Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Caen and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,671 in Caen, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Caen
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Caen Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Caen

🇫🇷 France

$1,671

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,671 in Caen versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Caen $1,671
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,568 in Caen versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Caen $2,568
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,466 in Caen versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Caen $3,466
Phuket $2,845

Living in Caen is roughly 38% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Caen is 23% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.56 €14.73

$4.40 ฿147

276.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.2 €49.11

$32.26 ฿1,078

71.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.50 €12.01

$8.76 ฿293

54.11%

Cappuccino

$2.84 €2.53

$2.83 ฿94.5

0.35%

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

$3.05 €2.71

$0.90 ฿30.14

238.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 €1.82

$0.47 ฿15.56

336.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.38 €7.46

$2.55 ฿85.2

228.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.49 €4.88

$3.83 ฿128

43.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.73 ฿57.7

-21.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.78 €1.59

$1.47 ฿49.11

21.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$1.51 ฿50.6

31.13%

Eggs

$3.81 €3.39

$2.17 ฿72.7

75.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.96 €8.86

$19.70 ฿658

-49.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.74 €10.44

$3.34 ฿112

251.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.28 €14.48

$11.16 ฿373

45.88%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 €2.76

$2.85 ฿95.1

8.77%

Banana (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$1.70 ฿56.9

77.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.51 €1.34

$2.19 ฿73.3

-31.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.17 €3.71

$2.05 ฿68.4

103.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.45 ฿48.57

24.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.38 ฿46.16

42.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 €1.47

$1.07 ฿35.69

54.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.15 €0.13

$0.51 ฿16.91

-70.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.15 €11.70

$4.26 ฿142

208.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.59 €4.98

$18.58 ฿621

-69.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.78 ฿59.7

-16.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 €1.47

$2.85 ฿95.2

-42.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.78 €1.58

$2.26 ฿75.6

-21.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.59 €44.11

$22.10 ฿738

124.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.25 €2.00

$3.01 ฿101

-25.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.12 €0.99

$1.06 ฿35.34

5.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.41 €28.83

$3.86 ฿129

739.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.10 €1.86

$1.45 ฿48.45

44.83%

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

$34.3K €30.5K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

30.22%

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

$36.4K €32.4K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

35.00%

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

$138 €123

$96.4 ฿3,221

43.27%

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

$32.70 €29.08

$11.04 ฿369

196.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.85 €28.33

$17.14 ฿573

85.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.94 €28.41

$52.2 ฿1,744

-38.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.48 €20.00

$11.16 ฿373

101.43%

Cinema Ticket

$10.13 €9.01

$7.81 ฿261

29.71%

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

$879 €782

$556 ฿18.6K

58.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$108 €96.3

$64.2 ฿2,146

68.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.80 €34.52

$28.69 ฿959

35.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 €89.8

$95.4 ฿3,187

5.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$151 €135

$88.0 ฿2,940

71.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$760 €676

$737 ฿24.6K

3.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$600 €534

$462 ฿15.5K

29.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,566 €1,393

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-25.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,042 €927

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-13.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,496 €3,999

$3,488 ฿116.6K

28.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,553 €2,270

$2,523 ฿84.3K

1.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,379 €2,116

$501 ฿16.7K

375.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.79

5.57

-31.96%

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

Last update for Caen: 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

Caen

$600 35.9%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 22.9% $138

Groceries & Markets

Caen

$292 17.5%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 8% $23

Eating Out

Caen

$280 16.8%

Phuket

$121 10% 56.8% $159

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Caen

$203 12.1%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 38.5% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Caen

$180 10.8%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 30.8% $55

Getting Around

Caen

$65 3.9%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 38.9% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Caen

$52 3.1%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 29.9% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $760 in Caen and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Caen pays 375% 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: $55.0 in Caen vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $269 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Caen

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

10:08 10:08 AM

15:08 3:08 PM

5 h ahead of Caen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

108,200

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Caen Phuket 9,970 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Caen
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

Caen vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Caen and Phuket differ by about 38% in total monthly costs ($1,671 vs $1,208 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 375% higher in Caen, 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: $760 in Caen versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 124% less than in Caen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $879 in Caen versus $556 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,671 in Caen, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Caen. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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, Caen 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 38% less than in Caen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.