Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tours and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $936 a month against $1,662 in Tours, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Tours
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Tours Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Tours

🇫🇷 France

$1,662

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$936

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,662 per month in Tours vs $936 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tours $1,662
Chiang Mai $936

A couple spends around $2,545 per month in Tours vs $1,457 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tours $2,545
Chiang Mai $1,457

A family of three spends $3,428 per month in Tours vs $1,979 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Tours $3,428
Chiang Mai $1,979

Tours costs about 78% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Tours sits 22% above the global median, while Chiang Mai is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.82 €13.22

$2.24 ฿75.6

561.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.3 €60.9

$19.00 ฿641

259.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.67 €12.20

$5.55 ฿187

146.31%

Cappuccino

$3.65 €3.26

$1.67 ฿56.5

118.56%

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

$2.75 €2.46

$0.64 ฿21.53

329.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$0.31 ฿10.30

316.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.12 €6.35

$2.36 ฿79.5

201.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 €4.00

$3.66 ฿124

22.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 €1.10

$1.95 ฿65.7

-36.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.44 ฿48.45

24.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 €1.67

$1.33 ฿45.01

41.35%

Eggs

$3.71 €3.31

$2.28 ฿77.0

62.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.01 €15.17

$16.45 ฿555

3.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.52 €10.28

$2.78 ฿93.8

314.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.25 €15.39

$9.31 ฿314

85.28%

Apples (1kg)

$3.36 €3.00

$2.35 ฿79.4

42.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.97 ฿32.78

100.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.84 €2.54

$1.60 ฿53.9

77.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.18 €2.83

$1.50 ฿50.6

112.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 €1.73

$1.28 ฿43.10

50.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.96 €1.74

$1.10 ฿37.17

78.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.63 €1.46

$0.71 ฿23.81

129.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.34 €0.31

$0.49 ฿16.36

-30.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.45 €12.00

$4.14 ฿140

224.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.62 €5.91

$17.52 ฿591

-62.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.32 €2.07

$1.61 ฿54.5

44.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 €2.18

$2.78 ฿93.9

-11.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.12 €1.89

$0.87 ฿29.29

143.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.7 €49.73

$54.1 ฿1,825

3.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 ฿39.03

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.53 ฿17.79

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.00 €29.44

$2.42 ฿81.7

1263.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.06 €1.84

$1.45 ฿48.87

42.07%

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

$35.0K €31.2K

$21.1K ฿710.3K

65.99%

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

$38.6K €34.5K

$26.9K ฿908.7K

43.42%

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

$138 €123

$62.2 ฿2,097

121.25%

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

$12.92 €11.53

$12.17 ฿410

6.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.91 €28.47

$20.12 ฿679

58.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.69 €29.16

$37.31 ฿1,259

-12.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.77 ฿127

Cinema Ticket

$10.22 €9.12

$6.49 ฿219

57.47%

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

$1,758 €1,569

$736 ฿24.8K

138.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿498.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$109 €97.4

$53.4 ฿1,800

104.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.35 €34.22

$24.64 ฿831

55.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 €99.6

$91.5 ฿3,086

22.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$145 €129

$71.9 ฿2,426

101.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$783 €699

$482 ฿16.3K

62.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$598 €533

$309 ฿10.4K

93.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,475 €1,316

$1,006 ฿33.9K

46.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$972 €867

$633 ฿21.4K

53.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,201 €3,748

$2,363 ฿79.7K

77.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,007 €2,683

$1,589 ฿53.6K

89.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,237 €1,996

$590 ฿19.9K

279.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.79

5.57

-31.96%

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

Last update for Tours: 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

Tours

$598 36%

Chiang Mai

$309 33% 48.3% $289

Groceries & Markets

Tours

$319 19.2%

Chiang Mai

$234 25.1% 26.5% $84

Eating Out

Tours

$264 15.9%

Chiang Mai

$78 8.3% 70.6% $187

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tours

$182 11%

Chiang Mai

$94 10.1% 48.2% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Tours

$182 10.9%

Chiang Mai

$109 11.6% 40.3% $73

Getting Around

Tours

$64 * 3.9%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.6% 4.5% $2.9

Sport & Entertainment

Tours

$53 3.2%

Chiang Mai

$50 5.4% 5.3% $2.8

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $783 in Tours 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 in Tours are about 3.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68 in Tours versus $19 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $319 vs $234 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Tours

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

20:04 8:04 PM

02:04 2:04 AM

6 h ahead of Tours

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

137,658

127,240

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Tours Chiang Mai 9,080 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Tours
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

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

Tours costs about 78% 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 $2,494 per month in Tours 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 $482 there versus $783 in Tours.

Kindergarten costs $1,758 per month in Tours and $736 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 36% more in Tours, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,662 in Tours and $936 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.

If budget matters most, go with Chiang Mai. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Tours makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.