Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lund and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,783 in Lund, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Lund
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Lund Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Lund

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,783

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,783 per month in Lund vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lund $1,783
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $2,943 per month in Lund vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lund $2,943
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $4,103 per month in Lund vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Lund $4,103
Chiang Mai $1,903

Lund costs about 93% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lund sits 32% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.36 SEK 132

$2.29 ฿76.5

483.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.8 SEK 900

$19.64 ฿656

362.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.17 SEK 121

$5.61 ฿188

116.93%

Cappuccino

$4.69 SEK 46.51

$1.66 ฿55.6

182.53%

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

$2.82 SEK 27.92

$0.70 ฿23.40

302.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 SEK 20.66

$0.31 ฿10.24

574.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.99 SEK 79.2

$2.41 ฿80.4

231.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.17 SEK 71.0

$3.71 ฿124

93.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 SEK 16.34

$1.95 ฿65.3

-15.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.57 SEK 25.42

$1.41 ฿47.03

82.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.43 SEK 34.03

$1.31 ฿43.62

161.83%

Eggs

$4.56 SEK 45.23

$2.18 ฿72.9

109.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.55 SEK 124

$16.65 ฿556

-24.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.96 SEK 119

$2.76 ฿92.2

333.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.65 SEK 155

$9.11 ฿304

71.79%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 SEK 30.74

$2.39 ฿80.0

29.71%

Banana (1kg)

$2.54 SEK 25.20

$1.03 ฿34.26

146.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.88 SEK 28.51

$1.63 ฿54.4

76.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.62 SEK 45.81

$1.50 ฿50.0

208.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.68 SEK 16.63

$1.29 ฿43.13

30.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 SEK 13.63

$1.11 ฿37.03

24.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.66 SEK 26.33

$0.72 ฿24.08

269.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 SEK 14.81

$0.53 ฿17.59

181.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.86 SEK 77.9

$4.31 ฿144

82.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.24 SEK 111

$17.95 ฿600

-37.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.90 SEK 18.83

$1.58 ฿52.9

20.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.68 SEK 26.53

$2.84 ฿95.0

-5.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.20 SEK 31.66

$0.86 ฿28.86

272.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.8 SEK 632

$53.3 ฿1,780

19.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.07 SEK 50.3

$1.21 ฿40.29

319.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 SEK 10.64

$0.57 ฿18.99

87.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$42.27 SEK 419

$2.35 ฿78.6

1698.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.78 SEK 17.69

$1.44 ฿47.96

23.61%

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

$33.8K SEK 334.7K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

62.93%

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

$34.1K SEK 337.6K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

27.12%

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

$77.4 SEK 767

$62.3 ฿2,083

24.16%

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

$29.06 SEK 288

$12.11 ฿405

139.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.26 SEK 409

$19.94 ฿666

106.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.58 SEK 382

$37.07 ฿1,239

4.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.41 SEK 272

$3.78 ฿126

625.13%

Cinema Ticket

$15.08 SEK 149

$6.50 ฿217

132.00%

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

$157 SEK 1,551

$793 ฿26.5K

-80.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿494.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.7 SEK 799

$53.7 ฿1,796

50.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.8 SEK 583

$24.62 ฿823

138.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 SEK 1,017

$90.9 ฿3,036

13.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 SEK 1,208

$71.1 ฿2,378

71.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$848 SEK 8,402

$455 ฿15.2K

86.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$685 SEK 6,783

$298 ฿9,954

129.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,755 SEK 17.4K

$908 ฿30.4K

93.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 SEK 13.9K

$554 ฿18.5K

152.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,119 SEK 60.6K

$1,931 ฿64.5K

216.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,638 SEK 36.1K

$1,445 ฿48.3K

151.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,950 SEK 29.2K

$591 ฿19.7K

399.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.03

5.57

-45.60%

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

Last update for Lund: October 18, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lund

$685 38.4%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 56.5% $387

Groceries & Markets

Lund

$358 20.1%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 34.2% $122

Eating Out

Lund

$274 15.4%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 71.3% $195

Clothing & Footwear

Lund

$164 9.2%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 34% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lund

$148 8.3%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 36.1% $53

Getting Around

Lund

$87 4.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 30.2% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Lund

$69 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 27.2% $19

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $848 in Lund 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.

Salaries run about 399% higher in Lund, 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 $91.0 in Lund versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $358 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Lund

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

01:46 1:46 AM

06:46 6:46 AM

5 h ahead of Lund

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

82,800

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 21, 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 21, 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

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Between locations

Lund Chiang Mai 8,030 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lund
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

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

Lund costs about 93% 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 $2,675 per month in Lund 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.

Kindergarten costs $157 per month in Lund and $793 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 52% more in Lund, 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 Lund at $1,783. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lund it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $1,783 in Lund. 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, Lund makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.