Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brasilia and Surat Thani

For one person, living is cheaper in Surat Thani: $775 a month against $1,000 in Brasilia, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Surat Thani
Learn more

Surat Thani Living Index

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Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,000

/mo nomad

Surat Thani

🇹🇭 Thailand

$775

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Brasilia and in Surat Thani

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Brasilia and in Surat Thani actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,000 in Brasilia versus $775 in Surat Thani.

Brasilia $1,000
Surat Thani $775

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,614 in Brasilia versus $1,414 in Surat Thani.

Brasilia $1,614
Surat Thani $1,414

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,228 in Brasilia versus $2,053 in Surat Thani.

Brasilia $2,228
Surat Thani $2,053

Living in Brasilia is roughly 29% more expensive than in Surat Thani, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Brasilia 26% lower, Surat Thani 43% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.80 R$44.59

$1.89 ฿63.0

365.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.84 R$202

$17.87 ฿597

122.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.26 R$41.87

$4.51 ฿151

83.15%

Cappuccino

$2.72 R$13.81

$1.50 ฿50.2

81.33%

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

$1.57 R$7.96

$0.50 ฿16.68

214.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R$5.07

$0.29 ฿9.66

244.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.33 R$11.81

$2.56 ฿85.4

-8.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.92 R$19.85

$3.69 ฿123

6.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.09 R$5.53

$1.66 ฿55.4

-34.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 R$10.52

$1.19 ฿39.89

73.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 R$6.87

$1.17 ฿39.13

16.24%

Eggs

$2.43 R$12.33

$1.87 ฿62.4

29.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.64 R$59.0

$19.18 ฿641

-39.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.07 R$20.62

$3.33 ฿111

22.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.80 R$44.60

$7.44 ฿249

18.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.49 R$12.64

$2.91 ฿97.2

-14.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 R$7.48

$1.68 ฿56.3

-11.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.34 R$6.79

$1.76 ฿58.7

-23.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.63 R$8.29

$2.05 ฿68.4

-20.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 R$6.25

$1.30 ฿43.57

-5.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 R$5.27

$1.37 ฿45.90

-24.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.86 R$4.34

$1.11 ฿37.24

-22.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.80

$0.41 ฿13.66

131.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.52 R$12.77

$3.07 ฿103

-17.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.39 R$42.54

$18.86 ฿630

-55.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 R$6.65

$1.54 ฿51.6

-14.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 R$12.23

$1.82 ฿60.7

32.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 R$5.13

$1.02 ฿34.00

-0.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$35.30 R$179

$20.95 ฿700

68.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.10 R$5.58

$1.18 ฿39.50

-6.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.93 R$4.73

$0.63 ฿21.05

47.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 R$31.25

$3.49 ฿117

76.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 R$6.54

$1.16 ฿38.93

11.21%

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

$23.4K R$118.8K

$26.6K ฿890.1K

-12.00%

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

$33.7K R$170.9K

$27.3K ฿911.7K

23.55%

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

$96.3 R$488

$72.9 ฿2,437

32.09%

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

$12.59 R$63.8

$11.12 ฿372

13.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.58 R$114

$17.32 ฿579

30.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.65 R$171

$48.24 ฿1,612

-30.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.87 R$141

$11.52 ฿385

141.93%

Cinema Ticket

$7.78 R$39.43

$4.53 ฿151

71.74%

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

$815 R$4,133

$549 ฿18.3K

48.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.2K R$87.3K

$11.6K ฿386.5K

48.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.4 R$281

$61.9 ฿2,070

-10.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.23 R$224

$29.16 ฿974

51.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.0 R$431

$97.3 ฿3,252

-12.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.8 R$445

$86.5 ฿2,892

1.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 R$2,506

$237 ฿7,910

108.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$282 R$1,427

$149 ฿4,985

88.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,127 R$5,711

$1,150 ฿38.4K

-2.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 R$3,004

$709 ฿23.7K

-16.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,522 R$12.8K

$2,226 ฿74.4K

13.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,753 R$8,885

$1,404 ฿46.9K

24.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$850 R$4,310

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.12

5.57

117.59%

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

Last update for Brasilia: October 18, 2026

Last update for Surat Thani: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brasilia

$282 28.2%

Surat Thani

$149 19.3% 47% $132

Groceries & Markets

Brasilia

$212 21.2%

Surat Thani

$244 31.5% 15.2% $32

Eating Out

Brasilia

$158 15.8%

Surat Thani

$70 9% 55.6% $88

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brasilia

$131 13.2%

Surat Thani

$101 13.1% 22.9% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Brasilia

$123 12.3%

Surat Thani

$124 16% 0.9% $1.1

Sport & Entertainment

Brasilia

$49 4.9%

Surat Thani

$57 7.4% 16.4% $8.1

Getting Around

Brasilia

$45 4.5%

Surat Thani

$29 3.8% 34.9% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $494 in Brasilia and $237 in Surat Thani. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $40.00 in Brasilia vs $18.00 in Surat Thani. Groceries flip the comparison at $212 vs $244, with Brasilia cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🇹🇭 Surat Thani

🕒 Local time

13:12 1:12 PM

23:12 11:12 PM

10 h ahead of Brasilia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,817,381 Capital

132,040

💱 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

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Between locations

Brasilia Surat Thani 16,380 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Brasilia
Surat Thani

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

Brasilia vs Surat Thani: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Brasilia and Surat Thani differ by about 29% in total monthly costs ($1,000 vs $775 including rent). Surat Thani is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,499 in Brasilia and $1,163 in Surat Thani 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: $494 in Brasilia versus $237 in Surat Thani. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Surat Thani – a meal for two runs $18.00 versus $40.00 in Brasilia. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,000 per month in Brasilia versus $775 in Surat Thani – a 29% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $775 in Surat Thani versus $1,000 in Brasilia, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Surat Thani but tight or insufficient in Brasilia. The gap between the two cities makes Surat Thani 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, Brasilia and Surat Thani 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 Surat Thani gentler on the wallet – expenses run 29% less than in Brasilia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.