Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bugibba and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,739 in Bugibba, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Bugibba
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Bugibba Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Bugibba

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,739

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,739 per month in Bugibba vs $1,278 in Phuket, rent included.

Bugibba $1,739
Phuket $1,278

A couple spends around $2,712 per month in Bugibba vs $2,216 in Phuket, rent included.

Bugibba $2,712
Phuket $2,216

A family of three spends $3,686 per month in Bugibba vs $3,154 in Phuket, rent included.

Bugibba $3,686
Phuket $3,154

Bugibba costs about 36% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Bugibba sits 28% above the global median, while Phuket is 6% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.27

$4.47 ฿151

281.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.1 €70.8

$32.41 ฿1,093

144.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.25 €10.08

$8.81 ฿297

27.70%

Cappuccino

$3.04 €2.73

$2.83 ฿95.4

7.42%

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

$2.32 €2.08

$0.87 ฿29.41

166.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 €1.78

$0.49 ฿16.65

304.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.60 €4.12

$2.56 ฿86.3

79.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.26 €2.92

$3.68 ฿124

-11.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 €1.21

$1.66 ฿55.9

-18.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.46 ฿49.31

-2.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.27 €2.03

$1.50 ฿50.5

51.33%

Eggs

$3.26 €2.92

$2.09 ฿70.5

55.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.17 €9.11

$19.07 ฿643

-46.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 €8.61

$3.30 ฿111

191.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.89 €10.65

$10.91 ฿368

8.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 €2.05

$2.93 ฿98.9

-21.84%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.69 ฿57.0

23.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.47 €2.21

$2.25 ฿75.8

9.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 €1.64

$2.08 ฿70.0

-12.02%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.51 ฿51.0

26.49%

Onion (1kg)

$1.35 €1.21

$1.38 ฿46.52

-2.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.68 €1.51

$1.07 ฿35.96

57.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 €0.55

$0.52 ฿17.51

19.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.12 €5.48

$4.20 ฿142

45.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.66 €5.07

$18.79 ฿634

-69.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 €1.48

$1.82 ฿61.5

-9.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$2.84 ฿95.8

-47.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.48 €2.22

$1.45 ฿48.98

71.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.45 €3.09

$3.02 ฿102

14.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.02 ฿34.33

78.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.57 €29.17

$3.69 ฿125

782.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 €1.36

$1.47 ฿49.76

3.40%

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

$24.4K €21.9K

$26.8K ฿903.4K

-8.75%

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

$30.2K €27.1K

$26.7K ฿900.5K

13.17%

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

$75.6 €67.7

$96.4 ฿3,251

-21.59%

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

$17.46 €15.64

$11.26 ฿380

55.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.90 €25.88

$16.85 ฿568

71.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.7 €64.2

$67.2 ฿2,268

6.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.96 €29.52

$10.73 ฿362

207.18%

Cinema Ticket

$11.32 €10.14

$7.50 ฿253

50.93%

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

$273 €245

$476 ฿16.1K

-42.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.5K €11.2K

$11.3K ฿380.0K

10.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.7 €51.6

$62.4 ฿2,104

-7.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.9 €61.7

$28.41 ฿958

142.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 €101

$94.3 ฿3,181

19.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 €118

$85.8 ฿2,895

54.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,089 €975

$716 ฿24.2K

52.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$827 €741

$491 ฿16.6K

68.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,643 €1,471

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-14.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,404 €1,257

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-1.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,100 €1,881

$502 ฿16.9K

318.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

5.57

-27.29%

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

Last update for Bugibba: 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

Bugibba

$827 47.6%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 40.7% $337

Eating Out

Bugibba

$253 14.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 52% $132

Groceries & Markets

Bugibba

$252 14.5%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 5.6% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Bugibba

$167 9.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 27.1% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bugibba

$122 7%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 2.1% $2.6

Sport & Entertainment

Bugibba

$94 5.4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 12.8% $12

Getting Around

Bugibba

$22 * 1.3%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 214% $48

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,089 in Bugibba versus $716 in Phuket. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Bugibba are about 4.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $79 in Bugibba versus $32 in Phuket. Groceries tell a different story – $252 in Bugibba vs $266 in Phuket – so Bugibba wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Bugibba

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

00:08 12:08 AM

06:08 6:08 AM

6 h ahead of Bugibba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

32,042

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Bugibba Phuket 8,950 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Bugibba
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

Bugibba vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,739 in Bugibba, $1,278 in Phuket – Phuket comes out roughly 27% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,608 per month in Bugibba and $1,917 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Phuket, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $716 there versus $1,089 in Bugibba.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,739 in Bugibba and $1,278 in Phuket. That makes Phuket about 27% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $273 per month in Bugibba and $476 in Phuket. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,278, than in Bugibba at $1,739. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bugibba it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Phuket costs $1,278 versus $1,739 in Bugibba. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Phuket. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Bugibba makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.