Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chatham and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $2,947 in Chatham, rent and utilities included – about $20,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

144

Cost of Living Index in Chatham
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Chatham Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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Chatham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,947

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,947 per month in Chatham vs $1,208 in Phuket, rent included.

Chatham $2,947
Phuket $1,208

A couple spends around $4,017 per month in Chatham vs $2,027 in Phuket, rent included.

Chatham $4,017
Phuket $2,027

A family of three spends $5,088 per month in Chatham vs $2,845 in Phuket, rent included.

Chatham $5,088
Phuket $2,845

Chatham costs about 144% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Chatham sits 118% above the global median, while Phuket is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.40 £10.05

$4.40 ฿147

204.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$94.9 £71.2

$32.26 ฿1,078

194.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.85 £7.39

$8.76 ฿293

12.44%

Cappuccino

$3.75 £2.82

$2.83 ฿94.5

32.51%

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

$2.95 £2.21

$0.90 ฿30.14

227.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 £1.26

$0.47 ฿15.56

257.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.38 £4.78

$2.55 ฿85.2

150.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.83 £5.12

$3.83 ฿128

78.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 £1.43

$1.73 ฿57.7

9.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 £1.57

$1.47 ฿49.11

42.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.10 £1.58

$1.51 ฿50.6

39.07%

Eggs

$4.09 £3.07

$2.17 ฿72.7

88.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.74 £8.06

$19.70 ฿658

-45.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.29 £6.97

$3.34 ฿112

178.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.54 £11.66

$11.16 ฿373

39.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 £2.33

$2.85 ฿95.1

8.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.70 ฿56.9

12.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.71 £2.03

$2.19 ฿73.3

23.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.67 £2.75

$2.05 ฿68.4

79.02%

Potato (1kg)

$2.01 £1.51

$1.45 ฿48.57

38.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 £1.37

$1.38 ฿46.16

31.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 £0.86

$1.07 ฿35.69

7.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 £1.28

$0.51 ฿16.91

235.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.64 £16.24

$4.26 ฿142

407.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.94 £8.21

$18.58 ฿621

-41.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.06 £2.29

$1.78 ฿59.7

71.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 £1.78

$2.85 ฿95.2

-16.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.04 £3.03

$2.26 ฿75.6

78.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$114 £85.6

$22.10 ฿738

416.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.10 £3.83

$3.01 ฿101

69.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.58 £1.94

$1.06 ฿35.34

143.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.18 £15.14

$3.86 ฿129

422.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 £1.56

$1.45 ฿48.45

44.14%

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

$38.9K £29.2K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

47.76%

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

$37.1K £27.8K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

37.64%

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

$287 £215

$96.4 ฿3,221

197.82%

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

$16.80 £12.61

$11.04 ฿369

52.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.54 £19.91

$17.14 ฿573

54.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$114 £85.8

$52.2 ฿1,744

119.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.37 £7.03

$11.16 ฿373

-16.04%

Cinema Ticket

$17.40 £13.05

$7.81 ฿261

122.79%

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

$2,080 £1,561

$556 ฿18.6K

274.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.4K £22.8K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

162.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.6 £68.7

$64.2 ฿2,146

42.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.69 £34.28

$28.69 ฿959

59.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 £78.4

$95.4 ฿3,187

9.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.5 £68.6

$88.0 ฿2,940

3.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,050 £1,538

$737 ฿24.6K

178.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,601 £1,201

$462 ฿15.5K

246.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,430 £1,823

$2,095 ฿70.0K

15.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,090 £1,568

$1,201 ฿40.1K

74.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,877 £5,909

$3,488 ฿116.6K

125.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,449 £5,588

$2,523 ฿84.3K

195.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,972 £2,230

$501 ฿16.7K

493.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.12

5.57

-8.08%

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

Last update for Chatham: October 20, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chatham

$1.6K 54.3%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 71.1% $1.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chatham

$330 11.2%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 62.3% $206

Groceries & Markets

Chatham

$323 11%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 16.8% $54

Eating Out

Chatham

$246 8.3%

Phuket

$121 10% 50.7% $125

Clothing & Footwear

Chatham

$150 5.1%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 17.1% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Chatham

$149 5.1%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 54.5% $81

Getting Around

Chatham

$148 5%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 73.4% $109

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,050 in Chatham versus $737 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 run about 494% higher in Chatham, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $95.0 in Chatham versus $32.00 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $323 vs $269 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Chatham

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

00:48 12:48 AM

06:48 6:48 AM

6 h ahead of Chatham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

76,792

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 21, 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 21, 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chatham Phuket 9,860 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Chatham
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

Chatham vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chatham costs about 144% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,421 per month in Chatham and $1,813 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,947 in Chatham and $1,208 in Phuket. That's a gap of about 144%.

Public transport costs about 416% less in Phuket. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,208, than in Chatham at $2,947. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chatham it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Phuket costs $1,208 versus $2,947 in Chatham. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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