Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arak and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Arak: $480 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

23

Cost of Living Index in Arak
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Arak Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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Arak

🇮🇷 Iran

$480

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Arak 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 Arak and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $480 in Arak versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Arak $480
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $755 in Arak versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Arak $755
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,030 in Arak versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Arak $1,030
Phuket $3,154

Living in Arak costs roughly 62% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Arak 65% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.55 $3.55

$4.47 ฿151

-20.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.88 $12.88

$32.41 ฿1,094

-60.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.09 $4.09

$8.81 ฿297

-53.58%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.73 $0.73

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 $0.57

Cappuccino

$1.33 $1.33

$2.83 ฿95.5

-53.00%

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

$0.51 $0.51

$0.87 ฿29.43

-41.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 $1.66

$0.49 ฿16.67

238.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

Milk (1 liter)

$0.54 $0.54

$1.66 ฿56.0

-67.47%

White Bread (500g)

$0.58 $0.58

$1.46 ฿49.35

-60.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 $1.96

$1.50 ฿50.6

30.67%

Eggs

$1.28 $1.28

$2.09 ฿70.5

-38.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.14 $2.14

$19.07 ฿644

-88.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.53 $2.53

$3.30 ฿111

-23.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.31 $10.31

$10.91 ฿368

-5.50%

Apples (1kg)

$0.77 $0.77

$2.93 ฿99.0

-73.72%

Banana (1kg)

$0.94 $0.94

$1.69 ฿57.1

-44.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.63 $0.63

$2.25 ฿75.8

-72.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.48 $0.48

$2.08 ฿70.1

-76.92%

Potato (1kg)

$0.42 $0.42

$1.51 ฿51.0

-72.19%

Onion (1kg)

$0.44 $0.44

$1.38 ฿46.56

-68.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.48 $0.48

$1.07 ฿35.99

-55.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 $0.28

$0.52 ฿17.52

-46.15%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.76 $0.76

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 $0.55

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 $2.17

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.52 $2.52

$4.20 ฿142

-40.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.10 $0.10

$1.45 ฿49.03

-93.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.70 $9.70

$56.7 ฿1,913

-82.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.25 $0.25

$3.02 ฿102

-91.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.12 $0.12

$1.02 ฿34.36

-88.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 $1.02

$3.69 ฿125

-72.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.10 $0.10

$1.47 ฿49.81

-93.20%

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

$50.3K $50.3K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

88.03%

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

$35.0K $35.0K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

30.94%

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

$10.03 $10.03

$96.4 ฿3,254

-89.59%

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

$1.43 $1.43

$11.26 ฿380

-87.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$4.01 $4.01

$16.85 ฿569

-76.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$9.93 $9.93

$67.2 ฿2,270

-85.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.64 $24.64

$10.73 ฿362

129.64%

Cinema Ticket

$1.11 $1.11

$7.50 ฿253

-85.20%

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

$83.3 $83.3

$476 ฿16.1K

-82.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,372 $2,372

$11.3K ฿380.4K

-78.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.59 $13.59

$62.4 ฿2,106

-78.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$8.51 $8.51

$28.41 ฿959

-70.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.9 $81.9

$94.3 ฿3,184

-13.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.1 $52.1

$85.8 ฿2,898

-39.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$294 $294

$716 ฿24.2K

-58.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$210 $210

$491 ฿16.6K

-57.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$781 $781

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-59.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 $357

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-75.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,369 $1,369

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-67.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$647 $647

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-78.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$375 $375

$502 ฿17.0K

-25.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

18.5

5.57

232.14%

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

Last update for Arak: October 26, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arak

$210 43.7%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 134% $281

Groceries & Markets

Arak

$96 20%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 177% $170

Clothing & Footwear

Arak

$70 14.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 73.6% $52

Eating Out

Arak

$65 13.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 86.4% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arak

$15 3.2%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 704% $109

Sport & Entertainment

Arak

$12 2.5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 577% $70

Getting Around

Arak

$11 2.3%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 544% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $294 in Arak and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 34% 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: $13 in Arak vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $96 vs $266 per month, with Arak cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇷 Arak

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

00:44 12:44 AM

04:14 4:14 AM

3 h 30 min ahead of Arak

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

526,200

79,308

💱 Currency

USD USD

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – USD Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

USD exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Arak Phuket 5,760 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Arak
Phuket

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Arak vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arak is about 62% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, leisure, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 25% lower in Arak. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $294 in Arak versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $480 per month in Arak versus $1,278 in Phuket – Arak is about 62% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Arak runs roughly 83% less than in Phuket. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $480 in Arak versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Arak but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Arak 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.

Expats usually find Arak gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.