Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Hamar

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $2,461 in Hamar, rent and utilities included – about $18,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
118

Cost of Living Index in Hamar
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Hamar Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Hamar

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,461

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,461 in Hamar, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Hamar $2,461

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $3,857 in Hamar, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Hamar $3,857

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $5,253 in Hamar, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Hamar $5,253

Chiang Mai is about 62% cheaper than Hamar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Hamar is 81% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$21.67 NOK 200

-89.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$129 NOK 1,191

-85.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$16.21 NOK 149

-65.76%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$5.89 NOK 54.3

-71.65%

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

$0.64 ฿21.55

$4.52 NOK 41.67

-85.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.31

$3.39 NOK 31.23

-90.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$12.04 NOK 111

-80.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$8.70 NOK 80.2

-57.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$2.56 NOK 23.60

-23.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.48

$3.10 NOK 28.60

-53.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.04

$2.10 NOK 19.32

-36.67%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$6.23 NOK 57.5

-63.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$11.12 NOK 102

47.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$12.62 NOK 116

-77.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$31.47 NOK 290

-70.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$3.36 NOK 30.98

-30.06%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.80

$2.77 NOK 25.55

-64.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$3.08 NOK 28.43

-48.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$6.17 NOK 56.9

-75.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.12

$2.50 NOK 23.08

-48.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.19

$2.61 NOK 24.08

-57.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.82

$2.19 NOK 20.23

-67.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.37

$2.01 NOK 18.51

-75.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$19.50 NOK 180

-78.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$16.93 NOK 156

3.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$3.55 NOK 32.77

-54.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$4.38 NOK 40.37

-36.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.31

$4.66 NOK 42.91

-81.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,826

$69.2 NOK 638

-21.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.06

$12.31 NOK 113

-90.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.80

$1.93 NOK 17.80

-72.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$72.8 NOK 671

-96.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.90

$2.39 NOK 22.02

-39.33%

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

$21.1K ฿710.7K

$49.6K NOK 457.0K

-57.53%

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

$26.9K ฿909.3K

$46.3K NOK 426.5K

-41.78%

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

$62.2 ฿2,098

$230 NOK 2,120

-72.97%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$34.38 NOK 317

-64.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$55.1 NOK 507

-63.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$59.1 NOK 545

-36.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$29.46 NOK 272

-87.20%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$20.16 NOK 186

-67.81%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$217 NOK 1,997

239.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.3K

$16.1K NOK 148.0K

-8.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,801

$104 NOK 960

-48.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$60.5 NOK 557

-59.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,087

$136 NOK 1,254

-32.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,428

$106 NOK 975

-32.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$1,270 NOK 11.7K

-62.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$884 NOK 8,149

-65.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$1,595 NOK 14.7K

-36.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,517 NOK 14.0K

-58.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$4,359 NOK 40.2K

-45.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$3,609 NOK 33.3K

-55.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$4,415 NOK 40.7K

-86.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

4.94

12.75%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Hamar: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Hamar

$884 35.9% 186% $575

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Hamar

$463 18.8% 97.8% $229

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Hamar

$183 7.4% 68.4% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Hamar

$319 13% 238% $225

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Hamar

$402 16.3% 418% $324

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Hamar

$110 4.5% 78.9% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Hamar

$99 4% 97.8% $49

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $1,270 in Hamar. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Hamar are about 7.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $129 in Hamar. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $463 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇳🇴 Hamar

🕒 Local time

16:03 4:03 PM

10:03 10:03 AM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

33,059

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 NOK = 10.85 USD

100 NOK = 9.72 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

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).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Hamar 8,070 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Hamar

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 Hamar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hamar costs about 163% 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 $3,692 in Hamar. 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 $1,270 in Hamar.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $217 in Hamar. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 98% more in Hamar, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $2,461 in Hamar. 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 $2,461 in Hamar. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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