Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Albufeira and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,208 in Albufeira, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Albufeira
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Albufeira Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Albufeira

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,208

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Albufeira and in Phuket

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Albufeira and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,208 in Albufeira versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Albufeira $2,208
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,063 in Albufeira versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Albufeira $3,063
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,918 in Albufeira versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Albufeira $3,918
Phuket $2,867

Living in Albufeira is roughly 83% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Albufeira is 64% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.24 €11.78

$4.58 ฿153

189.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.7 €49.51

$32.48 ฿1,086

71.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.15 €9.03

$8.55 ฿286

18.71%

Cappuccino

$2.57 €2.28

$2.72 ฿91.0

-5.51%

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

$1.55 €1.38

$0.94 ฿31.25

64.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 €1.18

$0.49 ฿16.39

169.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.03

$2.59 ฿86.6

31.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 €3.85

$3.83 ฿128

13.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.07 €0.95

$1.74 ฿58.1

-38.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.20 €1.06

$1.43 ฿47.82

-16.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.55 €1.37

$1.53 ฿51.0

1.31%

Eggs

$3.01 €2.67

$2.17 ฿72.7

38.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.68 €13.94

$19.15 ฿640

-18.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.01 €7.13

$3.30 ฿110

142.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.41 €19.94

$11.14 ฿372

101.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.56 €2.28

$2.95 ฿98.5

-13.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.68 ฿56.1

-22.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 €1.67

$2.30 ฿76.8

-18.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.14 €2.79

$2.13 ฿71.3

47.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.53 ฿51.1

16.99%

Onion (1kg)

$2.82 €2.51

$1.36 ฿45.55

107.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.39

$1.12 ฿37.44

40.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 €0.48

$0.55 ฿18.24

-1.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.14 €5.46

$4.26 ฿142

44.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.14 €4.57

$18.19 ฿608

-71.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 €1.20

$1.74 ฿58.2

-22.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 €1.60

$2.79 ฿93.3

-35.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.05 €2.72

$2.22 ฿74.1

37.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.2 €49.06

$22.06 ฿737

150.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.56 €3.17

$2.91 ฿97.3

22.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.01 ฿33.79

7.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.45 €14.63

$3.83 ฿128

329.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.49 ฿49.85

35.57%

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

$33.5K €29.8K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

25.43%

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

$32.7K €29.1K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

22.56%

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

$108 €96.0

$99.4 ฿3,321

8.65%

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

$21.27 €18.92

$11.28 ฿377

88.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.44 €30.64

$17.36 ฿580

98.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 €47.00

$52.3 ฿1,747

1.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.28 €10.04

$10.85 ฿362

3.96%

Cinema Ticket

$8.76 €7.79

$7.57 ฿253

15.72%

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

$482 €428

$558 ฿18.7K

-13.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K €9,837

$11.5K ฿383.9K

-3.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$105 €93.8

$62.9 ฿2,102

67.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.52 €40.49

$28.58 ฿955

59.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.3 €74.1

$96.1 ฿3,213

-13.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$145 €129

$88.1 ฿2,943

64.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,292 €1,149

$729 ฿24.4K

77.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,239 €1,102

$460 ฿15.4K

169.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,971 €2,642

$2,096 ฿70.0K

41.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,670 €1,485

$1,222 ฿40.8K

36.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,306 €2,051

$3,459 ฿115.6K

-33.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,233 €1,986

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-10.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,541 €1,371

$493 ฿16.5K

212.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.54

5.57

-36.45%

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

Last update for Albufeira: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Albufeira

$1.2K 56.1%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 62.9% $779

Groceries & Markets

Albufeira

$283 12.8%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 5.6% $16

Eating Out

Albufeira

$204 9.3%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 40.6% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Albufeira

$171 7.7%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 27.3% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Albufeira

$164 7.4%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 21.8% $36

Getting Around

Albufeira

$76 3.5%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 49.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Albufeira

$70 3.2%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 4.2% $2.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,292 in Albufeira and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Albufeira pays 213% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $56.0 in Albufeira vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $283 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Albufeira

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

22:44 10:44 PM

04:44 4:44 AM

6 h ahead of Albufeira

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

44,168

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Albufeira Phuket 10,930 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Albufeira
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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

Albufeira vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Albufeira and Phuket differ by about 83% in total monthly costs ($2,208 vs $1,207 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 213% higher in Albufeira, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,292 in Albufeira versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $482 in Albufeira versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 6% higher in Albufeira. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,208 in Albufeira, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Albufeira. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Albufeira and Phuket are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 83% less than in Albufeira. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.