Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Tumba

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,896 in Tumba, rent and utilities included – about $11,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index
91

Cost of Living Index in Tumba
Learn more

Tumba Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Tumba

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,896

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,896 in Tumba, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Tumba $1,896

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,899 in Tumba, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Tumba $2,899

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $3,901 in Tumba, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Tumba $3,901

Chiang Mai is about 51% cheaper than Tumba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chiang Mai sits 31% below the global median, while Tumba is 39% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.7

$14.20 SEK 141

-84.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿642

$64.9 SEK 645

-70.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿188

$9.95 SEK 98.8

-44.22%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.6

$4.29 SEK 42.62

-61.07%

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

$0.64 ฿21.56

$2.65 SEK 26.32

-75.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.32

$2.21 SEK 21.98

-85.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.6

$7.17 SEK 71.2

-67.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$6.91 SEK 68.6

-47.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.8

$1.79 SEK 17.74

8.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.51

$3.05 SEK 30.32

-52.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.07

$3.75 SEK 37.26

-64.53%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.1

$5.03 SEK 49.99

-54.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿556

$13.00 SEK 129

26.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$13.25 SEK 132

-79.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$17.49 SEK 174

-46.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.5

$3.25 SEK 32.26

-27.69%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.82

$2.68 SEK 26.65

-63.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$2.06 SEK 20.45

-22.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$4.50 SEK 44.71

-66.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.15

$1.45 SEK 14.40

-11.72%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.22

$1.80 SEK 17.92

-38.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.84

$2.30 SEK 22.87

-69.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.38

$1.88 SEK 18.70

-73.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$7.15 SEK 71.0

-42.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿592

$10.04 SEK 99.7

74.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$2.01 SEK 19.99

-19.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿94.0

$2.25 SEK 22.37

23.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.33

$4.26 SEK 42.31

-79.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,827

$103 SEK 1,022

-47.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.08

$5.79 SEK 57.5

-79.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.82

$1.48 SEK 14.67

-64.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.8

$57.1 SEK 567

-95.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.81 SEK 17.99

-19.89%

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

$21.1K ฿711.2K

$33.4K SEK 332.0K

-37.01%

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

$26.9K ฿909.8K

$34.0K SEK 337.3K

-20.66%

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

$62.2 ฿2,100

$176 SEK 1,746

-64.64%

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

$12.17 ฿411

$21.42 SEK 213

-43.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿680

$48.20 SEK 479

-58.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,260

$40.34 SEK 401

-7.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$26.36 SEK 262

-85.70%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$16.89 SEK 168

-61.57%

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

$736 ฿24.9K

$158 SEK 1,569

366.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.6K

$5,131 SEK 51.0K

187.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,802

$113 SEK 1,123

-52.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿832

$53.6 SEK 532

-53.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,089

$94.8 SEK 941

-3.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,429

$186 SEK 1,843

-61.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$792 SEK 7,866

-39.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$599 SEK 5,953

-48.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿34.0K

$1,375 SEK 13.7K

-26.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$1,011 SEK 10.0K

-37.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.8K

$3,992 SEK 39.6K

-40.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.7K

$2,784 SEK 27.6K

-42.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.8

98.93%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Tumba: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Tumba

$599 31.6% 94.1% $291

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Tumba

$379 20% 61.6% $144

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Tumba

$201 10.6% 85.1% $92

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Tumba

$245 12.9% 160% $151

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Tumba

$264 13.9% 240% $186

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Tumba

$133 7% 117% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Tumba

$74 3.9% 47.4% $24

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $792 in Tumba. 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 $65 in Tumba. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $379 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇸🇪 Tumba

🕒 Local time

23:06 11:06 PM

17:06 5:06 PM

6 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

42,344

💱 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 = 37.58 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 = 11.05 SEK (100 SEK = 9.05 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

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

From you

Chiang Mai
Tumba

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 Tumba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tumba costs about 103% 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 $2,844 in Tumba. 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 $792 in Tumba.

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

Groceries cost about 62% more in Tumba, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,896 in Tumba. 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 $936 in Chiang Mai to $1,896 in Tumba. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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.

For expats, Chiang Mai is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and the 103% gap matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.