Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Lund

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,859 in Lund, rent and utilities included – about $11,100 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
90

Cost of Living Index in Lund
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Lund Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Lund

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,859

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,859 in Lund, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Lund $1,859

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $3,013 in Lund, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Lund $3,013

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $4,167 in Lund, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Lund $4,167

Chiang Mai is about 50% cheaper than Lund, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Lund is 37% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$13.19 SEK 131

-83.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$90.6 SEK 900

-79.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$11.83 SEK 117

-53.09%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$4.66 SEK 46.25

-64.16%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$2.81 SEK 27.95

-77.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$2.05 SEK 20.34

-84.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$7.81 SEK 77.6

-69.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$6.83 SEK 67.9

-46.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.68 SEK 16.69

16.07%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$2.49 SEK 24.73

-42.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$3.52 SEK 34.94

-62.22%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$4.40 SEK 43.66

-48.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$12.62 SEK 125

30.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$11.93 SEK 118

-76.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$15.61 SEK 155

-40.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$2.99 SEK 29.74

-21.40%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$2.52 SEK 25.00

-61.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$2.84 SEK 28.16

-43.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$4.53 SEK 45.00

-66.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$1.66 SEK 16.47

-22.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$1.37 SEK 13.65

-19.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$2.57 SEK 25.50

-72.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$1.54 SEK 15.32

-68.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$7.76 SEK 77.0

-46.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$10.98 SEK 109

59.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.92 SEK 19.07

-16.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.76 SEK 27.44

0.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$3.28 SEK 32.56

-73.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

$62.8 SEK 624

-13.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$5.09 SEK 50.6

-77.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$1.06 SEK 10.57

-50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$41.02 SEK 407

-94.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.74 SEK 17.30

-16.67%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$32.7K SEK 324.4K

-35.54%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$34.3K SEK 341.1K

-21.56%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$79.2 SEK 787

-21.51%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$28.76 SEK 286

-57.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$42.32 SEK 420

-52.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$36.09 SEK 358

3.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$27.83 SEK 276

-86.45%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$15.04 SEK 149

-56.85%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$158 SEK 1,570

365.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$79.0 SEK 784

-32.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$57.8 SEK 574

-57.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$102 SEK 1,015

-10.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$125 SEK 1,243

-42.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$903 SEK 8,969

-46.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$767 SEK 7,622

-59.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$1,832 SEK 18.2K

-45.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,482 SEK 14.7K

-57.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$5,909 SEK 58.7K

-60.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

$3,688 SEK 36.6K

-56.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$2,947 SEK 29.3K

-79.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.03

83.83%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Lund: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Lund

$767 41.3% 148% $459

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Lund

$355 19.1% 51.6% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Lund

$164 8.8% 50.8% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Lund

$150 8.1% 59.1% $56

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Lund

$269 14.5% 247% $191

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Lund

$86 4.7% 40.7% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Lund

$66 3.6% 31.6% $16

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $903 in Lund. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Lund are about 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 $91 in Lund. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $355 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇸🇪 Lund

🕒 Local time

06:47 6:47 AM

00:47 12:47 AM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

82,800

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 SEK = 10.07 USD

100 SEK = 9.05 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, 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 = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 9.93 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.06 SEK (100 SEK = 9.05 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Lund 8,030 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Lund

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 Lund: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lund costs about 99% 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 $2,788 in Lund. 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 $903 in Lund.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $158 in Lund. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 52% more in Lund, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,859 in Lund. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $936 versus $1,859 in Lund. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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, Lund makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.