Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Palmas and Chiang Mai

Name: Chiang Mai
Address: Chiang Mai, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Palmas: $834 a month against $925 in Chiang Mai, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Palmas
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Palmas Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Palmas

🇧🇷 Brazil

$834

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $834 per month in Palmas vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Palmas $834
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $1,292 per month in Palmas vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Palmas $1,292
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $1,751 per month in Palmas vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Palmas $1,751
Chiang Mai $1,903

Palmas is about 10% cheaper than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Palmas and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Palmas 38% lower, Chiang Mai 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.96 R$20.06

$2.29 ฿76.5

72.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.09 R$102

$19.64 ฿656

2.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.07 R$40.93

$5.61 ฿188

43.85%

Cappuccino

$1.43 R$7.27

$1.66 ฿55.6

-13.86%

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

$1.82 R$9.21

$0.70 ฿23.40

160.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.12 R$5.69

$0.31 ฿10.24

261.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.42 R$7.22

$2.41 ฿80.4

-41.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 R$15.70

$3.71 ฿124

-16.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.08 R$5.47

$1.95 ฿65.3

-44.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 R$7.45

$1.41 ฿47.03

4.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.24 R$6.28

$1.31 ฿43.62

-5.34%

Eggs

$2.67 R$13.52

$2.18 ฿72.9

22.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.12 R$36.11

$16.65 ฿556

-57.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.12 R$15.80

$2.76 ฿92.2

13.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.31 R$31.98

$9.11 ฿304

-30.74%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 R$10.98

$2.39 ฿80.0

-9.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 R$8.85

$1.03 ฿34.26

69.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.23 R$6.25

$1.63 ฿54.4

-24.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.22 R$6.21

$1.50 ฿50.0

-18.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.27 R$6.42

$1.29 ฿43.13

-1.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 R$5.43

$1.11 ฿37.03

-3.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 R$3.91

$0.72 ฿24.08

6.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 R$3.91

$0.53 ฿17.59

45.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.46 R$12.48

$4.31 ฿144

-42.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.16 R$36.30

$17.95 ฿600

-60.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 R$6.71

$1.58 ฿52.9

-16.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 R$10.66

$2.84 ฿95.0

-26.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 R$3.72

$0.86 ฿28.86

-15.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.43 R$220

$53.3 ฿1,780

-18.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 R$6.71

$1.21 ฿40.29

9.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.84 R$4.28

$0.57 ฿18.99

47.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.84 R$39.74

$2.35 ฿78.6

233.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 R$6.08

$1.44 ฿47.96

-16.67%

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

$23.9K R$121.4K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

15.50%

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

$33.0K R$167.3K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

23.15%

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

$115 R$581

$62.3 ฿2,083

84.00%

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

$11.64 R$59.0

$12.11 ฿405

-3.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.99 R$101

$19.94 ฿666

0.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.48 R$119

$37.07 ฿1,239

-36.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.34 R$139

$3.78 ฿126

623.28%

Cinema Ticket

$6.58 R$33.36

$6.50 ฿217

1.23%

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

$155 R$785

$793 ฿26.5K

-80.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,304 R$37.0K

$14.8K ฿494.9K

-50.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$36.91 R$187

$53.7 ฿1,796

-31.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.5 R$256

$24.62 ฿823

105.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 R$583

$90.9 ฿3,036

26.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.5 R$368

$71.1 ฿2,378

1.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$299 R$1,514

$455 ฿15.2K

-34.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$204 R$1,035

$298 ฿9,954

-31.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$624 R$3,162

$908 ฿30.4K

-31.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$427 R$2,165

$554 ฿18.5K

-22.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,718 R$8,707

$1,931 ฿64.5K

-11.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,207 R$6,116

$1,445 ฿48.3K

-16.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 ฿19.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

97.49%

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

Last update for Palmas: October 19, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Palmas

$204 24.5%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 45.9% $94

Groceries & Markets

Palmas

$173 20.7%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 36.3% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Palmas

$146 17.6%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 35.5% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Palmas

$124 14.8%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 12.5% $16

Eating Out

Palmas

$98 11.8%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 19.9% $20

Getting Around

Palmas

$52 6.2%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 17.1% $8.9

Sport & Entertainment

Palmas

$37 4.4%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 36.6% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $299 in Palmas 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 $20.00 in Palmas versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $173 vs $235 – making Palmas the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Palmas

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

16:34 4:34 PM

02:34 2:34 AM

10 h ahead of Palmas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

302,692

127,240

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Palmas Chiang Mai 16,380 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Palmas
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

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

Chiang Mai costs about 11% more than Palmas, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,250 per month in Palmas 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 Palmas, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $155 per month in Palmas 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 36% more in Chiang Mai, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Palmas, where all-in costs run around $834, than in Chiang Mai at $925. In Palmas it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chiang Mai it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Palmas costs $834 versus $925 in Chiang Mai. 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 Palmas. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chiang Mai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.