Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tonsberg and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $925 a month against $2,630 in Tonsberg, rent and utilities included – about $20,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

127

Cost of Living Index in Tonsberg
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Tonsberg Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Tonsberg

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,630

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,630 per month in Tonsberg vs $925 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tonsberg $2,630
Chiang Mai $925

A couple spends around $3,815 per month in Tonsberg vs $1,414 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tonsberg $3,815
Chiang Mai $1,414

A family of three spends $5,000 per month in Tonsberg vs $1,903 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tonsberg $5,000
Chiang Mai $1,903

Tonsberg costs about 184% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Tonsberg sits 94% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.94 NOK 197

$2.29 ฿76.5

814.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 NOK 991

$19.64 ฿656

436.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.53 NOK 146

$5.61 ฿188

176.83%

Cappuccino

$5.45 NOK 51.3

$1.66 ฿55.6

228.31%

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

$5.61 NOK 52.8

$0.70 ฿23.40

701.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.37 NOK 50.6

$0.31 ฿10.24

1632.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.46 NOK 108

$2.41 ฿80.4

375.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.27 NOK 96.7

$3.71 ฿124

176.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.47 NOK 23.28

$1.95 ฿65.3

26.67%

White Bread (500g)

$3.72 NOK 35.01

$1.41 ฿47.03

163.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.85 NOK 36.24

$1.31 ฿43.62

193.89%

Eggs

$4.86 NOK 45.78

$2.18 ฿72.9

122.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.96 NOK 122

$16.65 ฿556

-22.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.73 NOK 148

$2.76 ฿92.2

469.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$31.41 NOK 296

$9.11 ฿304

244.79%

Apples (1kg)

$3.22 NOK 30.33

$2.39 ฿80.0

34.73%

Banana (1kg)

$2.57 NOK 24.20

$1.03 ฿34.26

149.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.38 NOK 31.79

$1.63 ฿54.4

107.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.78 NOK 45.04

$1.50 ฿50.0

218.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.52 NOK 23.75

$1.29 ฿43.13

95.35%

Onion (1kg)

$2.79 NOK 26.26

$1.11 ฿37.03

151.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.93 NOK 27.54

$0.72 ฿24.08

306.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 NOK 22.15

$0.53 ฿17.59

343.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.24 NOK 162

$4.31 ฿144

300.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.69 NOK 157

$17.95 ฿600

-7.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.49 NOK 32.82

$1.58 ฿52.9

120.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.14 NOK 38.94

$2.84 ฿95.0

45.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.55 NOK 42.80

$0.86 ฿28.86

429.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.5 NOK 795

$53.3 ฿1,780

58.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.70 NOK 110

$1.21 ฿40.29

866.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 NOK 16.77

$0.57 ฿18.99

212.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.5 NOK 664

$2.35 ฿78.6

2900.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.35 NOK 22.13

$1.44 ฿47.96

63.19%

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

$47.7K NOK 448.8K

$20.7K ฿692.8K

130.01%

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

$43.9K NOK 413.4K

$26.8K ฿895.7K

63.88%

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

$267 NOK 2,513

$62.3 ฿2,083

328.27%

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

$33.09 NOK 312

$12.11 ฿405

173.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.8 NOK 506

$19.94 ฿666

169.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.11 NOK 462

$37.07 ฿1,239

32.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$37.03 NOK 349

$3.78 ฿126

879.63%

Cinema Ticket

$17.21 NOK 162

$6.50 ฿217

164.77%

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

$238 NOK 2,236

$793 ฿26.5K

-70.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K NOK 120.8K

$14.8K ฿494.9K

-13.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.7 NOK 938

$53.7 ฿1,796

85.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 NOK 525

$24.62 ฿823

126.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$123 NOK 1,159

$90.9 ฿3,036

35.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$156 NOK 1,469

$71.1 ฿2,378

119.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 NOK 11.2K

$455 ฿15.2K

160.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$983 NOK 9,254

$298 ฿9,954

230.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,474 NOK 13.9K

$908 ฿30.4K

62.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,277 NOK 12.0K

$554 ฿18.5K

130.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,073 NOK 57.2K

$1,931 ฿64.5K

214.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,046 NOK 38.1K

$1,445 ฿48.3K

180.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,435 NOK 41.7K

$591 ฿19.7K

650.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.94

5.57

-11.31%

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

Last update for Tonsberg: October 18, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tonsberg

$983 37.4%

Chiang Mai

$298 32.2% 69.7% $685

Groceries & Markets

Tonsberg

$490 18.6%

Chiang Mai

$235 25.5% 51.9% $254

Eating Out

Tonsberg

$401 15.3%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.5% 80.4% $323

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tonsberg

$354 13.5%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.2% 73.3% $259

Clothing & Footwear

Tonsberg

$196 7.4%

Chiang Mai

$108 11.7% 44.7% $87

Getting Around

Tonsberg

$123 4.7%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 50.7% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Tonsberg

$84 3.2%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 40.1% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,187 in Tonsberg versus $455 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 651% higher in Tonsberg, 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 $105 in Tonsberg versus $20.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $490 vs $235 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Tonsberg

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

02:00 2:00 AM

07:00 7:00 AM

5 h ahead of Tonsberg

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

59,237

127,240

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tonsberg Chiang Mai 8,150 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Tonsberg
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

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

Tonsberg costs about 184% 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 $3,945 per month in Tonsberg and $1,388 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 $238 per month in Tonsberg and $793 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 108% more in Tonsberg, 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 $925, than in Tonsberg at $2,630. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tonsberg it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $925 versus $2,630 in Tonsberg. 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, Tonsberg makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.