Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Banos and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Banos: $819 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Banos
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Banos Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

Jump to prices

Banos

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$819

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $819 in Banos versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Banos $819
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,260 in Banos versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Banos $1,260
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,701 in Banos versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Banos $1,701
Phuket $3,154

Living in Banos costs roughly 36% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Banos 40% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.78 $2.78

$4.47 ฿151

-37.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.08 $30.08

$32.41 ฿1,094

-7.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.02 $5.02

$8.81 ฿297

-43.02%

Cappuccino

$2.60 $2.60

$2.83 ฿95.5

-8.13%

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

$0.92 $0.92

$0.87 ฿29.43

5.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 $0.73

$0.49 ฿16.67

48.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 $2.99

$2.56 ฿86.4

16.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 $2.02

$3.68 ฿124

-45.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 $1.05

$1.66 ฿56.0

-36.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.99 $1.99

$1.46 ฿49.35

36.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.86 $0.86

$1.50 ฿50.6

-42.67%

Eggs

$1.49 $1.49

$2.09 ฿70.5

-28.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.04 $7.04

$19.07 ฿644

-63.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.04 $5.04

$3.30 ฿111

52.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.85 $5.85

$10.91 ฿368

-46.38%

Apples (1kg)

$1.49 $1.49

$2.93 ฿99.0

-49.15%

Banana (1kg)

$0.49 $0.49

$1.69 ฿57.1

-71.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.02 $1.02

$2.25 ฿75.8

-54.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.95 $0.95

$2.08 ฿70.1

-54.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.51 $0.51

$1.51 ฿51.0

-66.23%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 $0.91

$1.38 ฿46.56

-34.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.51 $0.51

$1.07 ฿35.99

-52.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 $1.02

$0.52 ฿17.52

96.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.83 $5.83

$4.20 ฿142

38.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.80 $11.80

$18.79 ฿634

-37.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 $1.55

$1.82 ฿61.5

-14.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 $2.15

$2.84 ฿95.9

-24.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 $0.36

$1.45 ฿49.03

-75.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 $1.27

$3.02 ฿102

-57.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.23 $1.23

$1.02 ฿34.36

20.59%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.90 $11.90

$3.69 ฿125

222.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 $0.87

$1.47 ฿49.81

-40.82%

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

$23.1K $23.1K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-13.73%

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

$30.6K $30.6K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

14.71%

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

$33.82 $33.82

$96.4 ฿3,254

-64.90%

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

$14.62 $14.62

$11.26 ฿380

29.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.86 $25.86

$16.85 ฿569

53.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.84 $29.84

$67.2 ฿2,270

-55.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.62 $14.62

$10.73 ฿362

36.25%

Cinema Ticket

$7.28 $7.28

$7.50 ฿253

-2.93%

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

$369 $369

$476 ฿16.1K

-22.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,777 $5,777

$11.3K ฿380.4K

-48.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.8 $64.8

$62.4 ฿2,106

3.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.86 $39.86

$28.41 ฿959

40.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 $127

$94.3 ฿3,184

35.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.7 $91.7

$85.8 ฿2,898

6.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$440 $440

$716 ฿24.2K

-38.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$275 $275

$491 ฿16.6K

-43.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$705 $705

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-63.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 $448

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-68.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.05

5.57

80.43%

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

Last update for Banos: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Banos

$275 33.6%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 78.3% $216

Groceries & Markets

Banos

$176 21.5%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 51.1% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Banos

$146 17.8%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 16.3% $24

Eating Out

Banos

$94 11.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 29.4% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Banos

$74 9.1%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 67.5% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Banos

$44 5.4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 85.2% $38

Getting Around

Banos

$8.9 * 1.1%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 695% $62

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $440 in Banos and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $30 in Banos vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $176 vs $266 per month, with Banos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Banos

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

06:56 6:56 AM

18:56 6:56 PM

12 h ahead of Banos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,501

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.899 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.899 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Banos Phuket 19,210 km ≈ 25 h nonstop flight

From you

Banos
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

Banos vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Banos wins on cost – living expenses run 36% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Banos the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,228 in Banos 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: $440 in Banos versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $369 in Banos versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Banos – a meal for two runs $30 versus $32 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Banos is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Banos delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $819 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Banos hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Banos 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.