Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bago and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Bago: $688 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Bago
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Bago Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Bago

🇵🇭 Philippines

$688

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $688 in Bago versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Bago $688
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,080 in Bago versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Bago $1,080
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,472 in Bago versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Bago $1,472
Phuket $3,154

Living in Bago costs roughly 46% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bago 49% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ₱281

$4.47 ฿151

-1.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.67 ₱1,000

$32.41 ฿1,093

-51.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.86 ₱182

$8.81 ฿297

-67.54%

Cappuccino

$2.35 ₱150

$2.83 ฿95.4

-16.96%

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

$0.69 ₱43.74

$0.87 ฿29.40

-20.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₱20.49

$0.49 ฿16.65

-34.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.26 ₱80.4

$2.56 ฿86.3

-50.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 ₱115

$3.68 ฿124

-51.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 ₱101

$1.66 ฿55.9

-4.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.24 ₱79.0

$1.46 ฿49.29

-15.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.92 ₱58.9

$1.50 ฿50.5

-38.67%

Eggs

$1.72 ₱109

$2.09 ฿70.5

-17.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.11 ₱390

$19.07 ฿643

-67.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.56 ₱291

$3.30 ฿111

38.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.00 ₱447

$10.91 ฿368

-35.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 ₱172

$2.93 ฿98.8

-7.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 ₱88.2

$1.69 ฿57.0

-18.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 ₱139

$2.25 ฿75.7

-3.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.12 ₱71.5

$2.08 ฿70.0

-46.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 ₱114

$1.51 ฿51.0

18.54%

Onion (1kg)

$2.05 ₱131

$1.38 ฿46.51

48.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 ₱72.6

$1.07 ฿35.95

6.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ₱33.00

$0.52 ฿17.50

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.69 ₱172

$4.20 ฿142

-35.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.84 ₱436

$18.79 ฿634

-63.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 ₱64.7

$1.82 ฿61.4

-44.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ₱107

$2.84 ฿95.8

-40.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.20 ₱12.66

$1.45 ฿48.97

-86.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.19 ₱778

$56.7 ฿1,911

-78.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.80 ₱50.8

$3.02 ฿102

-73.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.24 ₱15.42

$1.02 ฿34.32

-76.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.79 ₱115

$3.69 ฿124

-51.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 ₱85.6

$1.47 ฿49.75

-8.84%

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

$18.2K ₱1.2M

$26.8K ฿903.2K

-32.21%

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

$17.3K ₱1.1M

$26.7K ฿900.3K

-35.29%

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

$113 ₱7,188

$96.4 ฿3,250

16.92%

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

$14.33 ₱914

$11.26 ฿380

27.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.00 ₱1,404

$16.85 ฿568

30.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.03 ₱1,789

$67.2 ฿2,268

-58.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.61 ₱294

$10.73 ฿362

-57.04%

Cinema Ticket

$5.27 ₱336

$7.50 ฿253

-29.73%

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

$112 ₱7,161

$476 ฿16.1K

-76.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,644 ₱551.5K

$11.3K ฿379.9K

-23.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$30.74 ₱1,962

$62.4 ฿2,103

-50.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.38 ₱1,109

$28.41 ฿958

-38.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.6 ₱3,933

$94.3 ฿3,180

-34.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.9 ₱3,760

$85.8 ฿2,894

-31.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$286 ₱18.3K

$716 ฿24.1K

-60.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$144 ₱9,177

$491 ฿16.6K

-70.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$553 ₱35.3K

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-71.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 ₱22.8K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-75.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,770 ₱176.8K

$4,175 ฿140.8K

-33.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$968 ₱61.8K

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-68.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.92

5.57

24.24%

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

Last update for Bago: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Bago

$179 26.1%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 48.4% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bago

$149 21.7%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 16.5% $25

Accommodation & Living

Bago

$144 20.9%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 241% $347

Eating Out

Bago

$86 12.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 41.7% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Bago

$76 11%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 60.6% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Bago

$39 5.6%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 113% $44

Getting Around

Bago

$15 2.2%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 371% $56

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $286 in Bago and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $16 in Bago vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $179 vs $266 per month, with Bago cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Bago

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

09:16 9:16 AM

08:16 8:16 AM

1 h behind Bago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

191,210

79,308

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 30, 2026: 1 USD = 63.81 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.11 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 30, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bago Phuket 2,700 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Bago
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

Bago vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bago is about 46% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,031 in Bago 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: $286 in Bago versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $112 in Bago 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 48% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $688 in Bago versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Bago but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Bago 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 Bago gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.