Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Avila

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,431 in Avila, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 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
70

Cost of Living Index in Avila
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Avila Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Avila

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,431

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Avila actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai versus $1,431 in Avila.

Chiang Mai $936
Avila $1,431

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,457 in Chiang Mai versus $2,135 in Avila.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Avila $2,135

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,979 in Chiang Mai versus $2,838 in Avila.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Avila $2,838

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 35% less than in Avila, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 31% below, Avila is 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$17.07 €15.29

-86.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$62.9 €56.4

-69.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$11.23 €10.07

-50.58%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$2.03 €1.82

-17.73%

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

$0.64 ฿21.55

$3.23 €2.90

-80.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.31

$1.90 €1.70

-83.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$3.31 €2.96

-28.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$4.47 €4.00

-18.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.14 €1.02

71.05%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.48

$0.75 €0.67

92.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.04

$1.53 €1.37

-13.07%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$2.98 €2.67

-23.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$25.35 €22.72

-35.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$4.20 €3.76

-33.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$10.19 €9.13

-8.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$2.86 €2.56

-17.83%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.80

$1.21 €1.08

-19.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$2.17 €1.94

-26.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$4.78 €4.29

-68.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.12

$2.08 €1.86

-38.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.19

$1.86 €1.67

-40.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.82

$1.25 €1.12

-43.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.37

$0.55 €0.50

-10.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$6.12 €5.48

-32.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$3.07 €2.75

470.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.08 €0.96

49.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.14 €1.91

29.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.31

$1.31 €1.18

-33.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,826

$31.94 €28.62

69.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.06

$4.51 €4.04

-74.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

$2.19 €1.97

-75.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$23.09 €20.69

-89.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.90

$1.82 €1.63

-20.33%

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

$21.1K ฿710.7K

$35.7K €32.0K

-41.07%

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

$26.9K ฿909.3K

$28.7K €25.7K

-6.20%

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

$62.2 ฿2,098

$74.9 €67.1

-16.96%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$16.56 €14.84

-26.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$26.07 €23.36

-22.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$40.58 €36.36

-8.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$15.85 €14.20

-76.21%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$8.75 €7.84

-25.83%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$178 €159

313.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.3K

$5,973 €5,353

147.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,801

$74.3 €66.6

-28.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$36.27 €32.50

-32.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,087

$77.1 €69.1

18.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,428

$96.0 €86.0

-25.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$804 €721

-40.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$579 €519

-46.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$998 €895

0.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$769 €689

-17.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$2,396 €2,147

-1.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$1,784 €1,599

-10.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$2,565 €2,298

-77.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.08

80.84%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Avila: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Avila

$579 40.4% 87.4% $270

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Avila

$256 17.9% 9.3% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Avila

$128 8.9% 17.5% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Avila

$118 8.2% 24.4% $23

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Avila

$241 16.8% 210% $163

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Avila

$53 3.7% 14.1% $8.7

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Avila

$58 4.1% 15.5% $7.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $482 in Chiang Mai and $804 in Avila. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Avila pays about 4.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $63 in Avila for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $256 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇪🇸 Avila

🕒 Local time

17:41 5:41 PM

11:41 11:41 AM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

57,741

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Avila 9,750 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Avila

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 Avila: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai wins on cost – living expenses run 35% lower than in Avila. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Chiang Mai the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 77% lower in Chiang Mai. 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: $482 in Chiang Mai versus $804 in Avila. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $936 per month in Chiang Mai versus $1,431 in Avila – Chiang Mai is about 35% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Avila runs roughly 41% less than in Chiang Mai. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

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 Avila are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Chiang Mai wins on affordability, Avila on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.