Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ferrara and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,597 in Ferrara, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Ferrara
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Ferrara Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Ferrara

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,597

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Ferrara and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,597 per month in Ferrara vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ferrara $1,597
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $2,497 per month in Ferrara vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ferrara $2,497
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $3,396 per month in Ferrara vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Ferrara $3,396
Chiang Mai $1,979

Ferrara costs about 71% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Ferrara sits 17% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.86 €16.00

$2.24 ฿75.6

697.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.7 €59.8

$19.00 ฿641

251.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.06 €9.91

$5.55 ฿187

99.28%

Cappuccino

$1.97 €1.76

$1.67 ฿56.5

17.96%

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

$2.61 €2.34

$0.64 ฿21.55

307.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.23 €1.11

$0.31 ฿10.31

296.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.57 €4.99

$2.36 ฿79.6

136.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 €4.88

$3.66 ฿124

48.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 €1.41

$1.95 ฿65.8

-19.49%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 €2.48

$1.44 ฿48.48

92.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.10 €2.77

$1.33 ฿45.04

133.08%

Eggs

$4.64 €4.16

$2.28 ฿77.1

103.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.14 €16.25

$16.45 ฿555

10.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.16 €10.00

$2.78 ฿93.9

301.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.84 €22.26

$9.31 ฿314

166.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.99 €2.68

$2.35 ฿79.4

27.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 €1.29

$0.97 ฿32.80

47.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.91 €3.50

$1.60 ฿53.9

144.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.47 €4.00

$1.50 ฿50.6

198.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.35 €2.11

$1.28 ฿43.12

83.59%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 €2.17

$1.10 ฿37.19

120.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.85 €1.65

$0.71 ฿23.82

160.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.34 €0.31

$0.49 ฿16.37

-30.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.70 €6.00

$4.14 ฿140

61.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.45 €3.99

$17.52 ฿591

-74.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.25

$1.61 ฿54.5

-13.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 €1.94

$2.78 ฿94.0

-22.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.18 €1.95

$0.87 ฿29.31

150.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.93 €26.82

$54.1 ฿1,826

-44.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.51 €7.63

$1.16 ฿39.06

633.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.98 €1.78

$0.53 ฿17.80

273.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.04 €29.60

$2.42 ฿81.8

1265.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 €1.90

$1.45 ฿48.90

46.21%

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

$36.2K €32.4K

$21.1K ฿710.7K

71.91%

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

$38.2K €34.2K

$26.9K ฿909.3K

41.64%

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

$138 €124

$62.2 ฿2,098

121.70%

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

$9.50 €8.51

$12.17 ฿411

-21.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.40 €25.45

$20.12 ฿679

41.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.89 €33.06

$37.31 ฿1,259

-1.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.34 €14.64

$3.77 ฿127

333.42%

Cinema Ticket

$9.13 €8.18

$6.49 ฿219

40.68%

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

$336 €301

$736 ฿24.8K

-54.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,971 €8,935

$14.8K ฿498.3K

-32.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.7 €85.8

$53.4 ฿1,801

79.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.98 €29.55

$24.64 ฿831

33.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.8

$91.5 ฿3,087

13.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 €90.9

$71.9 ฿2,428

40.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$631 €565

$482 ฿16.3K

30.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$541 €484

$309 ฿10.4K

75.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,270 €1,138

$1,006 ฿33.9K

26.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$910 €815

$633 ฿21.4K

43.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,320 €2,079

$2,363 ฿79.8K

-1.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,818 €1,629

$1,589 ฿53.6K

14.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,635 €1,465

$590 ฿19.9K

177.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.37

5.57

-39.50%

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

Last update for Ferrara: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ferrara

$541 33.9%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 42.9% $232

Groceries & Markets

Ferrara

$364 22.8%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 35.6% $130

Eating Out

Ferrara

$254 15.9%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 69.4% $176

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ferrara

$176 11%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 46.3% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Ferrara

$150 9.4%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 27.7% $42

Getting Around

Ferrara

$57 3.6%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 7.5% $4.3

Sport & Entertainment

Ferrara

$55 3.5%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 8.8% $4.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $631 in Ferrara versus $482 in Chiang Mai. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Ferrara are about 2.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67 in Ferrara versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $364 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Ferrara

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

15:35 3:35 PM

21:35 9:35 PM

6 h ahead of Ferrara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

133,155

127,240

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Ferrara Chiang Mai 8,350 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Ferrara
Chiang Mai

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

Ferrara vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ferrara costs about 71% 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 $2,395 per month in Ferrara and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. 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 $631 in Ferrara.

Kindergarten costs $336 per month in Ferrara and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 55% more in Ferrara, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,597 in Ferrara and $936 in Chiang Mai. 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 $1,597 in Ferrara. 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, Ferrara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.