Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Sannicolau Mare

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,009 in Sannicolau Mare, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 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
48

Cost of Living Index in Sannicolau Mare
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Sannicolau Mare Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Sannicolau Mare

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,009

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiang Mai and in Sannicolau Mare

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

A single person spends $925 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,009 in Sannicolau Mare, rent included.

Chiang Mai $925
Sannicolau Mare $1,009

A couple spends around $1,414 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,531 in Sannicolau Mare, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,414
Sannicolau Mare $1,531

A family of three spends $1,903 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,053 in Sannicolau Mare, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,903
Sannicolau Mare $2,053

Chiang Mai is about 8% cheaper than Sannicolau Mare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Sannicolau Mare are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 32% lower, Sannicolau Mare 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.29 ฿76.5

$8.64 RON 40.88

-73.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.64 ฿656

$41.76 RON 198

-52.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.61 ฿188

$7.58 RON 35.88

-25.99%

Cappuccino

$1.66 ฿55.6

$3.22 RON 15.24

-48.45%

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

$0.70 ฿23.40

$2.06 RON 9.74

-66.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.24

$1.76 RON 8.32

-82.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 ฿80.4

$3.13 RON 14.83

-23.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.71 ฿124

$3.84 RON 18.18

-3.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.3

$1.39 RON 6.60

40.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ฿47.03

$1.15 RON 5.43

22.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.31 ฿43.62

$1.38 RON 6.54

-5.07%

Eggs

$2.18 ฿72.9

$3.35 RON 15.85

-34.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.65 ฿556

$8.03 RON 37.98

107.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.76 ฿92.2

$6.02 RON 28.47

-54.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.11 ฿304

$8.14 RON 38.52

11.92%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ฿80.0

$1.15 RON 5.44

107.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ฿34.26

$1.56 RON 7.39

-33.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 ฿54.4

$1.51 RON 7.15

7.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.0

$2.61 RON 12.35

-42.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.29 ฿43.13

$0.71 RON 3.37

81.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.03

$0.64 RON 3.05

73.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ฿24.08

$1.00 RON 4.71

-28.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.59

$0.87 RON 4.11

-39.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.31 ฿144

$5.83 RON 27.58

-26.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.95 ฿600

$7.20 RON 34.08

149.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ฿52.9

$0.91 RON 4.29

73.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.0

$1.35 RON 6.39

110.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.86

$0.69 RON 3.28

24.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,780

$19.24 RON 91.0

176.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.21 ฿40.29

$0.91 RON 4.30

32.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ฿18.99

$0.88 RON 4.17

-35.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.35 ฿78.6

$8.51 RON 40.24

-72.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 ฿47.96

$1.94 RON 9.20

-25.77%

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

$20.7K ฿692.8K

$28.7K RON 136.0K

-27.86%

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

$26.8K ฿895.7K

$25.0K RON 118.4K

7.14%

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

$62.3 ฿2,083

$114 RON 539

-45.31%

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

$12.11 ฿405

$8.92 RON 42.19

35.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.94 ฿666

$12.03 RON 56.9

65.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.07 ฿1,239

$39.39 RON 186

-5.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

$22.45 RON 106

-83.16%

Cinema Ticket

$6.50 ฿217

$6.96 RON 32.91

-6.61%

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

$793 ฿26.5K

$451 RON 2,131

75.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿494.9K

$6,686 RON 31.6K

121.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.7 ฿1,796

$75.3 RON 356

-28.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.62 ฿823

$31.52 RON 149

-21.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 ฿3,036

$85.5 RON 404

6.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.1 ฿2,378

$88.2 RON 417

-19.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$455 ฿15.2K

$396 RON 1,875

14.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$298 ฿9,954

$302 RON 1,428

-1.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$908 ฿30.4K

$520 RON 2,462

74.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$554 ฿18.5K

$443 RON 2,096

24.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,931 ฿64.5K

$2,107 RON 9,971

-8.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,445 ฿48.3K

$1,416 RON 6,701

1.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

7.02

-20.66%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Last update for Sannicolau Mare: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2%

Sannicolau Mare

$302 29.9% 1.4% $4.1

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5%

Sannicolau Mare

$197 19.5% 16.5% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7%

Sannicolau Mare

$126 12.5% 16.7% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2%

Sannicolau Mare

$135 13.4% 43% $41

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5%

Sannicolau Mare

$169 16.8% 115% $91

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Sannicolau Mare

$27 2.7% 55.1% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Sannicolau Mare

$53 5.3% 6.5% $3.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $455 in Chiang Mai versus $396 in Sannicolau Mare. 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 $20.00 in Chiang Mai versus $42.00 in Sannicolau Mare. Groceries tell a different story – $235 in Chiang Mai vs $197 in Sannicolau Mare – so Sannicolau Mare wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇷🇴 Sannicolau Mare

🕒 Local time

22:36 10:36 PM

18:36 6:36 PM

4 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

13,083

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiang Mai Sannicolau Mare 7,630 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Sannicolau Mare

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 Sannicolau Mare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sannicolau Mare costs about 9% 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 $1,388 per month in Chiang Mai and $1,514 in Sannicolau Mare. 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $793 per month in Chiang Mai and $451 in Sannicolau Mare. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 20% cheaper in Sannicolau Mare – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $925, than in Sannicolau Mare at $1,009. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sannicolau Mare it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $1,009 in Sannicolau Mare. 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 Chiang Mai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sannicolau Mare makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.