarschot $1,990

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,414 in Chiang Mai versus $2,883 in Aarschot.

Chiang Mai $1,414
Aarschot $2,883

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,903 in Chiang Mai versus $3,777 in Aarschot.

Chiang Mai $1,903
Aarschot $3,777

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 53% less than in Aarschot, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 32% below, Aarschot is 47% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.29 ฿76.5

$18.17 €16.16

-87.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.64 ฿656

$76.7 €68.2

-74.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.61 ฿188

$11.00 €9.78

-49.00%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.6

$3.69 €3.28

-55.01%

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

$0.70 ฿23.40

$2.98 €2.65

-76.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.24

$2.61 €2.32

-88.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 ฿80.4

$5.33 €4.74

-54.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.71 ฿124

$4.57 €4.06

-18.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.3

$1.23 €1.09

58.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.03

$2.71 €2.41

-47.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 ฿43.62

$2.01 €1.79

-34.83%

Eggs

$2.18 ฿72.9

$3.65 €3.24

-40.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.65 ฿556

$11.58 €10.30

43.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.76 ฿92.2

$11.65 €10.36

-76.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.11 ฿304

$14.94 €13.29

-39.02%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.0

$2.69 €2.40

-11.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ฿34.26

$2.23 €1.98

-53.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 ฿54.4

$2.18 €1.94

-25.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.0

$2.24 €1.99

-33.04%

Potato (1kg)

$1.29 ฿43.13

$2.26 €2.01

-42.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.03

$1.75 €1.55

-36.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.08

$1.47 €1.31

-51.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.59

$0.96 €0.85

-44.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.31 ฿144

$8.89 €7.90

-51.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.95 ฿600

$7.42 €6.60

141.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ฿52.9

$2.09 €1.86

-24.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.0

$1.78 €1.58

59.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.86

$3.03 €2.69

-71.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,780

$55.7 €49.51

-4.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.21 ฿40.29

$5.12 €4.56

-76.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿18.99

$2.46 €2.19

-76.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.35 ฿78.6

$16.99 €15.11

-86.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 ฿47.96

$1.97 €1.75

-26.90%

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

$20.7K ฿692.8K

$36.0K €32.0K

-42.34%

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

$26.8K ฿895.7K

$33.4K €29.7K

-19.71%

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

$62.3 ฿2,083

$210 €187

-70.36%

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

$12.11 ฿405

$18.58 €16.53

-34.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.94 ฿666

$52.4 €46.56

-61.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.07 ฿1,239

$36.52 €32.49

1.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

$19.21 €17.09

-80.32%

Cinema Ticket

$6.50 ฿217

$14.15 €12.59

-54.06%

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

$793 ฿26.5K

$697 €620

13.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿494.9K

$16.3K €14.5K

-9.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.7 ฿1,796

$85.4 €76.0

-37.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.62 ฿823

$26.41 €23.49

-6.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 ฿3,036

$87.5 €77.9

3.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.1 ฿2,378

$130 €116

-45.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$455 ฿15.2K

$928 €826

-50.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ฿9,954

$826 €735

-63.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$908 ฿30.4K

$1,379 €1,227

-34.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$554 ฿18.5K

$1,165 €1,036

-52.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,931 ฿64.5K

$4,218 €3,752

-54.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.3K

$2,844 €2,530

-49.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.7K

$3,126 €2,780

-81.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.52

58.24%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Last update for Aarschot: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2%

Aarschot

$826 41.5% 177% $528

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5%

Aarschot

$303 15.2% 28.7% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7%

Aarschot

$148 7.5% 37% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Aarschot

$281 14.1% 198% $187

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5%

Aarschot

$281 14.1% 257% $202

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Aarschot

$85 4.3% 40.2% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Aarschot

$65 3.3% 29.5% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $455 in Chiang Mai and $928 in Aarschot. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aarschot pays 429% 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: $20.00 in Chiang Mai vs $77.0 in Aarschot for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $235 vs $303 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇧🇪 Aarschot

🕒 Local time

05:22 5:22 AM

00:22 12:22 AM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

27,656

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Aarschot 8,680 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Aarschot

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

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

Chiang Mai is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 115% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 429% lower in Aarschot. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $455 in Chiang Mai versus $928 in Aarschot. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 29% higher in Aarschot. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $20.00 versus $77.0 in Aarschot. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $925 in Chiang Mai versus $1,990 in Aarschot, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Aarschot. 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 Aarschot, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Chiang Mai and Aarschot 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 115% less than in Aarschot. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.