Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Barlad

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $975 in Barlad, rent and utilities included – about $600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barlad outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Barlad
Learn more

Barlad Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Barlad

🇷🇴 Romania

$975

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $925 per month in Chiang Mai vs $975 in Barlad, rent included.

Chiang Mai $925
Barlad $975

A couple spends around $1,414 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,521 in Barlad, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,414
Barlad $1,521

A family of three spends $1,903 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,066 in Barlad, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,903
Barlad $2,066

Chiang Mai is about 5% cheaper than Barlad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Barlad are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 32% lower, Barlad 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.29 ฿76.5

$8.96 RON 42.41

-74.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.64 ฿656

$41.38 RON 196

-52.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.61 ฿188

$7.20 RON 34.06

-22.08%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.6

$2.41 RON 11.40

-31.12%

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

$0.70 ฿23.40

$1.85 RON 8.75

-62.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.24

$1.54 RON 7.27

-79.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 ฿80.4

$2.17 RON 10.25

11.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.71 ฿124

$2.69 RON 12.72

37.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.3

$1.34 RON 6.34

45.52%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.03

$1.12 RON 5.31

25.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 ฿43.62

$1.40 RON 6.63

-6.43%

Eggs

$2.18 ฿72.9

$3.39 RON 16.02

-35.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.65 ฿556

$7.51 RON 35.53

121.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.76 ฿92.2

$5.22 RON 24.69

-47.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.11 ฿304

$10.04 RON 47.49

-9.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.0

$1.04 RON 4.92

129.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ฿34.26

$1.63 RON 7.73

-36.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 ฿54.4

$1.38 RON 6.54

18.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.0

$1.76 RON 8.31

-14.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.29 ฿43.13

$0.79 RON 3.75

63.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.03

$0.77 RON 3.65

44.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.08

$0.84 RON 3.99

-14.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.59

$0.89 RON 4.20

-40.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.31 ฿144

$6.64 RON 31.41

-35.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.95 ฿600

$5.58 RON 26.38

221.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ฿52.9

$1.20 RON 5.68

31.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.0

$1.62 RON 7.67

75.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.86

$0.51 RON 2.40

68.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,780

$19.88 RON 94.0

168.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.21 ฿40.29

$0.72 RON 3.42

68.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿18.99

$0.73 RON 3.46

-21.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.35 ฿78.6

$6.99 RON 33.08

-66.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 ฿47.96

$1.75 RON 8.30

-17.71%

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

$20.7K ฿692.8K

$26.5K RON 125.3K

-21.75%

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

$26.8K ฿895.7K

$25.1K RON 118.7K

6.86%

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

$62.3 ฿2,083

$158 RON 748

-60.57%

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

$12.11 ฿405

$8.87 RON 41.95

36.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.94 ฿666

$8.36 RON 39.58

138.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.07 ฿1,239

$34.02 RON 161

8.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

$18.05 RON 85.4

-79.06%

Cinema Ticket

$6.50 ฿217

$6.61 RON 31.28

-1.66%

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

$793 ฿26.5K

$465 RON 2,202

70.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿494.9K

$7,715 RON 36.5K

91.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.7 ฿1,796

$62.0 RON 293

-13.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.62 ฿823

$34.81 RON 165

-29.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 ฿3,036

$72.7 RON 344

24.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.1 ฿2,378

$86.2 RON 408

-17.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$455 ฿15.2K

$407 RON 1,927

11.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ฿9,954

$269 RON 1,271

10.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$908 ฿30.4K

$651 RON 3,081

39.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$554 ฿18.5K

$505 RON 2,387

9.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,931 ฿64.5K

$1,755 RON 8,305

10.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.3K

$1,263 RON 5,976

14.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.97

-20.09%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Last update for Barlad: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2%

Barlad

$269 27.6% 9.8% $29

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5%

Barlad

$190 19.5% 19.2% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7%

Barlad

$115 11.8% 6.4% $6.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Barlad

$175 18% 85.7% $81

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5%

Barlad

$152 15.6% 93.4% $73

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Barlad

$26 2.7% 56.8% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Barlad

$47 4.9% 5.6% $2.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $455 in Chiang Mai versus $407 in Barlad. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20.00 in Chiang Mai versus $41.00 in Barlad. Groceries tell a different story – $235 in Chiang Mai vs $190 in Barlad – so Barlad wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇷🇴 Barlad

🕒 Local time

14:38 2:38 PM

10:38 10:38 AM

4 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

77,518

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Barlad 7,090 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Barlad

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 Barlad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $925 in Chiang Mai, $975 in Barlad – roughly 5% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,388 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,462 in Barlad. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 168% less in Chiang Mai. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $793 per month in Chiang Mai and $465 in Barlad. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $925, than in Barlad at $975. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Barlad it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $925 in Chiang Mai to $975 in Barlad. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Barlad makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.