Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Egersund

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,738 in Egersund, rent and utilities included – about $21,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Chiang Mai, Thailand
Egersund, Norway
Chiang Mai
🇹🇭 Thailand
$936
/mo nomad
Egersund
🇳🇴 Norway
$2,738
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,738 in Egersund, rent included.

  • Chiang Mai $936
  • Egersund $2,738

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $4,167 in Egersund, rent included.

  • Chiang Mai $1,457
  • Egersund $4,167

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $5,596 in Egersund, rent included.

  • Chiang Mai $1,979
  • Egersund $5,596

Chiang Mai is about 66% cheaper than Egersund, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Egersund is 101% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$2.24 ฿75.6
$24.25 NOK 223
-90.76%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$19.00 ฿641
$98.3 NOK 906
-80.67%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.55 ฿187
$15.85 NOK 146
-64.98%
Cappuccino
$1.67 ฿56.5
$6.32 NOK 58.2
-73.58%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.64 ฿21.55
$5.83 NOK 53.7
-89.02%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.31 ฿10.31
$4.69 NOK 43.22
-93.39%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.36 ฿79.6
$14.13 NOK 130
-83.30%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.66 ฿124
$10.66 NOK 98.3
-65.67%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.95 ฿65.8
$2.45 NOK 22.59
-20.41%
White Bread (500g)
$1.44 ฿48.48
$3.45 NOK 31.80
-58.26%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.33 ฿45.04
$3.94 NOK 36.29
-66.24%
Eggs
$2.28 ฿77.1
$4.94 NOK 45.50
-53.85%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$16.45 ฿555
$15.28 NOK 141
7.66%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$2.78 ฿93.9
$15.14 NOK 140
-81.64%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.31 ฿314
$36.31 NOK 335
-74.36%
Apples (1kg)
$2.35 ฿79.4
$3.71 NOK 34.15
-36.66%
Banana (1kg)
$0.97 ฿32.80
$2.83 NOK 26.06
-65.72%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.60 ฿53.9
$3.47 NOK 31.94
-53.89%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.50 ฿50.6
$5.09 NOK 46.93
-70.53%
Potato (1kg)
$1.28 ฿43.12
$2.65 NOK 24.40
-51.70%
Onion (1kg)
$1.10 ฿37.19
$3.22 NOK 29.64
-65.84%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.71 ฿23.82
$2.91 NOK 26.80
-75.60%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.49 ฿16.37
$2.34 NOK 21.60
-79.06%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.14 ฿140
$17.76 NOK 164
-76.69%
Wine (Bottle)
$17.52 ฿591
$19.22 NOK 177
-8.84%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.61 ฿54.5
$3.05 NOK 28.14
-47.21%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.78 ฿94.0
$4.60 NOK 42.39
-39.57%
🚌 Getting Around
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.87 ฿29.31
$4.70 NOK 43.29
-81.49%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$54.1 ฿1,826
$85.4 NOK 787
-36.66%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.16 ฿39.06
$6.47 NOK 59.7
-82.07%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.53 ฿17.80
$1.74 NOK 15.99
-69.54%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$2.42 ฿81.8
$107 NOK 990
-97.75%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 ฿48.90
$2.34 NOK 21.58
-38.03%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.1K ฿710.7K
$48.7K NOK 449.3K
-56.80%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.9K ฿909.3K
$41.6K NOK 383.8K
-35.29%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$62.2 ฿2,098
$266 NOK 2,447
-76.59%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$12.17 ฿411
$34.62 NOK 319
-64.85%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$20.12 ฿679
$79.9 NOK 736
-74.81%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.31 ฿1,259
$50.2 NOK 463
-25.66%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$3.77 ฿127
$41.46 NOK 382
-90.91%
Cinema Ticket
$6.49 ฿219
$22.13 NOK 204
-70.67%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$736 ฿24.8K
$327 NOK 3,010
125.45%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$14.8K ฿498.3K
$14.6K NOK 134.8K
0.92%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$53.4 ฿1,801
$105 NOK 971
-49.36%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$24.64 ฿831
$60.3 NOK 556
-59.15%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$91.5 ฿3,087
$151 NOK 1,391
-39.39%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$71.9 ฿2,428
$84.2 NOK 776
-14.55%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$482 ฿16.3K
$1,303 NOK 12.0K
-62.99%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$309 ฿10.4K
$995 NOK 9,173
-68.96%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,006 ฿33.9K
$2,093 NOK 19.3K
-51.95%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$633 ฿21.4K
$1,725 NOK 15.9K
-63.27%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,363 ฿79.8K
$6,054 NOK 55.8K
-60.97%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,589 ฿53.6K
$4,880 NOK 45.0K
-67.43%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Chiang Mai
Egersund
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$590 ฿19.9K
$4,225 NOK 38.9K
-86.04%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.57
5.24
6.30%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Egersund: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Chiang Mai
$309
Egersund
$995 222% $686
Groceries & Markets
Chiang Mai
$234
Egersund
$517 121% $282
Clothing & Footwear
Chiang Mai
$109
Egersund
$180 66% $72
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Chiang Mai
$94
Egersund
$380 302% $286
Eating Out
Chiang Mai
$78
Egersund
$451 482% $374
Getting Around
Chiang Mai
$61
Egersund
$119 94.5% $58
Sport & Entertainment
Chiang Mai
$50
Egersund
$94 87.8% $44

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $1,303 in Egersund. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Egersund are about 7.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $98 in Egersund. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $517 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇹🇭 Chiang Mai
🇳🇴 Egersund
🕒 Local time
17:44 5:44 PM
11:44 11:44 AM
6 h behind Chiang Mai
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
127,240
11,788
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 9.22 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.29 NOK (100 NOK = 9.72 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Chiang Mai Egersund 8,410 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Chiang Mai
  • Egersund

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 Egersund: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Chiang Mai or Egersund?
Egersund costs about 193% 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.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Chiang Mai and in Egersund?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,403 per month in Chiang Mai and $4,106 in Egersund. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Chiang Mai or Egersund?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiang Mai, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $482 there versus $1,303 in Egersund.
How do childcare costs compare in Chiang Mai and in Egersund?
Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $327 in Egersund. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
Are groceries more expensive in Chiang Mai or in Egersund?
Groceries cost about 121% more in Egersund, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Can you live on $800/month in Chiang Mai or in Egersund?
$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $2,738 in Egersund. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Chiang Mai or Egersund?
It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $2,738 in Egersund. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
How safe is Chiang Mai compared to Egersund?
Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.
Should I move to Chiang Mai or to Egersund?
If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Egersund makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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