Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Staefa and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $935 a month against $3,402 in Staefa, rent and utilities included – about $29,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

171

Cost of Living Index in Staefa
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Staefa Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Staefa

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,402

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,402 per month in Staefa vs $935 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Staefa $3,402
Chiang Mai $935

A couple spends around $5,480 per month in Staefa vs $1,467 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Staefa $5,480
Chiang Mai $1,467

A family of three spends $7,558 per month in Staefa vs $1,999 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Staefa $7,558
Chiang Mai $1,999

Staefa costs about 264% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Staefa sits 152% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$33.35 CHF 27.23

$2.13 ฿71.7

1465.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$124 CHF 101

$18.62 ฿625

563.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.32 CHF 13.32

$5.60 ฿188

191.43%

Cappuccino

$6.22 CHF 5.08

$1.66 ฿55.9

274.70%

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

$5.89 CHF 4.81

$0.65 ฿21.73

806.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.17 CHF 4.22

$0.30 ฿10.24

1623.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.68 CHF 7.09

$2.32 ฿78.0

274.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.54 CHF 6.97

$3.67 ฿123

132.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.17 CHF 1.78

$2.02 ฿67.7

7.43%

White Bread (500g)

$3.49 CHF 2.85

$1.41 ฿47.29

147.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.83 CHF 3.12

$1.39 ฿46.75

175.54%

Eggs

$8.50 CHF 6.94

$2.37 ฿79.5

258.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.34 CHF 21.51

$16.52 ฿555

59.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$26.66 CHF 21.76

$2.67 ฿89.7

898.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$55.2 CHF 45.08

$9.02 ฿303

512.08%

Apples (1kg)

$3.52 CHF 2.87

$2.40 ฿80.6

46.67%

Banana (1kg)

$2.78 CHF 2.27

$1.04 ฿34.98

167.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 CHF 2.84

$1.66 ฿55.7

109.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.73 CHF 3.86

$1.56 ฿52.4

203.21%

Potato (1kg)

$2.62 CHF 2.14

$1.24 ฿41.57

111.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 CHF 1.85

$1.09 ฿36.50

108.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 CHF 1.99

$0.76 ฿25.59

219.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 CHF 1.08

$0.51 ฿17.27

158.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.09 CHF 9.05

$4.12 ฿138

169.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.14 CHF 11.54

$17.93 ฿602

-21.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 CHF 2.25

$1.62 ฿54.5

70.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 CHF 2.63

$2.82 ฿94.8

14.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.57 CHF 3.73

$0.93 ฿31.39

391.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$99.1 CHF 80.9

$52.9 ฿1,777

87.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.13 CHF 6.64

$1.18 ฿39.52

588.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.75 CHF 3.88

$0.17 ฿5.76

2694.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$88.4 CHF 72.2

$1.81 ฿60.9

4782.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.35 CHF 1.92

$1.47 ฿49.47

59.86%

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

$40.2K CHF 32.8K

$21.0K ฿705.8K

91.24%

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

$39.4K CHF 32.1K

$26.5K ฿890.7K

48.41%

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

$239 CHF 195

$62.6 ฿2,101

282.40%

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

$32.40 CHF 26.46

$11.60 ฿390

179.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.0 CHF 45.68

$20.30 ฿682

175.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$79.7 CHF 65.1

$37.88 ฿1,272

110.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$48.63 CHF 39.70

$3.70 ฿124

1214.32%

Cinema Ticket

$24.73 CHF 20.19

$6.51 ฿219

279.88%

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

$3,024 CHF 2,469

$727 ฿24.4K

315.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K CHF 30.2K

$16.6K ฿556.7K

122.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$140 CHF 114

$53.5 ฿1,798

161.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.0 CHF 45.71

$24.80 ฿833

125.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$149 CHF 122

$90.4 ฿3,036

64.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$171 CHF 140

$72.0 ฿2,418

137.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,988 CHF 1,623

$481 ฿16.2K

313.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,426 CHF 1,164

$310 ฿10.4K

360.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,860 CHF 2,335

$1,058 ฿35.5K

170.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,909 CHF 2,375

$659 ฿22.1K

341.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$17.0K CHF 13.9K

$2,418 ฿81.2K

603.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.9K CHF 9,714

$1,609 ฿54.0K

639.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 ฿20.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.72

5.57

-69.12%

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

Last update for Staefa: October 31, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Staefa

$1.4K 41.9%

Chiang Mai

$310 33.1% 78.3% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Staefa

$642 18.9%

Chiang Mai

$237 25.3% 63.2% $406

Eating Out

Staefa

$495 14.6%

Chiang Mai

$77 8.2% 84.5% $419

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Staefa

$328 9.6%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 71.2% $233

Clothing & Footwear

Staefa

$232 6.8%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.6% 53.3% $124

Getting Around

Staefa

$149 4.4%

Chiang Mai

$59 6.3% 60.7% $91

Sport & Entertainment

Staefa

$129 3.8%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.4% 60.6% $78

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,988 in Staefa versus $481 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 $123 in Staefa versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $642 vs $237 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Staefa

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

10:00 10:00 AM

16:00 4:00 PM

6 h ahead of Staefa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,567

127,240

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.22 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.816 CHF (1 CHF = 1.22 USD). 1 EUR = 0.917 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.59 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.75 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Staefa Chiang Mai 8,510 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Staefa
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

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

Staefa costs about 264% 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 $5,102 per month in Staefa and $1,403 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $481 there versus $1,988 in Staefa.

Kindergarten costs $3,024 per month in Staefa and $727 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 171% more in Staefa, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,402 in Staefa and $935 in Chiang Mai. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Chiang Mai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

For expats, Chiang Mai is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 72% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.