Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cardiff and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,454 in Cardiff, rent and utilities included – about $15,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Cardiff
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Cardiff Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Cardiff

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,454

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,454 in Cardiff versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Cardiff $2,454
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,414 in Cardiff versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Cardiff $3,414
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,373 in Cardiff versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Cardiff $4,373
Phuket $2,867

Living in Cardiff is roughly 103% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cardiff is 82% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.04 £15.04

$4.58 ฿153

337.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.4 £62.6

$32.48 ฿1,086

156.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.74 £8.06

$8.55 ฿286

25.61%

Cappuccino

$4.45 £3.34

$2.72 ฿91.0

63.60%

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

$2.92 £2.19

$0.94 ฿31.25

210.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 £1.50

$0.49 ฿16.39

308.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.80 £5.85

$2.59 ฿86.6

201.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.32 £4.74

$3.83 ฿128

65.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.29

$1.74 ฿58.1

-1.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 £1.07

$1.43 ฿47.82

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.15 £1.61

$1.53 ฿51.0

40.52%

Eggs

$3.62 £2.72

$2.17 ฿72.7

66.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.47 £7.11

$19.15 ฿640

-50.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.85 £6.64

$3.30 ฿110

168.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.18 £12.14

$11.14 ฿372

45.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 £2.10

$2.95 ฿98.5

-5.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.68 ฿56.1

-7.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 £2.28

$2.30 ฿76.8

31.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.51 £2.63

$2.13 ฿71.3

64.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 £1.50

$1.53 ฿51.1

30.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 £1.15

$1.36 ฿45.55

13.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 £0.82

$1.12 ฿37.44

-2.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$0.55 ฿18.24

198.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.08 £17.31

$4.26 ฿142

441.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.07 £8.31

$18.19 ฿608

-39.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.05 £2.29

$1.74 ฿58.2

75.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 £2.48

$2.79 ฿93.3

18.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.21 £2.41

$2.22 ฿74.1

44.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.1 £59.3

$22.06 ฿737

258.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.58 £3.44

$2.91 ฿97.3

57.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 £1.25

$1.01 ฿33.79

64.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.87 £26.91

$3.83 ฿128

836.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.06 £1.55

$1.49 ฿49.85

38.26%

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

$37.9K £28.4K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

41.87%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

52.99%

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

$335 £252

$99.4 ฿3,321

237.54%

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

$25.35 £19.02

$11.28 ฿377

124.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.54 £32.67

$17.36 ฿580

150.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.26 £27.95

$52.3 ฿1,747

-28.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.37 £8.53

$10.85 ฿362

4.79%

Cinema Ticket

$10.36 £7.77

$7.57 ฿253

36.86%

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

$1,990 £1,493

$558 ฿18.7K

256.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.5K £24.4K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

183.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$97.8 £73.4

$62.9 ฿2,102

55.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.54 £36.41

$28.58 ฿955

69.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 £86.9

$96.1 ฿3,213

20.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.4 £74.6

$88.1 ฿2,943

12.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,168 £876

$729 ฿24.4K

60.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,102 £826

$460 ฿15.4K

139.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,136 £1,602

$2,096 ฿70.0K

1.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,482 £1,112

$1,222 ฿40.8K

21.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,255 £3,942

$3,459 ฿115.6K

51.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,432 £2,575

$2,489 ฿83.2K

37.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,179 £2,385

$493 ฿16.5K

544.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

5.57

-8.26%

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

Last update for Cardiff: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cardiff

$1.1K 44.9%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 58.2% $642

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cardiff

$404 16.5%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 68.3% $276

Eating Out

Cardiff

$317 12.9%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 61.8% $196

Groceries & Markets

Cardiff

$306 12.5%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 12.5% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Cardiff

$163 6.6%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 23.8% $39

Getting Around

Cardiff

$105 4.3%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 62.9% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Cardiff

$58 2.4%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 16.3% $9.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,168 in Cardiff and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cardiff pays 545% 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: $83.0 in Cardiff vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $306 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Cardiff

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

12:18 12:18 PM

18:18 6:18 PM

6 h ahead of Cardiff

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,100

79,308

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cardiff Phuket 10,110 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cardiff
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

Cardiff vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cardiff and Phuket differ by about 103% in total monthly costs ($2,454 vs $1,207 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 545% higher in Cardiff, 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: $1,168 in Cardiff versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32.00 versus $83.0 in Cardiff. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,454 per month in Cardiff versus $1,207 in Phuket – a 103% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,454 in Cardiff, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Cardiff. 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, Cardiff 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 103% less than in Cardiff. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.