Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiang Mai and Turda

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,070 in Turda, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 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
52

Cost of Living Index in Turda
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Turda Living Index

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Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Turda

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,070

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $936 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,070 in Turda, rent included.

Chiang Mai $936
Turda $1,070

A couple spends around $1,457 per month in Chiang Mai vs $1,607 in Turda, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,457
Turda $1,607

A family of three spends $1,979 per month in Chiang Mai vs $2,144 in Turda, rent included.

Chiang Mai $1,979
Turda $2,144

Chiang Mai is about 13% cheaper than Turda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chiang Mai and Turda are more affordable than the global median – Chiang Mai 31% lower, Turda 21% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.24 ฿75.6

$12.61 RON 60.1

-82.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.00 ฿641

$32.43 RON 155

-41.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 ฿187

$8.54 RON 40.67

-35.01%

Cappuccino

$1.67 ฿56.5

$2.81 RON 13.40

-40.57%

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

$0.64 ฿21.53

$1.82 RON 8.69

-64.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ฿10.30

$1.41 RON 6.71

-78.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 ฿79.5

$2.13 RON 10.13

10.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 ฿124

$2.05 RON 9.78

78.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ฿65.7

$1.44 RON 6.87

35.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 ฿48.45

$1.43 RON 6.79

0.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿45.01

$1.55 RON 7.38

-14.19%

Eggs

$2.28 ฿77.0

$2.85 RON 13.56

-20.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.45 ฿555

$6.04 RON 28.79

172.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.78 ฿93.8

$6.60 RON 31.45

-57.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.31 ฿314

$11.58 RON 55.2

-19.60%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ฿79.4

$1.10 RON 5.25

113.64%

Banana (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.78

$1.48 RON 7.05

-34.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 ฿53.9

$1.37 RON 6.53

16.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$2.46 RON 11.70

-39.02%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 ฿43.10

$0.98 RON 4.67

30.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 ฿37.17

$0.90 RON 4.28

22.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.71 ฿23.81

$1.00 RON 4.75

-29.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.36

$1.01 RON 4.82

-51.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.14 ฿140

$5.32 RON 25.37

-22.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.52 ฿591

$7.19 RON 34.24

143.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ฿54.5

$1.21 RON 5.77

33.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.9

$1.59 RON 7.60

74.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 ฿29.29

$1.22 RON 5.83

-28.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.1 ฿1,825

$21.96 RON 105

146.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.03

$0.80 RON 3.83

45.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.79

$0.75 RON 3.58

-29.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ฿81.7

$6.11 RON 29.10

-60.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.87

$1.83 RON 8.73

-20.77%

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

$21.1K ฿710.3K

$29.0K RON 138.2K

-27.38%

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

$26.9K ฿908.7K

$25.4K RON 121.2K

5.91%

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

$62.2 ฿2,097

$153 RON 729

-59.36%

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

$12.17 ฿410

$8.74 RON 41.65

39.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.12 ฿679

$9.36 RON 44.60

114.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.31 ฿1,259

$37.70 RON 180

-1.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

$19.23 RON 91.6

-80.40%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 ฿219

$9.53 RON 45.41

-31.90%

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

$736 ฿24.8K

$597 RON 2,843

23.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.0K

$6,363 RON 30.3K

132.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ฿1,800

$42.42 RON 202

25.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.64 ฿831

$42.25 RON 201

-41.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.5 ฿3,086

$102 RON 486

-10.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.9 ฿2,426

$109 RON 517

-33.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ฿16.3K

$378 RON 1,803

27.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ฿10.4K

$281 RON 1,339

9.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,006 ฿33.9K

$595 RON 2,835

69.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$633 ฿21.4K

$442 RON 2,106

43.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,363 ฿79.7K

$1,816 RON 8,652

30.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,589 ฿53.6K

$1,264 RON 6,020

25.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 ฿19.9K

$741 RON 3,529

-20.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.65

-16.24%

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

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Last update for Turda: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chiang Mai

$309 33%

Turda

$281 26.3% 9% $28

Groceries & Markets

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1%

Turda

$209 19.5% 10.9% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6%

Turda

$133 12.4% 22.3% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1%

Turda

$171 16% 81.1% $77

Eating Out

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3%

Turda

$188 17.6% 142% $110

Getting Around

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6%

Turda

$31 2.9% 48.8% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4%

Turda

$57 5.3% 12.9% $6.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $482 in Chiang Mai versus $378 in Turda. 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 26% higher in Turda. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19 in Chiang Mai versus $32 in Turda. Groceries tell a different story – $234 in Chiang Mai vs $209 in Turda – so Turda wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🇷🇴 Turda

🕒 Local time

22:15 10:15 PM

17:15 5:15 PM

5 h behind Chiang Mai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

127,240

47,744

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 RON = 0.21 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.76 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Chiang Mai Turda 7,380 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiang Mai
Turda

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 Turda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Turda costs about 14% 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 $1,605 in Turda. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Turda, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $378 there versus $482 in Chiang Mai.

Kindergarten costs $736 per month in Chiang Mai and $597 in Turda. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 11% cheaper in Turda – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $936 in Chiang Mai and $1,070 in Turda. 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 $1,070 in Turda. 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, Turda makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.