Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Bissen

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,422 in Bissen, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. The total is higher in Bissen despite lower rent and utilities.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Bissen
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Bissen Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Bissen

🇱🇺 Luxembourg

$1,422

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,422 in Bissen, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Bissen $1,422

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,310 in Bissen, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Bissen $2,310

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $3,198 in Bissen, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Bissen $3,198

Chiang Mai is about 34% cheaper than Bissen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Bissen is 4% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$27.58 €24.61

-91.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$101 €89.8

-81.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$14.63 €13.05

-62.06%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$4.59 €4.09

-63.62%

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

$0.64 ฿21.53

$2.19 €1.96

-70.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.30

$2.21 €1.97

-85.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$7.92 €7.07

-70.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$6.69 €5.97

-45.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.70 €1.52

14.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.45

$2.62 €2.34

-45.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.01

$3.01 €2.68

-55.81%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$4.65 €4.15

-50.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$18.51 €16.52

-11.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$14.69 €13.10

-81.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$25.21 €22.49

-63.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$3.33 €2.98

-29.43%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.78

$2.21 €1.97

-56.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$3.05 €2.72

-47.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$4.53 €4.04

-66.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.10

$2.53 €2.25

-49.41%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.17

$2.19 €1.95

-49.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.81

$1.90 €1.70

-62.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$1.04 €0.93

-52.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$7.34 €6.55

-43.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$11.04 €9.85

58.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$2.08 €1.85

-22.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$2.56 €2.28

8.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.29

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.03

$5.07 €4.53

-77.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.79

$4.01 €3.58

-86.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$56.3 €50.2

-95.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.87

$1.84 €1.64

-21.20%

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

$21.1K ฿710.3K

$31.0K €27.7K

-32.06%

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

$26.9K ฿908.7K

$36.9K €32.9K

-27.02%

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

$62.2 ฿2,097

$293 €261

-78.76%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$26.72 €23.84

-54.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$59.2 €52.8

-66.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$17.04 €15.21

-61.91%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$1,375 €1,227

-46.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.0K

$18.0K €16.1K

-18.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,800

$107 €95.7

-50.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$51.5 €45.96

-52.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,086

$110 €98.6

-17.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,426

$132 €118

-45.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$3,368 €3,005

-85.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$2,493 €2,224

-76.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.54

57.34%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Bissen: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Bissen

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Bissen

$413 29% 76.2% $178

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Bissen

$181 12.7% 66.2% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Bissen

$379 26.6% 301% $284

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Bissen

$390 27.5% 403% $313

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Bissen

$25 * 1.8% 59% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Bissen

$34 * 2.4% 32.2% $16

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $3,368 in Bissen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Bissen are about 4.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $101 in Bissen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $413 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇱🇺 Bissen

🕒 Local time

22:06 10:06 PM

16:06 4:06 PM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

3,200

💱 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 = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Bissen 8,630 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Bissen

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 Bissen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $936 in Chiang Mai, $1,422 in Bissen – Chiang Mai comes out roughly 34% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,403 per month in Chiang Mai and $2,132 in Bissen. 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $3,368 in Bissen.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,422 in Bissen. That makes Chiang Mai about 34% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,375 in Bissen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,422 in Bissen. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Chiang Mai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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