Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zalaegerszeg and Chiang Mai

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiang Mai: $938 a month against $1,079 in Zalaegerszeg, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Zalaegerszeg
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Zalaegerszeg Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Chiang Mai
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Chiang Mai Living Index

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Zalaegerszeg

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,079

/mo nomad

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,079 per month in Zalaegerszeg vs $938 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Zalaegerszeg $1,079
Chiang Mai $938

A couple spends around $1,632 per month in Zalaegerszeg vs $1,426 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Zalaegerszeg $1,632
Chiang Mai $1,426

A family of three spends $2,185 per month in Zalaegerszeg vs $1,914 in Chiang Mai, rent included.

Zalaegerszeg $2,185
Chiang Mai $1,914

Zalaegerszeg costs about 15% more than Chiang Mai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Zalaegerszeg and Chiang Mai are more affordable than the global median – Zalaegerszeg 20% lower, Chiang Mai 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.95 Ft 4,522

$2.26 ฿75.5

517.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.5 Ft 19.9K

$19.18 ฿642

220.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.40 Ft 3,046

$5.59 ฿187

68.16%

Cappuccino

$2.99 Ft 968

$1.72 ฿57.7

73.84%

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

$2.05 Ft 663

$0.64 ฿21.59

220.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 Ft 418

$0.33 ฿11.20

290.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.97 Ft 639

$2.36 ฿78.9

-16.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 659

$3.90 ฿131

-47.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 Ft 384

$2.05 ฿68.8

-41.95%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 Ft 481

$1.40 ฿46.80

6.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.50 Ft 810

$1.28 ฿42.98

95.31%

Eggs

$3.46 Ft 1,120

$2.25 ฿75.4

53.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.38 Ft 3,688

$16.94 ฿567

-32.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.85 Ft 1,895

$2.74 ฿91.8

113.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.48 Ft 4,045

$9.36 ฿313

33.33%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 597

$2.40 ฿80.5

-23.33%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 663

$1.01 ฿33.99

102.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 Ft 657

$1.61 ฿54.0

26.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.01 Ft 1,298

$1.52 ฿50.8

163.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 Ft 339

$1.28 ฿42.99

-18.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 323

$1.11 ฿37.30

-9.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 Ft 432

$0.72 ฿24.14

84.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 Ft 177

$0.52 ฿17.57

5.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.83 Ft 2,538

$4.33 ฿145

80.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.17 Ft 2,001

$17.73 ฿594

-65.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 Ft 364

$1.63 ฿54.5

-31.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 Ft 677

$2.85 ฿95.5

-26.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.14 Ft 370

$0.85 ฿28.37

34.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.30 Ft 5,930

$53.9 ฿1,805

-66.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.41 Ft 1,104

$1.17 ฿39.26

191.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 Ft 404

$0.57 ฿19.04

119.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.06 Ft 6,502

$2.37 ฿79.3

746.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 Ft 583

$1.45 ฿48.42

24.14%

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

$28.6K Ft 9.3M

$20.5K ฿685.7K

39.55%

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

$33.8K Ft 11.0M

$26.5K ฿887.9K

27.51%

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

$144 Ft 46.6K

$62.3 ฿2,088

130.77%

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

$23.83 Ft 7,724

$12.27 ฿411

94.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.45 Ft 7,599

$19.97 ฿669

17.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.51 Ft 12.5K

$37.91 ฿1,270

1.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$36.86 Ft 11.9K

$3.76 ฿126

880.32%

Cinema Ticket

$7.45 Ft 2,416

$6.71 ฿225

11.03%

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

$216 Ft 70.1K

$797 ฿26.7K

-72.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.0K Ft 5.5M

$14.8K ฿496.7K

14.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.98 Ft 9,718

$53.3 ฿1,783

-43.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.66 Ft 7,994

$25.05 ฿839

-1.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.0 Ft 16.5K

$91.6 ฿3,068

-44.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.7 Ft 18.1K

$73.5 ฿2,460

-24.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$332 Ft 107.5K

$464 ฿15.5K

-28.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$286 Ft 92.8K

$305 ฿10.2K

-6.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$454 Ft 147.0K

$915 ฿30.7K

-50.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$311 Ft 100.9K

$552 ฿18.5K

-43.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,818 Ft 589.3K

$1,912 ฿64.0K

-4.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,519 Ft 492.2K

$1,438 ฿48.2K

5.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$762 Ft 247.0K

$595 ฿19.9K

28.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

5.57

15.80%

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

Last update for Zalaegerszeg: 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

Zalaegerszeg

$286 26.6%

Chiang Mai

$305 32.5% 6.4% $18

Groceries & Markets

Zalaegerszeg

$240 22.3%

Chiang Mai

$238 25.4% 0.9% $2.1

Eating Out

Zalaegerszeg

$203 18.8%

Chiang Mai

$79 8.4% 61.1% $124

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zalaegerszeg

$191 17.7%

Chiang Mai

$95 10.1% 50.5% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Zalaegerszeg

$73 6.7%

Chiang Mai

$110 11.7% 50.8% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Zalaegerszeg

$53 5%

Chiang Mai

$51 5.5% 3.9% $2.1

Getting Around

Zalaegerszeg

$33 3%

Chiang Mai

$61 6.5% 88.6% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $332 in Zalaegerszeg 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 28% higher in Zalaegerszeg, 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 $61.0 in Zalaegerszeg versus $19.00 in Chiang Mai. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $240 vs $238 – making Chiang Mai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Zalaegerszeg

🇹🇭 Chiang Mai

🕒 Local time

17:33 5:33 PM

22:33 10:33 PM

5 h ahead of Zalaegerszeg

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

55,152

127,240

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 324 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 364 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 33.49 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.56 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Zalaegerszeg Chiang Mai 7,910 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Zalaegerszeg
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

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

Zalaegerszeg costs about 15% 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 $1,618 per month in Zalaegerszeg 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.

Kindergarten costs $216 per month in Zalaegerszeg and $797 in Chiang Mai. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 1% more in Zalaegerszeg, 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 Zalaegerszeg at $1,079. In Chiang Mai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Zalaegerszeg it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Chiang Mai costs $938 versus $1,079 in Zalaegerszeg. 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, Zalaegerszeg makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.