Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Alcala la Real

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,570 in Alcala la Real, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 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
75

Cost of Living Index in Alcala la Real
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Alcala la Real Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Alcala la Real

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,570

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Alcala la Real

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 Alcala la Real actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai versus $1,570 in Alcala la Real.

Chiang Mai $936
Alcala la Real $1,570

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,457 in Chiang Mai versus $2,345 in Alcala la Real.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Alcala la Real $2,345

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Chiang Mai versus $3,120 in Alcala la Real.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Alcala la Real $3,120

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 40% less than in Alcala la Real, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 31% below, Alcala la Real is 15% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$13.35 €11.99

-83.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$66.1 €59.4

-71.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$8.95 €8.04

-37.99%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$1.87 €1.68

-10.70%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$2.05 €1.84

-68.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$1.55 €1.39

-80.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$2.97 €2.67

-20.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.30 €2.97

10.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.14 €1.02

71.05%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$1.61 €1.45

-10.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$1.56 €1.40

-14.74%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$3.38 €3.03

-32.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$13.61 €12.23

20.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$8.31 €7.47

-66.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$16.36 €14.70

-43.09%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$2.33 €2.09

0.86%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$1.98 €1.78

-51.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.80 €1.62

-11.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$2.56 €2.30

-41.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$1.80 €1.62

-28.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$2.04 €1.84

-46.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$1.49 €1.34

-52.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$0.76 €0.68

-35.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$6.56 €5.89

-36.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$5.74 €5.16

205.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.15 €1.03

40.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$1.95 €1.75

42.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$1.68 €1.51

-48.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

$31.99 €28.75

69.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$1.67 €1.50

-30.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$1.10 €0.99

-51.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$14.79 €13.29

-83.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.81 €1.63

-19.89%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$32.3K €29.0K

-34.85%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$30.7K €27.5K

-12.13%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$116 €105

-46.57%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$15.93 €14.31

-23.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$32.44 €29.15

-37.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$45.51 €40.89

-18.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$15.74 €14.14

-76.05%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$7.78 €6.99

-16.58%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$556 €499

32.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$7,901 €7,099

86.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$91.0 €81.8

-41.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$40.04 €35.97

-38.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$96.8 €87.0

-5.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$114 €102

-36.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$891 €801

-45.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$685 €615

-54.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$1,339 €1,203

-24.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,008 €906

-37.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$3,337 €2,999

-29.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

$2,195 €1,972

-27.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.34

66.77%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Alcala la Real: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Alcala la Real

$685 43.6% 122% $376

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Alcala la Real

$268 17.1% 14.3% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Alcala la Real

$154 9.8% 41.5% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Alcala la Real

$165 10.5% 74.4% $70

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Alcala la Real

$192 12.2% 147% $114

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Alcala la Real

$46 2.9% 25.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Alcala la Real

$61 3.9% 21.5% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $482 in Chiang Mai and $891 in Alcala la Real. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $66 in Alcala la Real for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $268 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇪🇸 Alcala la Real

🕒 Local time

19:02 7:02 PM

13:02 1:02 PM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

21,587

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Chiang Mai Alcala la Real 9,830 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

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Chiang Mai
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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 Alcala la Real: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai and Alcala la Real differ by about 68% in total monthly costs ($936 vs $1,570 including rent). Chiang Mai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,403 in Chiang Mai and $2,355 in Alcala la Real to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $482 in Chiang Mai versus $891 in Alcala la Real. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Alcala la Real runs roughly 41% less than in Chiang Mai. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Childcare runs $736 in Chiang Mai versus $556 in Alcala la Real. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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, Chiang Mai and Alcala la Real are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.