Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shkoder and Chiang Mai

For one person, living costs are similar in Shkoder and in Chiang Mai: $980 and $936 a month, rent and utilities included.

47

Cost of Living Index in Shkoder
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Shkoder Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Shkoder

🇦🇱 Albania

$980

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $980 per month in Shkoder vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Shkoder $980
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $1,474 per month in Shkoder vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Shkoder $1,474
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $1,969 per month in Shkoder vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Shkoder $1,969
Chiang Mai $1,979

Shkoder costs about 5% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Shkoder and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Shkoder 28% lower, Chiang Mai 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.30 ALL 751

$2.24 ฿75.7

315.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.93 ALL 3,144

$19.00 ฿642

104.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.21 ALL 502

$5.55 ฿188

11.89%

Cappuccino

$1.93 ALL 156

$1.67 ฿56.6

15.57%

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

$1.83 ALL 148

$0.64 ฿21.56

185.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 ALL 52.4

$0.31 ฿10.32

109.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.84 ALL 148

$2.36 ฿79.6

-22.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 ALL 257

$3.66 ฿124

-13.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 ALL 153

$1.95 ฿65.8

-3.08%

White Bread (500g)

$0.97 ALL 78.7

$1.44 ฿48.51

-32.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 ALL 163

$1.33 ฿45.07

51.13%

Eggs

$2.60 ALL 210

$2.28 ฿77.1

14.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.23 ALL 584

$16.45 ฿556

-56.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.11 ALL 412

$2.78 ฿94.0

83.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.81 ALL 873

$9.31 ฿314

16.11%

Apples (1kg)

$1.65 ALL 134

$2.35 ฿79.5

-29.79%

Banana (1kg)

$2.35 ALL 190

$0.97 ฿32.82

142.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.72 ALL 139

$1.60 ฿53.9

7.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.45 ALL 117

$1.50 ฿50.7

-3.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 ALL 82.4

$1.28 ฿43.15

-20.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.23 ALL 99.0

$1.10 ฿37.22

11.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 ALL 92.0

$0.71 ฿23.84

60.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ALL 62.3

$0.49 ฿16.38

57.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.23 ALL 341

$4.14 ฿140

2.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.14 ALL 496

$17.52 ฿592

-64.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 ALL 122

$1.61 ฿54.5

-6.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 ALL 148

$2.78 ฿94.0

-34.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.49 ALL 39.69

$0.87 ฿29.33

-43.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.12 ALL 898

$54.1 ฿1,827

-79.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.72 ALL 301

$1.16 ฿39.08

220.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.85 ALL 311

$0.53 ฿17.82

626.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.71 ALL 1,511

$2.42 ฿81.8

673.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.17 ALL 176

$1.45 ฿48.93

49.66%

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

$33.7K ALL 2.7M

$21.1K ฿711.2K

59.85%

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

$24.7K ALL 2.0M

$26.9K ฿909.8K

-8.35%

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

$61.7 ALL 4,981

$62.2 ฿2,100

-0.80%

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

$16.47 ALL 1,331

$12.17 ฿411

35.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.10 ALL 1,381

$20.12 ฿680

-15.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.68 ALL 3,448

$37.31 ฿1,260

14.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.53 ALL 1,012

$3.77 ฿127

232.36%

Cinema Ticket

$7.20 ALL 581

$6.49 ฿219

10.94%

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

$91.1 ALL 7,358

$736 ฿24.9K

-87.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,835 ALL 148.2K

$14.8K ฿498.6K

-87.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.16 ALL 3,970

$53.4 ฿1,802

-7.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$12.34 ALL 997

$24.64 ฿832

-49.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.0 ALL 5,975

$91.5 ฿3,089

-19.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$147 ALL 11.8K

$71.9 ฿2,429

103.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$489 ALL 39.5K

$482 ฿16.3K

1.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$317 ALL 25.6K

$309 ฿10.4K

2.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$484 ALL 39.1K

$1,006 ฿34.0K

-51.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$412 ALL 33.3K

$633 ฿21.4K

-34.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,866 ALL 150.7K

$2,363 ฿79.8K

-21.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,232 ALL 99.5K

$1,589 ฿53.7K

-22.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$567 ALL 45.8K

$590 ฿19.9K

-3.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-10.23%

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

Last update for Shkoder: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shkoder

$317 32.4%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 2.7% $8.4

Groceries & Markets

Shkoder

$206 21%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 13.8% $28

Eating Out

Shkoder

$142 14.5%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 45.2% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Shkoder

$127 13%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 14.4% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shkoder

$95 9.7%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 0.8% $0.8

Sport & Entertainment

Shkoder

$57 5.8%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 11.9% $6.8

Getting Around

Shkoder

$36 3.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 70.1% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $489 in Shkoder versus $482 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 4% higher in Chiang Mai, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $39 in Shkoder versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Groceries tell a different story – $206 in Shkoder vs $234 in Chiang Mai – so Shkoder wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇦🇱 Shkoder

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

19:40 7:40 PM

01:40 1:40 AM

6 h ahead of Shkoder

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

77,075

127,240

💱 Currency

Albanian Lek ALL L

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.11 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to ALL – Albanian Lek Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇱 Albanian Lek (L)

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 80.77 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 89.91 ALL (100 ALL = 1.11 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to ALL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Shkoder Chiang Mai 7,770 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Shkoder
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

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

Shkoder costs about 5% 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 $1,470 per month in Shkoder and $1,403 in Chiang Mai. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $489 in Shkoder and $482 in Chiang Mai. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Kindergarten costs $91 per month in Shkoder and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 12% cheaper in Shkoder – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $980 in Shkoder and $936 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Chiang Mai has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $936 in Chiang Mai to $980 in Shkoder. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.