Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Kuressaare

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $1,492 in Kuressaare, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 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
71

Cost of Living Index in Kuressaare
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Kuressaare Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Kuressaare

🇪🇪 Estonia

$1,492

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $935 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,492 in Kuressaare, rent included.

Chiang Mai $935
Kuressaare $1,492

A couple spends around $1,467 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,208 in Kuressaare, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,467
Kuressaare $2,208

A family of three spends $1,999 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,925 in Kuressaare, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,999
Kuressaare $2,925

Chiang Mai is about 37% cheaper than Kuressaare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Kuressaare is 10% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ฿72.0

$13.51 €12.05

-84.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.62 ฿628

$66.4 €59.2

-71.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.60 ฿189

$8.72 €7.78

-35.78%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿56.1

$4.00 €3.57

-58.50%

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

$0.65 ฿21.82

$3.46 €3.09

-81.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ฿10.29

$2.80 €2.50

-89.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.32 ฿78.3

$6.40 €5.71

-63.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 ฿124

$5.61 €5.00

-34.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 ฿68.0

$1.24 €1.11

62.90%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.49

$1.90 €1.70

-25.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 ฿46.94

$2.30 €2.05

-39.57%

Eggs

$2.37 ฿79.9

$2.98 €2.65

-20.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.52 ฿557

$12.49 €11.14

32.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.67 ฿90.1

$8.59 €7.66

-68.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.02 ฿304

$15.04 €13.42

-40.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 ฿80.9

$1.76 €1.57

36.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 ฿35.12

$1.44 €1.29

-27.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$2.52 €2.25

-34.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.6

$2.97 €2.65

-47.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ฿41.75

$1.04 €0.93

19.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ฿36.65

$0.89 €0.80

22.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 ฿25.70

$1.87 €1.66

-59.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.34

$1.20 €1.07

-57.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.12 ฿139

$6.62 €5.91

-37.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.93 ฿605

$10.14 €9.05

76.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ฿54.8

$1.87 €1.67

-13.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 ฿95.2

$2.16 €1.92

30.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ฿31.52

$2.28 €2.04

-59.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.9 ฿1,784

$28.06 €25.03

88.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ฿39.69

$3.66 €3.26

-67.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 ฿5.78

$0.99 €0.89

-82.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 ฿61.1

$27.01 €24.10

-93.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.67

$2.00 €1.78

-26.50%

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

$21.0K ฿708.7K

$27.5K €24.5K

-23.46%

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

$26.5K ฿894.4K

$29.3K €26.1K

-9.52%

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

$62.6 ฿2,110

$310 €276

-79.81%

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

$11.60 ฿391

$11.33 €10.10

2.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.30 ฿685

$36.43 €32.50

-44.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.88 ฿1,278

$33.12 €29.55

14.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.70 ฿125

Cinema Ticket

$6.51 ฿220

$11.54 €10.29

-43.59%

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

$727 ฿24.5K

$475 €424

53.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K ฿559.0K

$11.9K €10.7K

38.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ฿1,806

$109 €97.0

-50.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.80 ฿836

$48.38 €43.15

-48.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.4 ฿3,049

$104 €93.1

-13.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.0 ฿2,428

$120 €107

-39.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$481 ฿16.2K

$511 €455

-5.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 ฿10.5K

$329 €293

-5.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 ฿35.7K

$657 €586

60.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$659 ฿22.2K

$495 €441

33.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,418 ฿81.5K

$4,044 €3,607

-40.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 ฿54.3K

$2,476 €2,208

-35.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.1K

$1,280 €1,141

-53.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.93

41.73%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Last update for Kuressaare: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1%

Kuressaare

$329 22.1% 6.2% $19

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3%

Kuressaare

$281 18.8% 18.8% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6%

Kuressaare

$171 11.5% 58.3% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Kuressaare

$358 24% 279% $263

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2%

Kuressaare

$251 16.8% 227% $174

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3%

Kuressaare

$46 3.1% 21.9% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4%

Kuressaare

$56 3.8% 10.4% $5.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $481 in Chiang Mai versus $511 in Kuressaare. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Kuressaare are about 2.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $66 in Kuressaare. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $237 vs $281 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇪🇪 Kuressaare

🕒 Local time

15:57 3:57 PM

10:57 10:57 AM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

15,170

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Kuressaare 7,450 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Kuressaare

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 Kuressaare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kuressaare costs about 59% 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 $2,238 in Kuressaare. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $481 in Chiang Mai and $511 in Kuressaare. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Kindergarten costs $727 per month in Chiang Mai and $475 in Kuressaare. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 19% more in Kuressaare, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $935 in Chiang Mai and $1,492 in Kuressaare. 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 $1,492 in Kuressaare. 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.

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