Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Nova Friburgo

For one person, living is cheaper in Nova Friburgo: $608 a month against $925 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Nova Friburgo
Learn more

Nova Friburgo Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Nova Friburgo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Nova Friburgo

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

A single person spends $925 per month in Chiang Mai vs $608 in Nova Friburgo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $925
Nova Friburgo $608

A couple spends around $1,414 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,017 in Nova Friburgo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,414
Nova Friburgo $1,017

A family of three spends $1,903 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,426 in Nova Friburgo, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,903
Nova Friburgo $1,426

Chiang Mai costs about 52% more than Nova Friburgo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Chiang Mai and Nova Friburgo are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 32% lower, Nova Friburgo 55% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.29 ฿76.5

$6.05 R$30.66

-62.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.64 ฿656

$29.82 R$151

-34.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.61 ฿188

$6.36 R$32.25

-11.79%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.6

$1.75 R$8.88

-5.14%

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

$0.70 ฿23.40

$0.91 R$4.61

-23.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.24

$0.57 R$2.88

-45.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 ฿80.4

$1.22 R$6.17

97.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.71 ฿124

$2.42 R$12.28

53.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.3

$1.02 R$5.15

91.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.03

$1.49 R$7.55

-5.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 ฿43.62

$1.37 R$6.94

-4.38%

Eggs

$2.18 ฿72.9

$1.97 R$9.98

10.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.65 ฿556

$8.78 R$44.51

89.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.76 ฿92.2

$3.32 R$16.84

-16.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.11 ฿304

$9.63 R$48.83

-5.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.0

$1.63 R$8.25

46.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ฿34.26

$1.20 R$6.09

-14.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 ฿54.4

$0.98 R$4.96

66.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.0

$1.26 R$6.41

19.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.29 ฿43.13

$0.70 R$3.56

84.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.03

$0.86 R$4.37

29.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.08

$0.57 R$2.90

26.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.59

$0.82 R$4.14

-35.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.31 ฿144

$1.57 R$7.94

174.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.95 ฿600

$6.04 R$30.60

197.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ฿52.9

$0.97 R$4.90

62.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.0

$1.37 R$6.95

107.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.86

$0.98 R$4.98

-12.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,780

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.21 ฿40.29

$1.21 R$6.12

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿18.99

$0.55 R$2.77

3.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.35 ฿78.6

$6.71 R$34.02

-64.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 ฿47.96

$1.28 R$6.50

12.50%

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

$20.7K ฿692.8K

$19.7K R$99.7K

5.41%

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

$26.8K ฿895.7K

$30.5K R$154.5K

-12.08%

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

$62.3 ฿2,083

$40.04 R$203

55.67%

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

$12.11 ฿405

$9.52 R$48.26

27.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.94 ฿666

$18.79 R$95.2

6.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.07 ฿1,239

$21.63 R$110

71.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$6.50 ฿217

$6.84 R$34.69

-4.97%

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

$793 ฿26.5K

$142 R$719

458.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿494.9K

$2,604 R$13.2K

468.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.7 ฿1,796

$68.6 R$348

-21.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.62 ฿823

$83.6 R$424

-70.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 ฿3,036

$67.1 R$340

35.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.1 ฿2,378

$47.52 R$241

49.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$455 ฿15.2K

$156 R$789

192.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ฿9,954

$99.8 R$506

198.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$908 ฿30.4K

$395 R$2,005

129.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$554 ฿18.5K

$236 R$1,195

134.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,931 ฿64.5K

$1,578 R$7,998

22.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.3K

$785 R$3,980

84.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.7K

$501 R$2,542

17.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.67

-47.80%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Last update for Nova Friburgo: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2%

Nova Friburgo

$100 16.4% 66.5% $198

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5%

Nova Friburgo

$171 28.2% 27.2% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7%

Nova Friburgo

$120 19.7% 11% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Nova Friburgo

$68 11.2% 27.6% $26

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5%

Nova Friburgo

$105 17.3% 34% $27

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Nova Friburgo

$7.9 * 1.3% 87.1% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Nova Friburgo

$35 5.8% 29.5% $15

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $455 in Chiang Mai versus $156 in Nova Friburgo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 18% higher in Chiang Mai, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20.00 in Chiang Mai versus $30.00 in Nova Friburgo. Groceries tell a different story – $235 in Chiang Mai vs $171 in Nova Friburgo – so Nova Friburgo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇧🇷 Nova Friburgo

🕒 Local time

18:41 6:41 PM

08:41 8:41 AM

10 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

189,939

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Nova Friburgo 16,000 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Nova Friburgo

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 Nova Friburgo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chiang Mai costs about 52% more than Nova Friburgo, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,388 per month in Chiang Mai and $912 in Nova Friburgo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Nova Friburgo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20.00 in Chiang Mai and $30.00 in Nova Friburgo. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 37% more in Chiang Mai, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Nova Friburgo, where all-in costs run around $608, than in Chiang Mai at $925. In Nova Friburgo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Nova Friburgo costs $608 versus $925 in Chiang Mai. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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