Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Belo Horizonte and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Belo Horizonte: $971 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Belo Horizonte
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Belo Horizonte Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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Belo Horizonte

🇧🇷 Brazil

$971

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $971 in Belo Horizonte versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Belo Horizonte $971
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,574 in Belo Horizonte versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Belo Horizonte $1,574
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,177 in Belo Horizonte versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Belo Horizonte $2,177
Phuket $2,845

Living in Belo Horizonte costs roughly 20% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Belo Horizonte 28% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.03 R$30.57

$4.40 ฿147

37.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.56 R$190

$32.26 ฿1,078

16.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.68 R$43.99

$8.76 ฿293

-0.91%

Cappuccino

$2.30 R$11.65

$2.83 ฿94.5

-18.73%

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

$1.42 R$7.20

$0.90 ฿30.14

57.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R$3.85

$0.47 ฿15.56

61.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 R$10.96

$2.55 ฿85.2

-15.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 R$18.18

$3.83 ฿128

-6.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.01 R$5.11

$1.73 ฿57.7

-41.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 R$9.06

$1.47 ฿49.11

21.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.02 R$10.25

$1.51 ฿50.6

33.77%

Eggs

$2.28 R$11.55

$2.17 ฿72.7

5.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.07 R$51.0

$19.70 ฿658

-48.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.29 R$21.75

$3.34 ฿112

28.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.86 R$39.87

$11.16 ฿373

-29.57%

Apples (1kg)

$1.92 R$9.75

$2.85 ฿95.1

-32.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.40

$1.70 ฿56.9

-25.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.19 R$6.02

$2.19 ฿73.3

-45.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.60 R$8.10

$2.05 ฿68.4

-21.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 R$5.49

$1.45 ฿48.57

-25.52%

Onion (1kg)

$0.97 R$4.91

$1.38 ฿46.16

-29.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.81 R$4.10

$1.07 ฿35.69

-24.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 R$4.65

$0.51 ฿16.91

80.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.55 R$12.95

$4.26 ฿142

-40.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.84 R$39.75

$18.58 ฿621

-57.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 R$6.90

$1.78 ฿59.7

-23.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 R$13.97

$2.85 ฿95.2

-3.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 R$6.21

$2.26 ฿75.6

-46.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$68.2 R$346

$22.10 ฿738

208.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 R$5.19

$3.01 ฿101

-66.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 R$3.85

$1.06 ฿35.34

-28.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 R$32.60

$3.86 ฿129

66.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.26 R$6.40

$1.45 ฿48.45

-13.10%

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

$23.3K R$118.3K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-11.39%

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

$33.8K R$171.6K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

25.62%

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

$78.8 R$400

$96.4 ฿3,221

-18.23%

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

$10.20 R$51.7

$11.04 ฿369

-7.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.16 R$107

$17.14 ฿573

23.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.93 R$147

$52.2 ฿1,744

-44.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$44.55 R$226

$11.16 ฿373

299.19%

Cinema Ticket

$7.72 R$39.15

$7.81 ฿261

-1.15%

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

$463 R$2,348

$556 ฿18.6K

-16.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.6K R$69.1K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

17.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.9 R$314

$64.2 ฿2,146

-3.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.18 R$244

$28.69 ฿959

67.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.1 R$502

$95.4 ฿3,187

3.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.8 R$369

$88.0 ฿2,940

-17.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$569 R$2,882

$737 ฿24.6K

-22.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$286 R$1,449

$462 ฿15.5K

-38.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$912 R$4,621

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-56.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 R$3,008

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-50.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,312 R$11.7K

$3,488 ฿116.6K

-33.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,087 R$5,508

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-56.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$624 R$3,161

$501 ฿16.7K

24.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.25

5.57

101.97%

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

Last update for Belo Horizonte: October 18, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Belo Horizonte

$286 29.4%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 61.8% $177

Groceries & Markets

Belo Horizonte

$198 20.4%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 35.8% $71

Eating Out

Belo Horizonte

$129 13.2%

Phuket

$121 10% 5.7% $7.3

Clothing & Footwear

Belo Horizonte

$127 13.1%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 2% $2.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Belo Horizonte

$110 11.3%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 13.1% $14

Getting Around

Belo Horizonte

$78 8%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 49.4% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Belo Horizonte

$44 4.6%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 52.8% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $569 in Belo Horizonte and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Belo Horizonte pays 25% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $38.00 in Belo Horizonte vs $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $198 vs $269, with Belo Horizonte cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Belo Horizonte

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

17:30 5:30 PM

03:30 3:30 AM

10 h ahead of Belo Horizonte

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,315,560

79,308

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 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 BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Belo Horizonte Phuket 15,750 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Belo Horizonte
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

Belo Horizonte vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Belo Horizonte and Phuket differ by about 24% in total monthly costs ($971 vs $1,208 including rent). Belo Horizonte is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 25% higher in Belo Horizonte, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $569 in Belo Horizonte versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Belo Horizonte versus $556 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $971 in Belo Horizonte versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Belo Horizonte but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Belo Horizonte 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, Belo Horizonte 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.

Expats usually find Belo Horizonte gentler on the wallet – expenses run 24% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.