Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Qrendi and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $2,066 in Qrendi, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

95

Cost of Living Index in Qrendi
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Qrendi Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Qrendi

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,066

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,066 per month in Qrendi vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Qrendi $2,066
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $2,926 per month in Qrendi vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Qrendi $2,926
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $3,786 per month in Qrendi vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Qrendi $3,786
Chiang Mai $1,914

Qrendi costs about 120% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Qrendi sits 53% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.42 €17.28

$2.26 ฿75.4

759.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.3 €75.8

$19.18 ฿641

344.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.44 €11.96

$5.59 ฿187

140.43%

Cappuccino

$2.72 €2.42

$1.72 ฿57.6

58.14%

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

$3.02 €2.69

$0.64 ฿21.54

371.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 €2.02

$0.33 ฿11.18

587.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.62 €4.11

$2.36 ฿78.7

95.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.25 €4.67

$3.90 ฿130

34.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.33 €1.18

$2.05 ฿68.6

-35.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.40 ฿46.70

-6.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.35 €3.87

$1.28 ฿42.89

239.84%

Eggs

$4.19 €3.73

$2.25 ฿75.3

86.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.02 €7.14

$16.94 ฿566

-52.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.22 €9.09

$2.74 ฿91.6

272.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.25 €16.24

$9.36 ฿313

94.98%

Apples (1kg)

$4.09 €3.64

$2.40 ฿80.3

70.42%

Banana (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$1.01 ฿33.92

166.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.62 €3.22

$1.61 ฿53.9

124.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 €3.01

$1.52 ฿50.7

122.37%

Potato (1kg)

$2.45 €2.18

$1.28 ฿42.90

91.41%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.11 ฿37.22

81.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.35 €2.09

$0.72 ฿24.09

226.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 €1.18

$0.52 ฿17.54

155.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.95 €6.18

$4.33 ฿145

60.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.98 €7.10

$17.73 ฿593

-54.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 €1.57

$1.63 ฿54.4

7.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 €2.15

$2.85 ฿95.3

-15.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.55 €2.27

$0.85 ฿28.31

200.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.9 ฿1,801

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.70 €5.07

$1.17 ฿39.18

387.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.18 €1.94

$0.57 ฿19.00

282.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.56 €23.63

$2.37 ฿79.2

1020.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.45 ฿48.32

1.38%

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

$37.7K €33.6K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

84.25%

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

$39.2K €34.9K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

47.97%

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

$101 €89.8

$62.3 ฿2,083

61.96%

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

$25.17 €22.39

$12.27 ฿410

105.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.45 €37.76

$19.97 ฿668

112.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 €58.9

$37.91 ฿1,267

74.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.76 ฿126

Cinema Ticket

$9.85 €8.76

$6.71 ฿224

46.80%

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

$371 €330

$797 ฿26.6K

-53.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.2K €9,955

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-24.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.5 €77.8

$53.3 ฿1,780

64.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.68 €36.19

$25.05 ฿837

62.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 €89.5

$91.6 ฿3,062

9.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.6 €69.9

$73.5 ฿2,455

6.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,282 €1,140

$464 ฿15.5K

176.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,039 €924

$305 ฿10.2K

241.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,821 €1,619

$915 ฿30.6K

98.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,295 €1,152

$552 ฿18.5K

134.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,216 €3,750

$1,912 ฿63.9K

120.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,595 €2,309

$1,438 ฿48.1K

80.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.9

5.57

-47.94%

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

Last update for Qrendi: October 12, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Qrendi

$1K 50.3%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 70.7% $734

Groceries & Markets

Qrendi

$325 15.7%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 26.7% $87

Eating Out

Qrendi

$283 13.7%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 72.1% $204

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Qrendi

$169 8.2%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 43.9% $74

Clothing & Footwear

Qrendi

$138 6.7%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 20.8% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Qrendi

$86 4.2%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 40.2% $35

Getting Around

Qrendi

$27 * 1.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 129% $35

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,282 in Qrendi 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $85.0 in Qrendi versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $325 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Qrendi

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

17:22 5:22 PM

22:22 10:22 PM

5 h ahead of Qrendi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,800

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

Qrendi Chiang Mai 8,320 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Qrendi
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

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

Qrendi costs about 120% 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 $3,099 per month in Qrendi 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $85.0 in Qrendi and $19.00 in Chiang Mai. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 36% more in Qrendi, 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 Qrendi at $2,066. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Qrendi it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $2,066 in Qrendi. 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, Qrendi makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.