Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Bydgoszcz

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,461 in Bydgoszcz, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 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
71

Cost of Living Index in Bydgoszcz
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Bydgoszcz Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Bydgoszcz

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,461

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $925 in Chiang Mai versus $1,461 in Bydgoszcz.

Chiang Mai $925
Bydgoszcz $1,461

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,414 in Chiang Mai versus $2,221 in Bydgoszcz.

Chiang Mai $1,414
Bydgoszcz $2,221

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,903 in Chiang Mai versus $2,981 in Bydgoszcz.

Chiang Mai $1,903
Bydgoszcz $2,981

Living in Chiang Mai costs roughly 37% less than in Bydgoszcz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Chiang Mai is 32% below, Bydgoszcz is 8% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.29 ฿76.5

$12.16 zł 47.25

-81.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.64 ฿656

$63.0 zł 245

-68.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.61 ฿188

$7.78 zł 30.21

-27.89%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.6

$3.42 zł 13.29

-51.46%

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

$0.70 ฿23.40

$2.10 zł 8.17

-66.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.24

$1.70 zł 6.61

-81.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 ฿80.4

$3.87 zł 15.02

-37.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.71 ฿124

$3.67 zł 14.25

1.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.3

$1.04 zł 4.06

87.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.03

$1.68 zł 6.54

-16.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 ฿43.62

$0.97 zł 3.77

35.05%

Eggs

$2.18 ฿72.9

$3.86 zł 14.98

-43.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.65 ฿556

$9.19 zł 35.72

81.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.76 ฿92.2

$6.94 zł 26.95

-60.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.11 ฿304

$11.97 zł 46.52

-23.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.0

$1.36 zł 5.30

75.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ฿34.26

$1.69 zł 6.56

-39.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 ฿54.4

$1.54 zł 6.00

5.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.0

$3.17 zł 12.30

-52.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.29 ฿43.13

$0.93 zł 3.62

38.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.03

$1.32 zł 5.12

-15.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.08

$1.13 zł 4.38

-36.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.59

$0.66 zł 2.57

-19.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.31 ฿144

$5.67 zł 22.02

-23.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.95 ฿600

$8.13 zł 31.59

120.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ฿52.9

$1.07 zł 4.16

47.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.0

$1.43 zł 5.55

98.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.86

$0.95 zł 3.71

-9.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,780

$27.75 zł 108

92.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.21 ฿40.29

$2.14 zł 8.30

-43.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿18.99

$0.78 zł 3.04

-26.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.35 ฿78.6

$10.08 zł 39.18

-76.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 ฿47.96

$1.55 zł 6.03

-7.10%

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

$20.7K ฿692.8K

$30.7K zł 119.2K

-32.41%

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

$26.8K ฿895.7K

$29.7K zł 115.2K

-9.64%

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

$62.3 ฿2,083

$282 zł 1,095

-77.88%

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

$12.11 ฿405

$7.93 zł 30.83

52.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.94 ฿666

$18.87 zł 73.3

5.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.07 ฿1,239

$39.69 zł 154

-6.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

$16.79 zł 65.2

-77.49%

Cinema Ticket

$6.50 ฿217

$7.71 zł 29.97

-15.69%

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

$793 ฿26.5K

$329 zł 1,278

140.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿494.9K

$5,120 zł 19.9K

189.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.7 ฿1,796

$82.1 zł 319

-34.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.62 ฿823

$36.18 zł 141

-31.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 ฿3,036

$89.4 zł 347

1.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.1 ฿2,378

$101 zł 392

-29.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$455 ฿15.2K

$678 zł 2,633

-32.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ฿9,954

$491 zł 1,907

-39.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$908 ฿30.4K

$1,116 zł 4,336

-18.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$554 ฿18.5K

$896 zł 3,481

-38.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,931 ฿64.5K

$2,864 zł 11.1K

-32.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.3K

$2,164 zł 8,409

-33.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.7K

$1,497 zł 5,817

-60.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.89

-19.16%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Last update for Bydgoszcz: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2%

Bydgoszcz

$491 33.6% 64.8% $193

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5%

Bydgoszcz

$226 15.5% 4% $9.4

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7%

Bydgoszcz

$139 9.5% 28.4% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Bydgoszcz

$309 21.1% 227% $214

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5%

Bydgoszcz

$204 13.9% 159% $125

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Bydgoszcz

$38 2.6% 38.1% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Bydgoszcz

$55 3.8% 10.1% $5.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $455 in Chiang Mai and $678 in Bydgoszcz. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bydgoszcz pays 153% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $20.00 in Chiang Mai vs $63.0 in Bydgoszcz. Groceries flip the comparison at $235 vs $226, with Bydgoszcz cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇵🇱 Bydgoszcz

🕒 Local time

18:41 6:41 PM

13:41 1:41 PM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

359,428

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Polish Złoty PLN zł

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 PLN = 0.257 USD

1 PLN = 0.229 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PLN, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 3.89 PLN (1 PLN = 0.257 USD). 1 EUR = 4.37 PLN (1 PLN = 0.229 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Bydgoszcz 7,750 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Bydgoszcz

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 Bydgoszcz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai wins on cost – living expenses run 58% lower than in Bydgoszcz. 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 153% lower in Bydgoszcz. 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: $455 in Chiang Mai versus $678 in Bydgoszcz. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $793 in Chiang Mai versus $329 in Bydgoszcz. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Bydgoszcz pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $925 in Chiang Mai versus $1,461 in Bydgoszcz, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Chiang Mai but tight or insufficient in Bydgoszcz. The gap between the two cities makes Chiang Mai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Chiang Mai delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $925 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Chiang Mai hard to pass up.

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

Expats usually find Chiang Mai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 58% less than in Bydgoszcz. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.