Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Pola and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,647 in Santa Pola, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Santa Pola
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Santa Pola Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Santa Pola

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,647

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,647 per month in Santa Pola vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santa Pola $1,647
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $2,408 per month in Santa Pola vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santa Pola $2,408
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $3,170 per month in Santa Pola vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Santa Pola $3,170
Chiang Mai $1,914

Santa Pola costs about 75% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Santa Pola sits 22% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.93 €15.06

$2.26 ฿75.4

649.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.7 €49.52

$19.18 ฿641

190.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.25 €10.00

$5.59 ฿187

101.25%

Cappuccino

$2.34 €2.08

$1.72 ฿57.6

36.05%

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

$2.57 €2.29

$0.64 ฿21.54

301.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 €1.59

$0.33 ฿11.18

439.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.46 €3.08

$2.36 ฿78.7

46.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 €3.23

$3.90 ฿130

-6.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 €1.08

$2.05 ฿68.6

-40.98%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 €1.33

$1.40 ฿46.70

7.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.28 ฿42.89

21.09%

Eggs

$3.20 €2.84

$2.25 ฿75.3

42.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.64 €12.14

$16.94 ฿566

-19.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.31 €7.39

$2.74 ฿91.6

203.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.66 €13.93

$9.36 ฿313

67.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.51 €2.23

$2.40 ฿80.3

4.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 €1.44

$1.01 ฿33.92

59.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 €1.71

$1.61 ฿53.9

19.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.51 €2.23

$1.52 ฿50.7

65.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.28 ฿42.90

40.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 €1.77

$1.11 ฿37.22

79.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 €1.18

$0.72 ฿24.09

83.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.64

$0.52 ฿17.54

38.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.24 €5.55

$4.33 ฿145

44.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 €5.07

$17.73 ฿593

-67.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 €1.08

$1.63 ฿54.4

-25.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.90

$2.85 ฿95.3

-25.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.61 €1.44

$0.85 ฿28.31

89.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.11 €28.56

$53.9 ฿1,801

-40.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.01 €3.56

$1.17 ฿39.18

242.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.41 €1.25

$0.57 ฿19.00

147.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.33 €20.75

$2.37 ฿79.2

884.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.45 ฿48.32

25.52%

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

$34.9K €31.0K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

70.24%

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

$29.3K €26.0K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

10.40%

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

$144 €128

$62.3 ฿2,083

130.74%

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

$18.14 €16.13

$12.27 ฿410

47.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.11 €26.78

$19.97 ฿668

50.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.43 €40.41

$37.91 ฿1,267

19.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.40 €13.70

$3.76 ฿126

309.57%

Cinema Ticket

$9.07 €8.07

$6.71 ฿224

35.17%

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

$478 €425

$797 ฿26.6K

-40.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,406 €7,477

$14.8K ฿495.7K

-43.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.6 €77.0

$53.3 ฿1,780

62.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.80 €32.73

$25.05 ฿837

46.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.8 €79.0

$91.6 ฿3,062

-3.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 €98.8

$73.5 ฿2,455

51.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$905 €805

$464 ฿15.5K

94.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$694 €617

$305 ฿10.2K

127.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,370 €1,218

$915 ฿30.6K

49.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,002 €892

$552 ฿18.5K

81.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,268 €2,907

$1,912 ฿63.9K

70.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,175 €1,935

$1,438 ฿48.1K

51.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿19.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.3

5.57

-40.75%

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

Last update for Santa Pola: 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

Santa Pola

$694 42.1%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 56.1% $389

Groceries & Markets

Santa Pola

$263 16%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 9.5% $25

Eating Out

Santa Pola

$239 14.5%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 67% $160

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Pola

$192 11.7%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 50.8% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Pola

$145 8.8%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 24.7% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Pola

$64 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 19.3% $12

Getting Around

Santa Pola

$50 3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 23.6% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $905 in Santa Pola 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 $56.0 in Santa Pola versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $263 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Santa Pola

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

18:45 6:45 PM

23:45 11:45 PM

5 h ahead of Santa Pola

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

37,816

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

On the map

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Between locations

Santa Pola Chiang Mai 9,520 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Santa Pola
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

Santa Pola vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santa Pola costs about 75% 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 $2,470 per month in Santa Pola 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 $478 per month in Santa Pola 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 10% more in Santa Pola, 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 Santa Pola at $1,647. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Santa Pola it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,647 in Santa Pola. 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, Santa Pola makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.