Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Spain and Thailand

For one person, living is cheaper in Thailand: $990 a month against $1,775 in Spain, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Spain
Thailand
🇪🇸 Spain
$1,775
/mo nomad
🇹🇭 Thailand
$990
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Spain and in Thailand

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Spain and in Thailand actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Spain versus $990 in Thailand.

  • Spain $1,775
  • Thailand $990

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,606 in Spain versus $1,614 in Thailand.

  • Spain $2,606
  • Thailand $1,614

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,438 in Spain versus $2,238 in Thailand.

  • Spain $3,438
  • Thailand $2,238

Spain ($931–$2,610) and Thailand ($608–$2,241) have similar cost spreads. Where you settle within each country has roughly equal impact on the budget.

Living in Spain is roughly 79% more expensive than in Thailand on average.

Spain (30% above) and Thailand (27% below) straddle the global median.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Spain
Thailand
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.69 €15.00
$2.98 ฿101
460.07%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$55.7 €50.0
$26.37 ฿891
111.22%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.37 €10.21
$6.69 ฿226
69.96%
Cappuccino
$2.42 €2.17
$2.02 ฿68.1
19.80%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.68 €2.41
$0.66 ฿22.20
306.06%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.79 €1.61
$0.33 ฿11.12
442.42%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.42 €3.08
$2.26 ฿76.5
51.33%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.88 €3.48
$3.65 ฿123
6.30%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Spain
Thailand
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.20 €1.08
$1.79 ฿60.4
-32.96%
White Bread (500g)
$1.48 €1.33
$1.34 ฿45.15
10.45%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.67 €1.50
$1.23 ฿41.38
35.77%
Eggs
$3.42 €3.07
$2.03 ฿68.5
68.47%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$14.17 €12.73
$16.57 ฿560
-14.48%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.33 €7.48
$2.98 ฿101
179.53%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$16.20 €14.56
$10.84 ฿366
49.45%
Apples (1kg)
$2.45 €2.20
$2.96 ฿100
-17.23%
Banana (1kg)
$2.03 €1.83
$1.26 ฿42.44
61.11%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.08 €1.87
$2.03 ฿68.5
2.46%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.58 €2.32
$1.71 ฿57.8
50.88%
Potato (1kg)
$1.83 €1.64
$1.47 ฿49.60
24.49%
Onion (1kg)
$2.00 €1.80
$1.32 ฿44.41
51.52%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.31 €1.18
$1.14 ฿38.48
14.91%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.77 €0.69
$0.48 ฿16.33
60.42%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.36 €5.72
$4.27 ฿144
48.95%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.64 €5.07
$16.99 ฿574
-66.80%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.30 €1.17
$1.66 ฿56.1
-21.69%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.09 €1.87
$2.74 ฿92.7
-23.72%
🚌 Getting Around
Spain
Thailand
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.64 €1.48
$0.91 ฿30.87
80.22%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$32.91 €29.57
$34.94 ฿1,180
-5.81%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.43 €3.98
$1.16 ฿39.29
281.90%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.47 €1.32
$1.16 ฿39.04
26.72%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$24.98 €22.45
$5.77 ฿195
332.93%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.77 €1.59
$1.34 ฿45.32
32.09%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$35.5K €31.9K
$30.7K ฿1.0M
15.87%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$30.6K €27.5K
$26.6K ฿897.6K
15.17%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Spain
Thailand
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$149 €134
$81.7 ฿2,760
82.65%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$17.67 €15.88
$12.47 ฿421
41.70%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$31.88 €28.64
$18.20 ฿615
75.16%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Spain
Thailand
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$44.24 €39.75
$50.2 ฿1,694
-11.78%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$15.29 €13.74
$11.64 ฿393
31.36%
Cinema Ticket
$9.66 €8.68
$6.41 ฿216
50.70%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Spain
Thailand
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$544 €489
$558 ฿18.8K
-2.46%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$10.6K €9,530
$12.3K ฿415.7K
-13.83%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Spain
Thailand
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$84.9 €76.3
$52.3 ฿1,766
62.30%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$37.11 €33.35
$31.83 ฿1,075
16.59%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$89.2 €80.1
$88.2 ฿2,980
1.09%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$106 €95.0
$78.5 ฿2,651
34.68%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Spain
Thailand
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,056 €949
$495 ฿16.7K
113.41%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$808 €726
$320 ฿10.8K
152.71%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,621 €1,456
$1,355 ฿45.8K
19.62%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,246 €1,120
$771 ฿26.0K
61.69%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,135 €3,716
$3,611 ฿122.0K
14.51%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,633 €2,365
$2,072 ฿70.0K
27.05%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Spain
Thailand
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,999 €1,796
$562 ฿19.0K
255.93%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.3
5.67
-41.80%

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

Last update for Spain: October 24, 2026

Last update for Thailand: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Spain
$808
Thailand
$320 60.4% $488
Groceries & Markets
Spain
$272
Thailand
$246 9.6% $26
Eating Out
Spain
$239
Thailand
$91 62.1% $149
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Spain
$199
Thailand
$112 43.5% $86
Clothing & Footwear
Spain
$143
Thailand
$113 20.8% $30
Sport & Entertainment
Spain
$64
Thailand
$63 0.9% $0.6
Getting Around
Spain
$51
Thailand
$46 11.1% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $920 in Spain, $463 in Thailand. Capital cities: $1,508 in Madrid vs $713 in Bangkok.

National salary averages: $1,972 in Spain, $612 in Thailand. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 99% higher in Spain.

Dining out costs 111% more in Spain.

Public transport is 39% more expensive in Thailand.

Salaries are about 3.2 times higher in Spain, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Spain.

Good to know
🇪🇸 Spain
🇹🇭 Thailand
🕒 Local time
10:36 10:36 AM
16:36 4:36 PM
6 h ahead of Spain
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
47,415,750
66,188,503
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Spain Thailand 10,180 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Spain
  • Thailand

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
Spain vs Thailand: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which country is more expensive to live in: Spain or Thailand?
At $1,775 per month in Spain and $990 in Thailand, there’s a 79% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.
How do rents compare between Spain and Thailand?
Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $920 in Spain and $463 in Thailand. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.
How far does $2,000 go in Spain compared to Thailand?
In Thailand, $2,000 covers most cities easily; in Spain it stretches only to regional areas and falls short in the capital – you’ll need to make trade-offs on housing or lifestyle.
How do I choose between living in Spain and in Thailand?
It depends on what you’re after: Thailand wins on affordability; Spain may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.

Spain vs other spots: cost of living compared

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