Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Boryeong and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,491 in Boryeong, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. The total is higher in Boryeong despite lower rent and utilities.

72

Cost of Living Index in Boryeong
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Boryeong Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Boryeong

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,491

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,491 in Boryeong versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Boryeong $1,491
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,407 in Boryeong versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Boryeong $2,407
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,324 in Boryeong versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Boryeong $3,324
Phuket $3,154

Living in Boryeong is roughly 17% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Boryeong is 10% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.93 ₩12.0K

$4.47 ฿151

99.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 ₩91.4K

$32.41 ฿1,094

110.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.32 ₩9,826

$8.81 ฿297

-16.91%

Cappuccino

$4.08 ₩5,473

$2.83 ฿95.5

44.17%

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

$1.56 ₩2,096

$0.87 ฿29.43

79.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 ₩1,002

$0.49 ฿16.67

53.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.77 ₩5,062

$2.56 ฿86.4

47.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.85 ₩7,862

$3.68 ฿124

58.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.12 ₩2,845

$1.66 ฿56.0

27.71%

White Bread (500g)

$3.15 ₩4,228

$1.46 ฿49.35

115.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.19 ₩5,623

$1.50 ฿50.6

179.33%

Eggs

$3.53 ₩4,734

$2.09 ฿70.5

68.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.85 ₩24.0K

$19.07 ฿644

-6.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 ₩14.3K

$3.30 ฿111

222.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.69 ₩35.8K

$10.91 ฿368

144.64%

Apples (1kg)

$7.90 ₩10.6K

$2.93 ฿99.0

169.62%

Banana (1kg)

$3.38 ₩4,545

$1.69 ฿57.1

100.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.76 ₩7,735

$2.25 ฿75.8

156.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.16 ₩8,270

$2.08 ฿70.1

196.15%

Potato (1kg)

$3.68 ₩4,945

$1.51 ฿51.0

143.71%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 ₩3,519

$1.38 ฿46.56

89.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.92 ₩3,927

$1.07 ฿35.99

172.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 ₩1,532

$0.52 ฿17.52

119.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.48 ₩4,671

$4.20 ฿142

-17.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.49 ₩24.8K

$18.79 ฿634

-1.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.28 ₩3,060

$1.82 ฿61.5

25.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 ₩4,389

$2.84 ฿95.9

15.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.16 ₩1,558

$1.45 ฿49.03

-20.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.65 ₩4,899

$3.02 ฿102

20.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₩863

$1.02 ฿34.36

-37.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.75 ₩11.7K

$3.69 ฿125

137.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ₩1,952

$1.47 ฿49.81

-1.36%

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

$29.2K ₩39.2M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

9.02%

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

$28.5K ₩38.3M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

6.96%

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

$212 ₩285.3K

$96.4 ฿3,254

120.48%

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

$35.99 ₩48.3K

$11.26 ฿380

219.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.61 ₩27.7K

$16.85 ฿569

22.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.2 ₩72.8K

$67.2 ฿2,270

-19.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.07 ₩18.9K

$10.73 ฿362

31.13%

Cinema Ticket

$11.14 ₩15.0K

$7.50 ฿253

48.53%

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

$379 ₩509.4K

$476 ฿16.1K

-20.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K ₩30.2M

$11.3K ฿380.4K

99.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 ₩78.6K

$62.4 ฿2,106

-6.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.86 ₩44.1K

$28.41 ฿959

15.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.3 ₩93.1K

$94.3 ฿3,184

-26.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.1 ₩112.9K

$85.8 ฿2,898

-2.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$489 ₩656.2K

$716 ฿24.2K

-31.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 ₩484.9K

$491 ฿16.6K

-26.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 ₩1.6M

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-38.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$758 ₩1.0M

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-47.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,113 ₩9.6M

$4,175 ฿141.0K

70.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,616 ₩7.5M

$3,045 ฿102.8K

84.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,484 ₩2.0M

$502 ฿17.0K

195.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

5.57

-26.75%

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

Last update for Boryeong: October 24, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Boryeong

$481 32.2%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 44.6% $214

Accommodation & Living

Boryeong

$361 24.2%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 35.9% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Boryeong

$269 18%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 53.7% $145

Eating Out

Boryeong

$182 12.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 33.2% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Boryeong

$110 7.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 10.7% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Boryeong

$77 5.1%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 7.4% $5.7

Getting Around

Boryeong

$12 * 0.8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 513% $59

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 $489 in Boryeong and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Boryeong pays about 3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $68 in Boryeong vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $481 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Boryeong

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

06:07 6:07 AM

04:07 4:07 AM

2 h behind Boryeong

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

103,620

79,308

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,343 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Boryeong Phuket 4,260 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Boryeong
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

Boryeong vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,491 in Boryeong and $1,278 in Phuket, so Phuket is about 14% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Boryeong is about 3 times higher, 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: $489 in Boryeong versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $379 in Boryeong 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 Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $68 in Boryeong. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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, Boryeong and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Boryeong on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.