Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Bergamo

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $1,610 in Bergamo, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Chiang Mai, Thailand
Bergamo, Italy
Chiang Mai
🇹🇭 Thailand
$935
/mo nomad
Bergamo
🇮🇹 Italy
$1,610
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $935 in Chiang Mai versus $1,610 in Bergamo.

  • Chiang Mai $935
  • Bergamo $1,610

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,467 in Chiang Mai versus $2,458 in Bergamo.

  • Chiang Mai $1,467
  • Bergamo $2,458

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,999 in Chiang Mai versus $3,306 in Bergamo.

  • Chiang Mai $1,999
  • Bergamo $3,306

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 42% less than in Bergamo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 31% below, Bergamo is 19% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$2.13 ฿72.0
$15.51 €13.84
-86.27%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$18.62 ฿628
$85.2 €76.0
-78.15%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.60 ฿189
$11.32 €10.10
-50.53%
Cappuccino
$1.66 ฿56.1
$1.86 €1.66
-10.75%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.65 ฿21.82
$3.17 €2.83
-79.50%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.30 ฿10.29
$1.28 €1.14
-76.56%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.32 ฿78.3
$5.60 €5.00
-58.57%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.67 ฿124
$5.47 €4.88
-32.91%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.02 ฿68.0
$1.41 €1.26
43.26%
White Bread (500g)
$1.41 ฿47.49
$2.04 €1.82
-30.88%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.39 ฿46.94
$2.94 €2.63
-52.72%
Eggs
$2.37 ฿79.9
$3.67 €3.28
-35.42%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$16.52 ฿557
$14.90 €13.29
10.87%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$2.67 ฿90.1
$11.40 €10.17
-76.58%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.02 ฿304
$16.10 €14.36
-43.98%
Apples (1kg)
$2.40 ฿80.9
$2.18 €1.94
10.09%
Banana (1kg)
$1.04 ฿35.12
$1.65 €1.47
-36.97%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.66 ฿56.0
$2.34 €2.09
-29.06%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.56 ฿52.6
$2.52 €2.24
-38.10%
Potato (1kg)
$1.24 ฿41.75
$1.76 €1.57
-29.55%
Onion (1kg)
$1.09 ฿36.65
$2.22 €1.98
-50.90%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.76 ฿25.70
$1.86 €1.66
-59.14%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.51 ฿17.34
$0.45 €0.40
13.33%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.12 ฿139
$7.06 €6.30
-41.64%
Wine (Bottle)
$17.93 ฿605
$4.23 €3.78
323.88%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.62 ฿54.8
$1.20 €1.07
35.00%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.82 ฿95.2
$1.76 €1.57
60.23%
🚌 Getting Around
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.93 ฿31.52
$1.86 €1.66
-50.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$52.9 ฿1,784
$42.89 €38.26
23.32%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.18 ฿39.69
$10.37 €9.25
-88.62%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.17 ฿5.78
$2.19 €1.95
-92.24%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$1.81 ฿61.1
$39.52 €35.25
-95.42%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.47 ฿49.67
$2.08 €1.85
-29.33%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.0K ฿708.7K
$35.6K €31.7K
-40.91%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.5K ฿894.4K
$35.7K €31.8K
-25.62%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$62.6 ฿2,110
$196 €175
-68.05%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.60 ฿391
$8.90 €7.94
30.34%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$20.30 ฿685
$28.45 €25.38
-28.65%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.88 ฿1,278
$30.03 €26.78
26.14%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$3.70 ฿125
$22.96 €20.48
-83.89%
Cinema Ticket
$6.51 ฿220
$10.97 €9.78
-40.66%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$727 ฿24.5K
$580 €517
25.44%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$16.6K ฿559.0K
$16.2K €14.5K
2.06%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$53.5 ฿1,806
$71.3 €63.6
-24.92%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$24.80 ฿836
$32.53 €29.02
-23.76%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$90.4 ฿3,049
$86.4 €77.1
4.63%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$72.0 ฿2,428
$103 €92.0
-30.19%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$481 ฿16.2K
$732 €653
-34.24%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$310 ฿10.5K
$590 €526
-47.45%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,058 ฿35.7K
$1,374 €1,226
-22.99%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$659 ฿22.2K
$897 €800
-26.54%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,418 ฿81.5K
$3,535 €3,153
-31.60%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,609 ฿54.3K
$2,616 €2,333
-38.49%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Chiang Mai
Bergamo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$595 ฿20.1K
$2,361 €2,106
-74.81%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.57
3.05
82.62%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Last update for Bergamo: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Chiang Mai
$310
Bergamo
$590 90.3% $280
Groceries & Markets
Chiang Mai
$237
Bergamo
$294 24.3% $57
Clothing & Footwear
Chiang Mai
$108
Bergamo
$132 21.9% $24
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Chiang Mai
$94
Bergamo
$233 147% $139
Eating Out
Chiang Mai
$77
Bergamo
$237 210% $161
Getting Around
Chiang Mai
$59
Bergamo
$72 22.1% $13
Sport & Entertainment
Chiang Mai
$51
Bergamo
$52 2.1% $1.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $481 in Chiang Mai and $732 in Bergamo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bergamo pays about 4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $19 in Chiang Mai vs $85 in Bergamo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $237 vs $294 per month, with Chiang Mai cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇹🇭 Chiang Mai
🇮🇹 Bergamo
🕒 Local time
13:16 1:16 PM
07:16 7:16 AM
6 h behind Chiang Mai
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
127,240
120,569
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.72 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Chiang Mai Bergamo 8,470 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Chiang Mai
  • Bergamo

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 Bergamo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Chiang Mai and in Bergamo?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $935 in Chiang Mai and $1,610 in Bergamo, so Chiang Mai is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 75% 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.
How do apartment prices compare in Chiang Mai and in Bergamo?
Rent for a central apartment: $481 in Chiang Mai versus $732 in Bergamo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Chiang Mai – a meal for two runs $19 versus $85 in Bergamo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more expensive overall: Chiang Mai or Bergamo?
All in, you’ll spend $935 per month in Chiang Mai versus $1,610 in Bergamo – Chiang Mai is about 42% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.
Which city is feasible on a $800 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.
How does quality of life compare between Chiang Mai and Bergamo?
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.
Is Chiang Mai or Bergamo safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Chiang Mai and Bergamo are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.
How do I decide between Chiang Mai and Bergamo?
It comes down to priorities – Chiang Mai wins on affordability, Bergamo on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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