Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rouen and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $1,734 in Rouen, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Rouen
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Rouen Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Rouen

🇫🇷 France

$1,734

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,734 per month in Rouen vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Rouen $1,734
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $2,616 per month in Rouen vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Rouen $2,616
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $3,498 per month in Rouen vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Rouen $3,498
Chiang Mai $1,903

Rouen costs about 87% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Rouen sits 28% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.75 €14.90

$2.29 ฿76.5

631.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.8 €59.4

$19.64 ฿656

240.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.08 €9.86

$5.61 ฿188

97.50%

Cappuccino

$3.30 €2.93

$1.66 ฿55.6

98.80%

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

$3.66 €3.26

$0.70 ฿23.40

422.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 €2.86

$0.31 ฿10.24

938.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.31 €6.50

$2.41 ฿80.4

203.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.86 €6.10

$3.71 ฿124

84.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.95 ฿65.3

-24.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 €0.95

$1.41 ฿47.03

-24.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 €1.99

$1.31 ฿43.62

70.99%

Eggs

$3.56 €3.17

$2.18 ฿72.9

63.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.50 €16.46

$16.65 ฿556

11.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.88 €7.89

$2.76 ฿92.2

221.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.98 €24.00

$9.11 ฿304

196.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 €2.27

$2.39 ฿80.0

6.69%

Banana (1kg)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.03 ฿34.26

182.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.45 €2.18

$1.63 ฿54.4

50.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.13 €2.78

$1.50 ฿50.0

108.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.05 €1.82

$1.29 ฿43.13

58.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.11 ฿37.03

34.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 €1.12

$0.72 ฿24.08

75.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 €0.38

$0.53 ฿17.59

-18.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.34 €12.76

$4.31 ฿144

232.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.65 €5.92

$17.95 ฿600

-62.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 €2.39

$1.58 ฿52.9

69.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 €2.94

$2.84 ฿95.0

16.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.86 ฿28.86

129.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.79 €43.40

$53.3 ฿1,780

-8.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.80 €7.83

$1.21 ฿40.29

627.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 €1.07

$0.57 ฿18.99

110.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.89 €30.14

$2.35 ฿78.6

1342.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.44 ฿47.96

49.31%

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

$34.8K €31.0K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

68.07%

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

$35.6K €31.7K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

33.01%

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

$211 €187

$62.3 ฿2,083

238.07%

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

$23.28 €20.71

$12.11 ฿405

92.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.42 €35.06

$19.94 ฿666

97.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.34 €37.66

$37.07 ฿1,239

14.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.90 €15.03

$3.78 ฿126

347.09%

Cinema Ticket

$14.36 €12.78

$6.50 ฿217

120.92%

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

$902 €802

$793 ฿26.5K

13.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.2K €9,040

$14.8K ฿494.9K

-31.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.4 €75.9

$53.7 ฿1,796

58.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.62 ฿823

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 €85.4

$90.9 ฿3,036

5.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 €91.5

$71.1 ฿2,378

44.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$692 €616

$455 ฿15.2K

52.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$567 €505

$298 ฿9,954

90.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,228 €1,092

$908 ฿30.4K

35.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$909 €809

$554 ฿18.5K

64.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,930 €3,496

$1,931 ฿64.5K

103.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,366 €2,105

$1,445 ฿48.3K

63.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,579 €2,294

$591 ฿19.7K

336.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.81

5.57

-31.60%

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

Last update for Rouen: 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

Rouen

$567 32.7%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 47.5% $270

Groceries & Markets

Rouen

$338 19.5%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 30.3% $102

Eating Out

Rouen

$285 16.4%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 72.4% $206

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rouen

$273 15.8%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 65.5% $179

Clothing & Footwear

Rouen

$128 * 7.4%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 15.4% $20

Getting Around

Rouen

$71 4.1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 15% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Rouen

$71 4.1%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 29.6% $21

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $692 in Rouen 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 337% higher in Rouen, 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 $67.0 in Rouen versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $338 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Rouen

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

12:50 12:50 PM

17:50 5:50 PM

5 h ahead of Rouen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

114,083

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

Rouen Chiang Mai 8,980 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Rouen
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

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

Rouen costs about 87% 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 $2,600 per month in Rouen 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 $902 per month in Rouen 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 43% more in Rouen, 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 Rouen at $1,734. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Rouen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $1,734 in Rouen. 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, Rouen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.