Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Veliko Tarnovo and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,006 in Veliko Tarnovo, rent and utilities included – about $820 less a year. The total is higher in Veliko Tarnovo despite lower rent and utilities.

49

Cost of Living Index in Veliko Tarnovo
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Veliko Tarnovo Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Veliko Tarnovo

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,006

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,006 per month in Veliko Tarnovo vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Veliko Tarnovo $1,006
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $1,574 per month in Veliko Tarnovo vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Veliko Tarnovo $1,574
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $2,141 per month in Veliko Tarnovo vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Veliko Tarnovo $2,141
Chiang Mai $1,914

Veliko Tarnovo costs about 7% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Veliko Tarnovo and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Veliko Tarnovo 25% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.12 BGN 19.35

$2.26 ฿75.4

392.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.76 BGN 69.2

$19.18 ฿641

107.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.61 BGN 16.73

$5.59 ฿187

71.91%

Cappuccino

$1.85 BGN 3.21

$1.72 ฿57.6

7.56%

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

$1.31 BGN 2.29

$0.64 ฿21.54

104.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 BGN 1.53

$0.33 ฿11.18

166.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.03 BGN 3.53

$2.36 ฿78.7

-13.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 BGN 4.85

$3.90 ฿130

-28.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 BGN 3.23

$2.05 ฿68.6

-9.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 BGN 1.83

$1.40 ฿46.70

-25.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.48 BGN 4.31

$1.28 ฿42.89

93.75%

Eggs

$3.67 BGN 6.39

$2.25 ฿75.3

63.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.17 BGN 17.70

$16.94 ฿566

-39.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.00 BGN 13.92

$2.74 ฿91.6

191.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.43 BGN 21.63

$9.36 ฿313

32.80%

Apples (1kg)

$1.60 BGN 2.78

$2.40 ฿80.3

-33.33%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 BGN 3.57

$1.01 ฿33.92

102.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 BGN 3.41

$1.61 ฿53.9

21.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 BGN 4.48

$1.52 ฿50.7

69.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.09 BGN 1.90

$1.28 ฿42.90

-14.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 BGN 2.04

$1.11 ฿37.22

5.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.98 BGN 1.70

$0.72 ฿24.09

36.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 BGN 1.27

$0.52 ฿17.54

40.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.10 BGN 7.13

$4.33 ฿145

-5.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.72 BGN 11.69

$17.73 ฿593

-62.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 BGN 2.10

$1.63 ฿54.4

-25.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 BGN 2.79

$2.85 ฿95.3

-43.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 BGN 1.56

$0.85 ฿28.31

5.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.23 BGN 40.42

$53.9 ฿1,801

-56.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 BGN 2.02

$1.17 ฿39.18

-0.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.67 BGN 1.17

$0.57 ฿19.00

17.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.18 BGN 19.46

$2.37 ฿79.2

371.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 BGN 2.71

$1.45 ฿48.32

7.59%

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

$30.5K BGN 53.1K

$20.5K ฿684.3K

49.03%

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

$30.6K BGN 53.3K

$26.5K ฿886.1K

15.47%

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

$95.9 BGN 167

$62.3 ฿2,083

53.78%

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

$18.81 BGN 32.73

$12.27 ฿410

53.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.86 BGN 27.59

$19.97 ฿668

-20.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.50 BGN 53.1

$37.91 ฿1,267

-19.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.69 BGN 34.26

$3.76 ฿126

423.67%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 BGN 12.02

$6.71 ฿224

2.98%

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

$797 ฿26.6K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ฿495.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.95 BGN 81.7

$53.3 ฿1,780

-11.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.58 BGN 53.2

$25.05 ฿837

22.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$122 BGN 213

$91.6 ฿3,062

33.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.1 BGN 162

$73.5 ฿2,455

26.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$351 BGN 611

$464 ฿15.5K

-24.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$260 BGN 453

$305 ฿10.2K

-14.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$572 BGN 995

$915 ฿30.6K

-37.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$420 BGN 731

$552 ฿18.5K

-23.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,407 BGN 4,187

$1,912 ฿63.9K

25.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,364 BGN 2,373

$1,438 ฿48.1K

-5.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$952 BGN 1,657

$595 ฿19.9K

59.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.74

5.57

-50.81%

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

Last update for Veliko Tarnovo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chiang Mai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Veliko Tarnovo

$260 25.9%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 17% $44

Groceries & Markets

Veliko Tarnovo

$244 24.2%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 2.3% $5.6

Eating Out

Veliko Tarnovo

$164 16.3%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 52% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Veliko Tarnovo

$132 13.1%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 16.9% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Veliko Tarnovo

$131 13%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 27.5% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Veliko Tarnovo

$44 4.4%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 15.9% $7

Getting Around

Veliko Tarnovo

$31 3.1%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 95.6% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $351 in Veliko Tarnovo 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 60% higher in Veliko Tarnovo, 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 $40.00 in Veliko Tarnovo versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $244 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Veliko Tarnovo

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

17:07 5:07 PM

21:07 9:07 PM

4 h ahead of Veliko Tarnovo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

71,150

127,240

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Veliko Tarnovo Chiang Mai 7,260 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Veliko Tarnovo
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

Veliko Tarnovo vs Chiang Mai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Veliko Tarnovo costs about 7% 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 $1,509 per month in Veliko Tarnovo 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.

Public transport costs about 132% less in Chiang Mai. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Groceries cost about 2% more in Veliko Tarnovo, 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 Veliko Tarnovo at $1,006. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Veliko Tarnovo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,006 in Veliko Tarnovo. 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, Veliko Tarnovo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.