Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Burlington, IA and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,769 in Burlington, IA, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Burlington, IA
Learn more

Burlington, IA Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

Jump to prices

Burlington, IA

🇺🇸 United States

$1,769

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,769 in Burlington, IA versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Burlington, IA $1,769
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,675 in Burlington, IA versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Burlington, IA $2,675
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,580 in Burlington, IA versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Burlington, IA $3,580
Phuket $2,845

Living in Burlington, IA is roughly 46% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Burlington, IA is 31% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.35 $11.35

$4.40 ฿147

157.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.1 $59.1

$32.26 ฿1,078

83.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.84 $8.84

$8.76 ฿293

0.91%

Cappuccino

$4.74 $4.74

$2.83 ฿94.5

67.49%

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

$1.95 $1.95

$0.90 ฿30.14

116.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 $2.02

$0.47 ฿15.56

329.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.41 $3.41

$2.55 ฿85.2

33.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 $4.58

$3.83 ฿128

19.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.81 $0.81

$1.73 ฿57.7

-53.18%

White Bread (500g)

$2.82 $2.82

$1.47 ฿49.11

91.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$1.51 ฿50.6

187.42%

Eggs

$2.92 $2.92

$2.17 ฿72.7

34.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.37 $11.37

$19.70 ฿658

-42.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.93 $11.93

$3.34 ฿112

257.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.20 $14.20

$11.16 ฿373

27.24%

Apples (1kg)

$4.02 $4.02

$2.85 ฿95.1

41.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 $1.98

$1.70 ฿56.9

16.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.61 $4.61

$2.19 ฿73.3

110.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.65 $4.65

$2.05 ฿68.4

126.83%

Potato (1kg)

$2.74 $2.74

$1.45 ฿48.57

88.97%

Onion (1kg)

$2.60 $2.60

$1.38 ฿46.16

88.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.07 ฿35.69

43.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.06 $2.06

$0.51 ฿16.91

303.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.16 $8.16

$4.26 ฿142

91.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.29 $16.29

$18.58 ฿621

-12.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 $1.89

$1.78 ฿59.7

6.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 $2.27

$2.85 ฿95.2

-20.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.94 $1.94

$2.26 ฿75.6

-14.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.76 $15.76

$22.10 ฿738

-28.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.67 $4.67

$3.01 ฿101

55.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.06 ฿35.34

-3.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.19 $22.19

$3.86 ฿129

474.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 $0.94

$1.45 ฿48.45

-35.17%

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

$22.7K $22.7K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-13.67%

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

$25.0K $25.0K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-7.28%

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

$184 $184

$96.4 ฿3,221

91.01%

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

$47.16 $47.16

$11.04 ฿369

327.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.2 $59.2

$17.14 ฿573

245.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.42 $42.42

$52.2 ฿1,744

-18.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$11.92 $11.92

$7.81 ฿261

52.62%

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

$1,210 $1,210

$556 ฿18.6K

117.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.3K $13.3K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

14.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.72 $44.72

$64.2 ฿2,146

-30.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.53 $30.53

$28.69 ฿959

6.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.0 $87.0

$95.4 ฿3,187

-8.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$37.90 $37.90

$88.0 ฿2,940

-56.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$754 $754

$737 ฿24.6K

2.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$707 $707

$462 ฿15.5K

52.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,172 $1,172

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-44.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,280 $1,280

$1,201 ฿40.1K

6.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,026 $1,026

$3,488 ฿116.6K

-70.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,033 $1,033

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-59.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,446 $4,446

$501 ฿16.7K

787.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.54

5.57

17.41%

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

Last update for Burlington, IA: October 19, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Burlington, IA

$707 40%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 34.6% $244

Groceries & Markets

Burlington, IA

$366 20.7%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 26.6% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Burlington, IA

$290 16.4%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 57.1% $166

Eating Out

Burlington, IA

$216 12.2%

Phuket

$121 10% 44% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Burlington, IA

$90 5.1%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 38% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Burlington, IA

$66 3.7%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 2.3% $1.5

Getting Around

Burlington, IA

$33 1.9%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 18.5% $6.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $754 in Burlington, IA and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Burlington, IA pays 788% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $59.0 in Burlington, IA vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $366 vs $269 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Burlington, IA

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

20:00 8:00 PM

08:00 8:00 AM

12 h ahead of Burlington, IA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

44,743

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Burlington, IA Phuket 14,510 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Burlington, IA
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

Burlington, IA vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 46% lower than in Burlington, IA. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 788% higher in Burlington, IA, 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: $754 in Burlington, IA versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,210 in Burlington, IA 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 Burlington, IA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,769 in Burlington, IA, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Burlington, IA. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Phuket delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,208 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Phuket hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Burlington, IA 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 Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 46% less than in Burlington, IA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.