Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Koło

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $1,457 in Koło, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 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
70

Cost of Living Index in Koło
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Koło Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Koło

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,457

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $935 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,457 in Koło, rent included.

Chiang Mai $935
Koło $1,457

A couple spends around $1,467 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,076 in Koło, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,467
Koło $2,076

A family of three spends $1,999 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,694 in Koło, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,999
Koło $2,694

Chiang Mai is about 36% cheaper than Koło, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Koło is 8% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿71.8

$9.60 zł 37.52

-77.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.62 ฿626

$41.48 zł 162

-55.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.60 ฿188

$9.09 zł 35.52

-38.39%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.9

$3.35 zł 13.09

-50.45%

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

$0.65 ฿21.75

$2.10 zł 8.20

-69.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ฿10.25

$1.63 zł 6.37

-81.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.32 ฿78.1

$3.55 zł 13.87

-34.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 ฿123

$3.86 zł 15.10

-4.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 ฿67.8

$1.00 zł 3.92

102.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.34

$1.22 zł 4.76

15.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 ฿46.79

$1.32 zł 5.17

5.30%

Eggs

$2.37 ฿79.6

$3.25 zł 12.69

-27.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.52 ฿555

$8.44 zł 33.00

95.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.67 ฿89.8

$6.27 zł 24.49

-57.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.02 ฿303

$11.87 zł 46.37

-24.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.6

$1.11 zł 4.32

116.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿35.01

$1.63 zł 6.38

-36.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 ฿55.8

$1.63 zł 6.38

1.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.4

$2.75 zł 10.75

-43.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ฿41.61

$0.89 zł 3.49

39.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ฿36.53

$1.00 zł 3.90

9.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 ฿25.61

$1.30 zł 5.07

-41.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.29

$0.65 zł 2.53

-21.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.12 ฿139

$5.11 zł 19.95

-19.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.93 ฿603

$6.75 zł 26.39

165.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ฿54.6

$1.08 zł 4.23

50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 ฿94.9

$1.54 zł 6.02

83.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ฿31.42

$1.10 zł 4.28

-15.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,778

$29.24 zł 114

80.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ฿39.56

$2.08 zł 8.13

-43.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 ฿5.76

$0.74 zł 2.90

-77.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 ฿60.9

$10.11 zł 39.49

-82.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.51

$1.60 zł 6.24

-8.13%

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

$21.0K ฿706.4K

$30.2K zł 118.1K

-30.48%

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

$26.5K ฿891.4K

$28.1K zł 109.8K

-5.61%

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

$62.6 ฿2,103

$288 zł 1,125

-78.28%

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

$11.60 ฿390

$8.64 zł 33.76

34.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.30 ฿683

$16.84 zł 65.8

20.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.88 ฿1,274

$37.46 zł 146

1.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿124

$21.72 zł 84.9

-82.97%

Cinema Ticket

$6.51 ฿219

$7.49 zł 29.27

-13.08%

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

$727 ฿24.4K

$369 zł 1,443

96.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ฿557.2K

$7,891 zł 30.8K

110.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ฿1,800

$80.4 zł 314

-33.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.80 ฿834

$37.74 zł 148

-34.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.4 ฿3,039

$86.5 zł 338

4.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.0 ฿2,420

$98.6 zł 385

-26.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$481 ฿16.2K

$597 zł 2,334

-19.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 ฿10.4K

$523 zł 2,043

-40.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 ฿35.6K

$981 zł 3,832

7.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$659 ฿22.1K

$800 zł 3,128

-17.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,418 ฿81.3K

$2,941 zł 11.5K

-17.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿54.1K

$2,212 zł 8,644

-27.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.74

-17.36%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Last update for Koło: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1%

Koło

$523 35.9% 68.7% $213

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3%

Koło

$208 14.3% 12.1% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6%

Koło

$136 9.4% 26% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Koło

$313 21.5% 232% $219

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2%

Koło

$185 12.7% 141% $108

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3%

Koło

$39 2.7% 32.8% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4%

Koło

$52 3.6% 3% $1.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $481 in Chiang Mai versus $597 in Koło. 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 $41 in Koło. Groceries tell a different story – $237 in Chiang Mai vs $208 in Koło – so Koło wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇵🇱 Koło

🕒 Local time

11:51 11:51 AM

05:51 5:51 AM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

21,035

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Polish Złoty PLN zł

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

1 PLN = 0.256 USD

1 PLN = 0.227 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 November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3.91 PLN (1 PLN = 0.256 USD). 1 EUR = 4.4 PLN (1 PLN = 0.227 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Koło 7,720 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Koło

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 Koło: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Koło costs about 56% 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 $2,186 in Koło. 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 $481 there versus $597 in Koło.

Kindergarten costs $727 per month in Chiang Mai and $369 in Koło. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 12% cheaper in Koło – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $935 in Chiang Mai and $1,457 in Koło. 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 $935 in Chiang Mai to $1,457 in Koło. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.