Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Beihai and Phuket

Name: Phuket
Address: Phuket, TH

For one person, living is cheaper in Beihai: $744 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Beihai
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Beihai Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Beihai

🇨🇳 China

$744

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $744 per month in Beihai vs $1,207 in Phuket, rent included.

Beihai $744
Phuket $1,207

A couple spends around $1,167 per month in Beihai vs $2,037 in Phuket, rent included.

Beihai $1,167
Phuket $2,037

A family of three spends $1,590 per month in Beihai vs $2,867 in Phuket, rent included.

Beihai $1,590
Phuket $2,867

Beihai is about 38% cheaper than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Beihai and Phuket are more affordable than the global median – Beihai 45% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.40 ¥22.74

$4.58 ฿153

-25.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.56 ¥131

$32.48 ฿1,086

-39.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.58 ¥37.30

$8.55 ฿286

-34.74%

Cappuccino

$2.43 ¥16.28

$2.72 ฿91.0

-10.66%

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

$0.46 ¥3.09

$0.94 ฿31.25

-51.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ¥1.99

$0.49 ฿16.39

-38.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.22 ¥8.13

$2.59 ฿86.6

-52.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 ¥15.34

$3.83 ฿128

-40.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 ¥12.68

$1.74 ฿58.1

9.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.70 ¥11.36

$1.43 ฿47.82

18.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.10 ¥7.33

$1.53 ฿51.0

-28.10%

Eggs

$1.87 ¥12.53

$2.17 ฿72.7

-13.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.95 ¥93.3

$19.15 ฿640

-27.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.92 ¥19.54

$3.30 ฿110

-11.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.58 ¥70.8

$11.14 ฿372

-5.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.10 ¥14.02

$2.95 ฿98.5

-28.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 ¥9.91

$1.68 ฿56.1

-11.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.52 ¥10.19

$2.30 ฿76.8

-33.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.27 ¥8.47

$2.13 ฿71.3

-40.38%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 ¥4.92

$1.53 ฿51.1

-51.63%

Onion (1kg)

$0.97 ¥6.45

$1.36 ฿45.55

-28.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 ¥4.47

$1.12 ฿37.44

-40.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 ¥3.33

$0.55 ฿18.24

-9.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.39 ¥22.70

$4.26 ฿142

-20.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.05 ¥80.6

$18.19 ฿608

-33.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥4.95

$1.74 ฿58.2

-57.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 ¥11.10

$2.79 ฿93.3

-40.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 ¥2.02

$2.22 ฿74.1

-86.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.17 ¥115

$22.06 ฿737

-22.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.56 ¥10.42

$2.91 ฿97.3

-46.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 ¥2.08

$1.01 ฿33.79

-69.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.21 ¥41.52

$3.83 ฿128

62.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 ¥9.31

$1.49 ฿49.85

-6.71%

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

$18.2K ¥121.6K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

-31.84%

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

$18.2K ¥121.9K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

-31.73%

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

$61.5 ¥411

$99.4 ฿3,321

-38.08%

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

$9.42 ¥63.0

$11.28 ฿377

-16.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.09 ¥80.8

$17.36 ฿580

-30.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.99 ¥274

$52.3 ฿1,747

-21.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.01 ¥93.7

$10.85 ฿362

29.12%

Cinema Ticket

$5.71 ¥38.19

$7.57 ฿253

-24.57%

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

$458 ¥3,064

$558 ฿18.7K

-17.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.3K ¥122.5K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

59.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.58 ¥325

$62.9 ฿2,102

-22.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.03 ¥254

$28.58 ฿955

33.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.9 ¥534

$96.1 ฿3,213

-16.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.0 ¥528

$88.1 ฿2,943

-10.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$279 ¥1,862

$729 ฿24.4K

-61.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$178 ¥1,190

$460 ฿15.4K

-61.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$718 ¥4,803

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-65.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 ¥2,221

$1,222 ฿40.8K

-72.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,665 ¥24.5K

$3,459 ฿115.6K

5.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,221 ¥14.8K

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-10.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

5.57

-39.68%

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

Last update for Beihai: October 10, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Beihai

$212 28.5%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 26.3% $56

Accommodation & Living

Beihai

$178 23.9%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 159% $282

Clothing & Footwear

Beihai

$110 14.9%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 12.3% $14

Eating Out

Beihai

$87 11.7%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 39.7% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Beihai

$83 11.2%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 54.2% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Beihai

$52 7%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 28.6% $15

Getting Around

Beihai

$22 2.9%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 80.9% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $279 in Beihai versus $729 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 $20.00 in Beihai versus $32.00 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $212 vs $268 – making Beihai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Beihai

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

16:41 4:41 PM

15:41 3:41 PM

1 h behind Beihai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,617,500

79,308

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Beihai Phuket 1,900 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Beihai
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

Beihai vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket costs about 62% more than Beihai, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,116 per month in Beihai and $1,811 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 26% more in Phuket, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20.00 in Beihai and $32.00 in Phuket. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Beihai, where all-in costs run around $744, than in Phuket at $1,207. In Beihai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Beihai costs $744 versus $1,207 in Phuket. 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 Beihai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Phuket makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.