Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lucca and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $2,017 in Lucca, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

99

Cost of Living Index in Lucca
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Lucca Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Lucca

🇮🇹 Italy

$2,017

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,017 per month in Lucca vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lucca $2,017
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $3,004 per month in Lucca vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lucca $3,004
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $3,990 per month in Lucca vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lucca $3,990
Chiang Mai $1,914

Lucca costs about 115% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lucca sits 49% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.78 €17.59

$2.26 ฿75.4

775.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.6 €71.7

$19.18 ฿641

320.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.84 €10.53

$5.59 ฿187

111.81%

Cappuccino

$2.02 €1.79

$1.72 ฿57.6

17.44%

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

$3.30 €2.93

$0.64 ฿21.54

415.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.43 €1.27

$0.33 ฿11.18

333.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.73 €5.99

$2.36 ฿78.7

185.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.08 €4.52

$3.90 ฿130

30.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 €1.46

$2.05 ฿68.6

-20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.42 €2.15

$1.40 ฿46.70

72.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 €2.66

$1.28 ฿42.89

133.59%

Eggs

$4.01 €3.56

$2.25 ฿75.3

78.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.76 €18.46

$16.94 ฿566

22.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.43 €12.83

$2.74 ฿91.6

426.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.07 €18.74

$9.36 ฿313

125.11%

Apples (1kg)

$2.38 €2.12

$2.40 ฿80.3

-0.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.01 ฿33.92

111.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.52 €2.24

$1.61 ฿53.9

56.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 €2.84

$1.52 ฿50.7

110.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.28 ฿42.90

48.44%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.11 ฿37.22

92.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.82 €1.62

$0.72 ฿24.09

152.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 €0.50

$0.52 ฿17.54

9.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.05 €6.28

$4.33 ฿145

62.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$17.73 ฿593

-55.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$1.63 ฿54.4

18.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 €2.50

$2.85 ฿95.3

-1.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.95 €1.74

$0.85 ฿28.31

129.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$34.12 €30.35

$53.9 ฿1,801

-36.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.53 €4.03

$1.17 ฿39.18

287.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 €1.44

$0.57 ฿19.00

184.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.76 €24.69

$2.37 ฿79.2

1071.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 €1.88

$1.45 ฿48.32

45.52%

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

$36.5K €32.4K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

78.11%

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

$34.7K €30.9K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

30.86%

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

$336 €299

$62.3 ฿2,083

439.03%

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

$11.93 €10.62

$12.27 ฿410

-2.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.27 €28.70

$19.97 ฿668

61.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.8 €58.6

$37.91 ฿1,267

73.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$50.0 €44.47

$3.76 ฿126

1229.79%

Cinema Ticket

$9.86 €8.77

$6.71 ฿224

46.94%

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

$645 €574

$797 ฿26.6K

-19.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K €10.0K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-24.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €89.6

$53.3 ฿1,780

89.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.80 €42.52

$25.05 ฿837

90.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.5 €80.5

$91.6 ฿3,062

-1.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$165 €146

$73.5 ฿2,455

124.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$796 €708

$464 ฿15.5K

71.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$663 €589

$305 ฿10.2K

117.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 €1,273

$915 ฿30.6K

56.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 €900

$552 ฿18.5K

83.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,989 €3,549

$1,912 ฿63.9K

108.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,088 €1,857

$1,438 ฿48.1K

45.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,765 €1,570

$595 ฿19.9K

196.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.7

5.57

-33.57%

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

Last update for Lucca: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lucca

$663 32.8%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 54% $358

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lucca

$380 18.9%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 75.1% $286

Groceries & Markets

Lucca

$372 18.5%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 36% $134

Eating Out

Lucca

$281 13.9%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 71.8% $202

Clothing & Footwear

Lucca

$182 9%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 39.7% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Lucca

$86 4.2%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 40% $34

Getting Around

Lucca

$55 2.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 12.3% $6.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $796 in Lucca versus $464 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 run about 196% higher in Lucca, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $81.0 in Lucca versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $372 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Lucca

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

22:30 10:30 PM

03:30 3:30 AM

5 h ahead of Lucca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

89,046

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

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lucca Chiang Mai 8,460 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lucca
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

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

Lucca costs about 115% 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 $3,026 per month in Lucca and $1,408 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.

Kindergarten costs $645 per month in Lucca and $797 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 56% more in Lucca, 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 $938, than in Lucca at $2,017. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lucca it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $2,017 in Lucca. 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, Lucca makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.