Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Dealu

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,041 in Dealu, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Dealu
Learn more

Dealu Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Dealu

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,041

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,041 in Dealu, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Dealu $1,041

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,724 in Dealu, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Dealu $1,724

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,407 in Dealu, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Dealu $2,407

Chiang Mai is about 10% cheaper than Dealu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Dealu are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Dealu 23% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$14.16 RON 68.1

-84.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$84.5 RON 406

-77.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$8.18 RON 39.31

-32.15%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$1.94 RON 9.35

-13.92%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$2.03 RON 9.77

-68.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$1.90 RON 9.11

-83.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$2.49 RON 11.95

-5.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$3.23 RON 15.55

13.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.77 RON 8.49

10.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$1.35 RON 6.47

6.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$1.66 RON 7.97

-19.88%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$4.44 RON 21.33

-48.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$8.48 RON 40.75

93.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$5.54 RON 26.61

-49.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$9.98 RON 48.00

-6.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$1.11 RON 5.32

111.71%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$1.48 RON 7.12

-34.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.57 RON 7.53

1.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$2.58 RON 12.41

-41.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$0.72 RON 3.45

77.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$0.68 RON 3.29

61.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$0.75 RON 3.62

-5.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$0.81 RON 3.90

-39.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$5.25 RON 25.24

-21.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$6.25 RON 30.05

180.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.46 RON 7.00

10.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$1.94 RON 9.33

43.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$0.76 RON 3.67

14.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

$21.52 RON 103

151.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$0.71 RON 3.40

63.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$0.68 RON 3.26

-22.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$6.79 RON 32.63

-64.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.88 RON 9.04

-22.87%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$28.9K RON 139.0K

-27.19%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$28.2K RON 135.6K

-4.50%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$104 RON 501

-40.30%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$10.82 RON 52.0

12.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$4.75 RON 22.86

323.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$37.71 RON 181

-1.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$20.38 RON 98.0

-81.50%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$10.46 RON 50.3

-37.95%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$589 RON 2,831

24.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$6,936 RON 33.3K

112.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$58.1 RON 279

-8.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$33.95 RON 163

-27.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$125 RON 600

-26.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$105 RON 506

-31.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$391 RON 1,880

23.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$282 RON 1,354

9.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$598 RON 2,877

68.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$439 RON 2,110

44.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$1,851 RON 8,898

27.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

$1,341 RON 6,449

18.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

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 26, 2026

Last update for Dealu: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Dealu

$282 27% 8.8% $27

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Dealu

$212 20.4% 9.5% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Dealu

$145 13.9% 33.4% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Dealu

$120 11.5% 26.7% $25

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Dealu

$196 18.8% 152% $118

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Dealu

$29 2.8% 53.3% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Dealu

$59 5.6% 16.6% $8.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $391 in Dealu. 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 $19 in Chiang Mai versus $84 in Dealu. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $212 in Dealu – so Dealu wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇷🇴 Dealu

🕒 Local time

22:11 10:11 PM

17:11 5:11 PM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

3,800

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 RON = 0.208 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.81 RON (1 RON = 0.208 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Dealu 7,270 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Dealu

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 Dealu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dealu costs about 11% 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 $1,562 in Dealu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Dealu, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $391 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $589 in Dealu. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 9% cheaper in Dealu – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,041 in Dealu. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $1,041 in Dealu. 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.