Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lulea and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,820 in Lulea, rent and utilities included – about $10,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Lulea
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Lulea Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Lulea

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,820

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,820 per month in Lulea vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lulea $1,820
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $2,946 per month in Lulea vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lulea $2,946
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $4,073 per month in Lulea vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lulea $4,073
Chiang Mai $1,914

Lulea costs about 94% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lulea sits 35% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.71 SEK 116

$2.26 ฿75.4

418.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$96.1 SEK 952

$19.18 ฿641

400.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.04 SEK 109

$5.59 ฿187

97.50%

Cappuccino

$4.38 SEK 43.41

$1.72 ฿57.6

154.65%

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

$2.45 SEK 24.24

$0.64 ฿21.54

282.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 SEK 19.20

$0.33 ฿11.18

487.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.56 SEK 84.8

$2.36 ฿78.7

262.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.41 SEK 93.2

$3.90 ฿130

141.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 SEK 17.99

$2.05 ฿68.6

-11.22%

White Bread (500g)

$3.42 SEK 33.84

$1.40 ฿46.70

144.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.75 SEK 47.11

$1.28 ฿42.89

271.09%

Eggs

$4.67 SEK 46.31

$2.25 ฿75.3

107.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.48 SEK 124

$16.94 ฿566

-26.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.11 SEK 130

$2.74 ฿91.6

378.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.07 SEK 258

$9.36 ฿313

178.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.44 SEK 24.16

$2.40 ฿80.3

1.67%

Banana (1kg)

$2.66 SEK 26.36

$1.01 ฿33.92

163.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 SEK 23.36

$1.61 ฿53.9

46.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.16 SEK 41.21

$1.52 ฿50.7

173.68%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 SEK 20.69

$1.28 ฿42.90

63.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.50 SEK 14.82

$1.11 ฿37.22

35.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.30 SEK 32.69

$0.72 ฿24.09

358.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 SEK 12.59

$0.52 ฿17.54

144.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.06 SEK 70.0

$4.33 ฿145

63.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.04 SEK 119

$17.73 ฿593

-32.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 SEK 17.63

$1.63 ฿54.4

9.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 SEK 17.53

$2.85 ฿95.3

-37.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.23 SEK 31.99

$0.85 ฿28.31

280.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.5 SEK 560

$53.9 ฿1,801

4.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.73 SEK 86.5

$1.17 ฿39.18

646.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 SEK 20.33

$0.57 ฿19.00

259.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.8 SEK 702

$2.37 ฿79.2

2887.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 SEK 17.24

$1.45 ฿48.32

20.00%

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

$31.9K SEK 316.5K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

56.01%

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

$33.3K SEK 329.9K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

25.57%

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

$161 SEK 1,595

$62.3 ฿2,083

158.25%

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

$31.36 SEK 311

$12.27 ฿410

155.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.51 SEK 263

$19.97 ฿668

32.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.47 SEK 450

$37.91 ฿1,267

19.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.02 SEK 347

$3.76 ฿126

831.38%

Cinema Ticket

$12.85 SEK 127

$6.71 ฿224

91.51%

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

$150 SEK 1,490

$797 ฿26.6K

-81.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,570 SEK 55.2K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-62.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 SEK 1,189

$53.3 ฿1,780

125.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.64 SEK 323

$25.05 ฿837

30.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 SEK 1,188

$91.6 ฿3,062

30.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$161 SEK 1,593

$73.5 ฿2,455

118.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$783 SEK 7,763

$464 ฿15.5K

68.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$584 SEK 5,786

$305 ฿10.2K

91.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,449 SEK 14.4K

$915 ฿30.6K

58.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,104 SEK 10.9K

$552 ฿18.5K

99.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,072 SEK 30.4K

$1,912 ฿63.9K

60.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,194 SEK 21.7K

$1,438 ฿48.1K

52.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,498 SEK 24.8K

$595 ฿19.9K

319.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.57

-30.88%

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

Last update for Lulea: 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

Lulea

$584 32.1%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 47.8% $279

Groceries & Markets

Lulea

$404 22.2%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 41.1% $166

Eating Out

Lulea

$259 14.2%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 69.4% $180

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lulea

$219 12%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 56.8% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Lulea

$195 10.7%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 43.8% $85

Getting Around

Lulea

$88 4.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 30.7% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Lulea

$71 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 27.9% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $783 in Lulea 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 320% higher in Lulea, 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 $96.0 in Lulea versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $404 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Lulea

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

15:31 3:31 PM

20:31 8:31 PM

5 h ahead of Lulea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

73,864

127,240

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lulea Chiang Mai 7,510 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Lulea
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

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

Lulea costs about 94% 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 $2,730 per month in Lulea 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 $150 per month in Lulea 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 70% more in Lulea, 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 Lulea at $1,820. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lulea it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,820 in Lulea. 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, Lulea makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.