Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arun and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $2,629 in Arun, rent and utilities included – about $17,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Arun
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Arun Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Arun

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,629

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,629 per month in Arun vs $1,208 in Phuket, rent included.

Arun $2,629
Phuket $1,208

A couple spends around $3,863 per month in Arun vs $2,027 in Phuket, rent included.

Arun $3,863
Phuket $2,027

A family of three spends $5,097 per month in Arun vs $2,845 in Phuket, rent included.

Arun $5,097
Phuket $2,845

Arun costs about 118% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Arun sits 94% above the global median, while Phuket is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.34 £19.76

$4.40 ฿147

498.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$32.26 ฿1,078

236.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.69 £8.02

$8.76 ฿293

22.03%

Cappuccino

$5.82 £4.37

$2.83 ฿94.5

105.65%

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

$3.02 £2.26

$0.90 ฿30.14

235.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 £1.65

$0.47 ฿15.56

370.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.08 £6.81

$2.55 ฿85.2

256.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.31 £6.24

$3.83 ฿128

116.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 £1.42

$1.73 ฿57.7

9.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 £1.52

$1.47 ฿49.11

37.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.45 £1.84

$1.51 ฿50.6

62.25%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$2.17 ฿72.7

134.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.70 £3.52

$19.70 ฿658

-76.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.72 £8.04

$3.34 ฿112

220.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.19 £12.90

$11.16 ฿373

54.03%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$2.85 ฿95.1

8.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 £0.83

$1.70 ฿56.9

-34.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.00 £2.25

$2.19 ฿73.3

36.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.39 £2.55

$2.05 ฿68.4

65.37%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 £1.21

$1.45 ฿48.57

11.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 £1.35

$1.38 ฿46.16

30.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 £1.09

$1.07 ฿35.69

35.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 £1.41

$0.51 ฿16.91

268.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.67 £17.76

$4.26 ฿142

455.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.11 £9.84

$18.58 ฿621

-29.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.23 £2.42

$1.78 ฿59.7

81.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 £3.37

$2.85 ฿95.2

57.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.63 £2.72

$2.26 ฿75.6

60.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$99.1 £74.3

$22.10 ฿738

348.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.72 £4.29

$3.01 ฿101

90.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.23 £2.42

$1.06 ฿35.34

204.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.16 £19.62

$3.86 ฿129

577.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.45 ฿48.45

32.41%

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

$38.8K £29.1K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

47.53%

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

$41.1K £30.8K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

52.38%

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

$370 £277

$96.4 ฿3,221

283.52%

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

$17.94 £13.46

$11.04 ฿369

62.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.96 £29.98

$17.14 ฿573

133.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.1 £39.87

$52.2 ฿1,744

1.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$6.15 £4.61

$7.81 ฿261

-21.25%

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

$2,919 £2,190

$556 ฿18.6K

425.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.4K £27.3K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

214.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$117 £87.8

$64.2 ฿2,146

82.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.30 £29.48

$28.69 ฿959

36.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 £96.2

$95.4 ฿3,187

34.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$66.6 £49.94

$88.0 ฿2,940

-24.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,164 £874

$737 ฿24.6K

57.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,119 £840

$462 ฿15.5K

142.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,254 £1,691

$2,095 ฿70.0K

7.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,796 £1,347

$1,201 ฿40.1K

49.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,762 £3,572

$3,488 ฿116.6K

36.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,150 £3,113

$2,523 ฿84.3K

64.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

5.57

-14.90%

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

Last update for Arun: October 17, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arun

$1.1K 42.6%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 58.7% $657

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arun

$428 16.3%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 70.9% $303

Eating Out

Arun

$396 15.1%

Phuket

$121 10% 69.4% $274

Groceries & Markets

Arun

$328 12.5%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 18% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Arun

$158 6%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 21.3% $34

Getting Around

Arun

$135 5.2%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 70.9% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Arun

$65 2.5%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 3.6% $2.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,164 in Arun versus $737 in Phuket. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in Arun versus $32.00 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $328 vs $269 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Arun

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

22:52 10:52 PM

04:52 4:52 AM

6 h ahead of Arun

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,285

79,308

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Arun Phuket 9,950 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Arun
Phuket

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

Arun vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arun costs about 118% more than Phuket, 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 $3,943 per month in Arun and $1,813 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Phuket, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in Arun and $32.00 in Phuket. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,629 in Arun and $1,208 in Phuket. That's a gap of about 118%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,208, than in Arun at $2,629. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Arun it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Phuket costs $1,208 versus $2,629 in Arun. 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 Phuket. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Arun makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.