Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sines and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,797 in Sines, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Sines
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Sines Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Sines

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,797

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,797 per month in Sines vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Sines $1,797
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $2,701 per month in Sines vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Sines $2,701
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $3,604 per month in Sines vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Sines $3,604
Chiang Mai $1,914

Sines costs about 92% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sines sits 33% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.36 €19.00

$2.26 ฿75.4

845.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.4 €68.0

$19.18 ฿641

298.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.41 €8.37

$5.59 ฿187

68.34%

Cappuccino

$3.55 €3.16

$1.72 ฿57.6

106.40%

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

$1.96 €1.74

$0.64 ฿21.54

206.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 €1.35

$0.33 ฿11.18

360.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.57 €3.17

$2.36 ฿78.7

51.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.92 €3.49

$3.90 ฿130

0.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 €1.20

$2.05 ฿68.6

-34.63%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.40 ฿46.70

-2.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.28 ฿42.89

27.34%

Eggs

$4.01 €3.57

$2.25 ฿75.3

78.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.29 €15.38

$16.94 ฿566

2.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.56 €6.72

$2.74 ฿91.6

175.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.98 €23.99

$9.36 ฿313

188.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.18 €2.83

$2.40 ฿80.3

32.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.01 ฿33.92

25.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.61 ฿53.9

7.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.52 ฿50.7

44.74%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.86

$1.28 ฿42.90

64.06%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 €1.79

$1.11 ฿37.22

81.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.72 ฿24.09

51.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 €0.80

$0.52 ฿17.54

73.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.89 €6.13

$4.33 ฿145

59.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.08 €5.41

$17.73 ฿593

-65.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.88

$1.63 ฿54.4

-39.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 €1.40

$2.85 ฿95.3

-44.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.27 €2.02

$0.85 ฿28.31

167.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.75 €36.25

$53.9 ฿1,801

-24.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.05 €3.61

$1.17 ฿39.18

246.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.14 €1.01

$0.57 ฿19.00

100.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.53 €14.70

$2.37 ฿79.2

597.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.45 ฿48.32

48.28%

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

$33.0K €29.4K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

61.22%

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

$37.3K €33.2K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

40.62%

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

$152 €135

$62.3 ฿2,083

144.25%

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

$20.92 €18.61

$12.27 ฿410

70.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 €49.67

$19.97 ฿668

179.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.32 €35.87

$37.91 ฿1,267

6.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.06 €15.18

$3.76 ฿126

353.72%

Cinema Ticket

$9.24 €8.22

$6.71 ฿224

37.70%

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

$673 €598

$797 ฿26.6K

-15.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.1K €13.4K

$14.8K ฿495.7K

1.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.46 €24.43

$53.3 ฿1,780

-48.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.1 €49.04

$25.05 ฿837

120.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.4 €44.80

$91.6 ฿3,062

-45.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$67.1 €59.6

$73.5 ฿2,455

-8.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$962 €856

$464 ฿15.5K

107.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 €686

$305 ฿10.2K

153.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,542 €1,371

$915 ฿30.6K

68.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,189 €1,058

$552 ฿18.5K

115.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,366 €2,994

$1,912 ฿63.9K

76.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,327 €2,070

$1,438 ฿48.1K

61.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,549 €2,267

$595 ฿19.9K

328.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

5.57

-16.52%

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

Last update for Sines: October 10, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sines

$771 42.9%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 60.5% $466

Groceries & Markets

Sines

$307 17.1%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 22.6% $70

Eating Out

Sines

$281 15.7%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 71.9% $202

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sines

$229 12.7%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 58.7% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Sines

$90 5%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 21.7% $20

Getting Around

Sines

$60 3.3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 3% $1.8

Sport & Entertainment

Sines

$59 3.3%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 12.7% $7.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $962 in Sines 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.

Salaries run about 328% higher in Sines, 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 $76.0 in Sines versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Sines

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

01:32 1:32 AM

07:32 7:32 AM

6 h ahead of Sines

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,200

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

Sines Chiang Mai 10,200 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Sines
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

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

Sines costs about 92% 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 $2,696 per month in Sines 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 $673 per month in Sines 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 29% more in Sines, 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 Sines at $1,797. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sines it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,797 in Sines. 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, Sines makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.