Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gulbene and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,289 in Gulbene, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Gulbene
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Gulbene Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Gulbene

🇱🇻 Latvia

$1,289

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Gulbene 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 Gulbene and in Chiang Mai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,289 per month in Gulbene vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Gulbene $1,289
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $1,973 per month in Gulbene vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Gulbene $1,973
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $2,657 per month in Gulbene vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Gulbene $2,657
Chiang Mai $1,903

Gulbene costs about 39% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Gulbene and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Gulbene 5% lower, Chiang Mai 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.73 €14.88

$2.29 ฿76.5

630.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.5 €60.9

$19.64 ฿656

248.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.45 €8.41

$5.61 ฿188

68.45%

Cappuccino

$3.82 €3.40

$1.66 ฿55.6

130.12%

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

$1.59 €1.41

$0.70 ฿23.40

127.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.07

$0.31 ฿10.24

287.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.57 €4.95

$2.41 ฿80.4

131.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.18 €4.61

$3.71 ฿124

39.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.95 ฿65.3

-38.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 €1.33

$1.41 ฿47.03

6.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.31 ฿43.62

93.89%

Eggs

$3.72 €3.30

$2.18 ฿72.9

70.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.70 €9.52

$16.65 ฿556

-35.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.74 €7.77

$2.76 ฿92.2

216.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.98 €12.43

$9.11 ฿304

53.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$2.39 ฿80.0

-12.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.03 ฿34.26

71.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$1.63 ฿54.4

57.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.25 €2.89

$1.50 ฿50.0

116.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.29 ฿43.13

-31.78%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 €0.84

$1.11 ฿37.03

-14.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.77 €1.57

$0.72 ฿24.08

145.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.87

$0.53 ฿17.59

84.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.53 €5.81

$4.31 ฿144

51.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.02 €7.14

$17.95 ฿600

-55.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 €1.79

$1.58 ฿52.9

27.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 €1.79

$2.84 ฿95.0

-28.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 ฿28.86

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.3 ฿1,780

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.41 €3.03

$1.21 ฿40.29

181.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 €0.88

$0.57 ฿18.99

73.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.96 €15.97

$2.35 ฿78.6

664.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.44 ฿47.96

47.22%

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

$27.3K €24.3K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

31.74%

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

$29.7K €26.4K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

10.89%

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

$368 €328

$62.3 ฿2,083

491.13%

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

$19.94 €17.74

$12.11 ฿405

64.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.84 €17.65

$19.94 ฿666

-0.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.07 ฿1,239

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.78 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.83

$6.50 ฿217

70.15%

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

$674 €599

$793 ฿26.5K

-15.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.4K €16.4K

$14.8K ฿494.9K

24.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.2 €62.4

$53.7 ฿1,796

30.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.0 €45.33

$24.62 ฿823

106.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.2 €76.7

$90.9 ฿3,036

-5.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$136 €121

$71.1 ฿2,378

91.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$190 €169

$455 ฿15.2K

-58.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$168 €149

$298 ฿9,954

-43.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$352 €313

$908 ฿30.4K

-61.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 €295

$554 ฿18.5K

-40.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$681 €605

$1,931 ฿64.5K

-64.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$568 €505

$1,445 ฿48.3K

-60.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

5.57

-14.36%

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

Last update for Gulbene: October 20, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gulbene

$408 31.7%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 76.9% $314

Groceries & Markets

Gulbene

$271 21%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 13% $35

Eating Out

Gulbene

$257 20%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 69.5% $179

Accommodation & Living

Gulbene

$168 13%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 77.5% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Gulbene

$155 12%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 30% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Gulbene

$22 * 1.7%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 126% $28

Getting Around

Gulbene

$8.3 * 0.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 629% $52

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $190 in Gulbene versus $455 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69.0 in Gulbene versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $271 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇻 Gulbene

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

21:01 9:01 PM

01:01 1:01 AM

4 h ahead of Gulbene

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,500

127,240

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Gulbene Chiang Mai 7,200 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Gulbene
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

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

Gulbene costs about 39% 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 $1,934 per month in Gulbene and $1,388 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69.0 in Gulbene and $20.00 in Chiang Mai. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 15% more in Gulbene, 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 Chiang Mai, where all-in costs run around $925, than in Gulbene at $1,289. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Gulbene it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $1,289 in Gulbene. 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, Gulbene makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.