Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Cluj-Napoca

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,423 in Cluj-Napoca, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 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
68

Cost of Living Index in Cluj-Napoca
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Cluj-Napoca Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Cluj-Napoca

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,423

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Cluj-Napoca

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 Cluj-Napoca actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,423 in Cluj-Napoca, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Cluj-Napoca $1,423

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,126 in Cluj-Napoca, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Cluj-Napoca $2,126

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,830 in Cluj-Napoca, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Cluj-Napoca $2,830

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

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Cluj-Napoca is 5% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.5

$12.58 RON 60.3

-82.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿640

$54.8 RON 263

-65.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$9.59 RON 46.01

-42.13%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.4

$3.78 RON 18.11

-55.82%

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

$0.64 ฿21.51

$2.30 RON 11.05

-72.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.29

$2.22 RON 10.66

-86.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$3.32 RON 15.91

-28.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿123

$4.20 RON 20.13

-12.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.60 RON 7.69

21.87%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.41

$1.44 RON 6.92

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.97

$1.69 RON 8.12

-21.30%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$3.76 RON 18.01

-39.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿554

$9.07 RON 43.48

81.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$7.14 RON 34.23

-61.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$11.46 RON 54.9

-18.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.3

$1.39 RON 6.65

69.06%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.75

$1.58 RON 7.58

-38.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.8

$1.88 RON 9.03

-14.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$2.37 RON 11.36

-36.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.06

$0.92 RON 4.42

39.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.14

$0.90 RON 4.31

22.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.79

$0.90 RON 4.33

-21.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.34

$1.01 RON 4.83

-51.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$6.42 RON 30.79

-35.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿590

$7.41 RON 35.54

136.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.4

$1.25 RON 5.97

28.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$1.73 RON 8.30

60.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.27

$0.76 RON 3.64

14.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,823

$44.23 RON 212

22.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.00

$0.84 RON 4.01

38.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.78

$0.96 RON 4.61

-44.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.6

$8.27 RON 39.65

-70.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.82

$1.94 RON 9.30

-25.26%

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

$21.1K ฿709.7K

$28.3K RON 135.9K

-25.66%

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

$26.9K ฿907.9K

$24.7K RON 118.6K

8.90%

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

$62.2 ฿2,095

$151 RON 723

-58.79%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$8.44 RON 40.46

44.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿678

$9.16 RON 43.94

119.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,257

$47.36 RON 227

-21.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$22.01 RON 106

-82.87%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$9.35 RON 44.86

-30.59%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$577 RON 2,768

27.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿497.6K

$9,450 RON 45.3K

56.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,799

$87.1 RON 418

-38.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿830

$44.26 RON 212

-44.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,083

$98.8 RON 474

-7.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,424

$107 RON 512

-32.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$668 RON 3,205

-27.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$536 RON 2,569

-42.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$1,227 RON 5,882

-17.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.3K

$807 RON 3,872

-21.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.6K

$4,568 RON 21.9K

-48.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$3,342 RON 16.0K

-52.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$1,241 RON 5,949

-52.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.65

-16.24%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Cluj-Napoca: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Cluj-Napoca

$536 37.7% 73.4% $227

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Cluj-Napoca

$230 16.2% 1.8% $4.3

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Cluj-Napoca

$152 10.7% 39.6% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Cluj-Napoca

$168 11.8% 78.3% $74

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Cluj-Napoca

$218 15.3% 181% $140

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Cluj-Napoca

$53 3.7% 13.8% $8.5

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Cluj-Napoca

$66 4.6% 31.4% $16

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $668 in Cluj-Napoca. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Cluj-Napoca are about 2.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $55 in Cluj-Napoca. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $230 in Cluj-Napoca – so Cluj-Napoca wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇷🇴 Cluj-Napoca

🕒 Local time

10:10 10:10 AM

05:10 5:10 AM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

324,576

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.187 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 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 4.8 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Cluj-Napoca 7,400 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Cluj-Napoca

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 Cluj-Napoca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cluj-Napoca costs about 52% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,403 per month in Chiang Mai and $2,134 in Cluj-Napoca. 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 $668 in Cluj-Napoca.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai and $55 in Cluj-Napoca. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 18% less in Cluj-Napoca. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,423 in Cluj-Napoca. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $936 versus $1,423 in Cluj-Napoca. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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, Cluj-Napoca makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.