Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arona and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,583 in Arona, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Arona
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Arona Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Arona

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,583

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,583 in Arona versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Arona $1,583
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,500 in Arona versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Arona $2,500
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,418 in Arona versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Arona $3,418
Phuket $3,154

Living in Arona is roughly 24% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Arona is 16% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.68 €14.96

$4.47 ฿151

273.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.4 €70.3

$32.41 ฿1,093

141.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.85 €7.94

$8.81 ฿297

0.45%

Cappuccino

$1.67 €1.49

$2.83 ฿95.4

-40.99%

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

$2.88 €2.58

$0.87 ฿29.41

231.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.14 €1.02

$0.49 ฿16.65

132.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.89 €3.49

$2.56 ฿86.3

51.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.57 €5.00

$3.68 ฿124

51.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 €1.23

$1.66 ฿55.9

-17.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.18 €1.96

$1.46 ฿49.31

49.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.02 €3.61

$1.50 ฿50.5

168.00%

Eggs

$2.96 €2.65

$2.09 ฿70.5

41.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.11 €13.56

$19.07 ฿643

-20.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.04 €12.59

$3.30 ฿111

325.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.07 €13.52

$10.91 ฿368

38.13%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 €2.52

$2.93 ฿98.9

-4.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 €1.51

$1.69 ฿57.0

-0.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.13 €2.81

$2.25 ฿75.8

39.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.23 €2.00

$2.08 ฿70.0

7.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.87 €1.68

$1.51 ฿51.0

23.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 €1.65

$1.38 ฿46.52

33.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.66 €1.49

$1.07 ฿35.96

55.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 €0.59

$0.52 ฿17.51

26.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.79 €6.09

$4.20 ฿142

61.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.51 €4.05

$18.79 ฿634

-76.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 €0.83

$1.82 ฿61.5

-48.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 €1.47

$2.84 ฿95.8

-42.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.87 €1.67

$1.45 ฿48.98

28.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.52 €33.65

$56.7 ฿1,912

-33.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.54 €4.97

$3.02 ฿102

83.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.87 €1.68

$1.02 ฿34.33

83.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.01 €28.71

$3.69 ฿125

767.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 €1.89

$1.47 ฿49.76

43.54%

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

$36.1K €32.4K

$26.8K ฿903.4K

34.75%

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

$34.7K €31.2K

$26.7K ฿900.5K

30.13%

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

$194 €174

$96.4 ฿3,251

101.00%

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

$11.93 €10.70

$11.26 ฿380

5.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.27 €24.46

$16.85 ฿568

61.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.3 €52.3

$67.2 ฿2,268

-13.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.22 €18.14

$10.73 ฿362

88.44%

Cinema Ticket

$13.28 €11.91

$7.50 ฿253

77.07%

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

$895 €803

$476 ฿16.1K

88.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.5K €17.5K

$11.3K ฿380.0K

72.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.4 €80.2

$62.4 ฿2,104

43.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.29 €33.45

$28.41 ฿958

31.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.2

$94.3 ฿3,181

12.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 €117

$85.8 ฿2,895

51.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$680 €610

$716 ฿24.2K

-4.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$502 €451

$491 ฿16.6K

2.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,310 €1,175

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-32.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$903 €810

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-36.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,697 €2,419

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-35.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,817 €1,630

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-40.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.65

5.57

-34.47%

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

Last update for Arona: 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

Arona

$502 31.8%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 2.3% $12

Groceries & Markets

Arona

$313 19.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 14.9% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arona

$233 14.7%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 46.5% $108

Eating Out

Arona

$227 14.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 46.3% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Arona

$163 10.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 25.4% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Arona

$85 5.4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 3.1% $2.6

Getting Around

Arona

$60 3.8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 17.9% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $680 in Arona and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $78 in Arona vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $313 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Arona

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

21:35 9:35 PM

03:35 3:35 AM

6 h ahead of Arona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,310

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Arona Phuket 9,370 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

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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

Arona vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 24% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,374 in Arona and $1,917 in Phuket to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $680 in Arona versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $895 in Arona versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in Arona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,583 in Arona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Arona. 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, Arona 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.