Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cheltenham and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,327 in Cheltenham, rent and utilities included – about $13,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in Cheltenham
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Cheltenham Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Cheltenham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,327

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,327 in Cheltenham versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Cheltenham $2,327
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,528 in Cheltenham versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Cheltenham $3,528
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,729 in Cheltenham versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Cheltenham $4,729
Phuket $2,867

Living in Cheltenham is roughly 93% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cheltenham is 72% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.67 £17.75

$4.58 ฿153

416.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 £79.1

$32.48 ฿1,086

224.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.03 £8.28

$8.55 ฿286

29.01%

Cappuccino

$4.89 £3.67

$2.72 ฿91.0

79.78%

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

$2.56 £1.92

$0.94 ฿31.25

172.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 £1.31

$0.49 ฿16.39

255.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.76 £5.82

$2.59 ฿86.6

199.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.54 £4.91

$3.83 ฿128

70.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 £1.30

$1.74 ฿58.1

-0.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 £1.29

$1.43 ฿47.82

19.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.99 £1.49

$1.53 ฿51.0

30.07%

Eggs

$4.43 £3.33

$2.17 ฿72.7

104.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.19 £6.15

$19.15 ฿640

-57.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.59 £7.19

$3.30 ฿110

190.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.09 £9.82

$11.14 ฿372

17.50%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 £2.32

$2.95 ฿98.5

5.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 £1.07

$1.68 ฿56.1

-14.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 £1.45

$2.30 ฿76.8

-16.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.49 £2.62

$2.13 ฿71.3

63.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 £1.14

$1.53 ฿51.1

-0.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.36 ฿45.55

11.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.21 £0.91

$1.12 ฿37.44

8.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 £1.07

$0.55 ฿18.24

158.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.12 £17.35

$4.26 ฿142

442.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 £7.98

$18.19 ฿608

-41.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.86 £2.15

$1.74 ฿58.2

64.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 £2.20

$2.79 ฿93.3

5.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.44 £2.58

$2.22 ฿74.1

54.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$92.5 £69.4

$22.06 ฿737

319.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.53 £2.65

$2.91 ฿97.3

21.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.01 ฿33.79

62.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.85 £20.14

$3.83 ฿128

601.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 £1.40

$1.49 ฿49.85

25.50%

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

$37.1K £27.8K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

38.99%

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

$41.2K £30.9K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

54.17%

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

$341 £256

$99.4 ฿3,321

242.87%

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

$17.10 £12.83

$11.28 ฿377

51.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.0 £38.24

$17.36 ฿580

193.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.28 £33.22

$52.3 ฿1,747

-15.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$39.01 £29.27

$10.85 ฿362

259.54%

Cinema Ticket

$14.00 £10.50

$7.57 ฿253

84.94%

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

$2,020 £1,516

$558 ฿18.7K

261.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.2K £18.9K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

119.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$98.2 £73.7

$62.9 ฿2,102

56.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.22 £36.18

$28.58 ฿955

68.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 £79.4

$96.1 ฿3,213

10.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.9 £72.7

$88.1 ฿2,943

9.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,161 £871

$729 ฿24.4K

59.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$929 £697

$460 ฿15.4K

101.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,149 £1,613

$2,096 ฿70.0K

2.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,617 £1,213

$1,222 ฿40.8K

32.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,704 £4,279

$3,459 ฿115.6K

64.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,676 £4,258

$2,489 ฿83.2K

128.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,753 £3,566

$493 ฿16.5K

863.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

5.57

-0.54%

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

Last update for Cheltenham: October 11, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cheltenham

$929 39.9%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 50.5% $469

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cheltenham

$409 17.6%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 68.7% $281

Eating Out

Cheltenham

$350 15.1%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 65.4% $229

Groceries & Markets

Cheltenham

$292 12.6%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 8.4% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Cheltenham

$157 6.8%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 21% $33

Getting Around

Cheltenham

$118 5.1%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 67% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Cheltenham

$72 3.1%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 6.7% $4.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,161 in Cheltenham and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cheltenham pays 864% 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: $105 in Cheltenham vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Cheltenham

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

16:24 4:24 PM

22:24 10:24 PM

6 h ahead of Cheltenham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

115,300

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 19, 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 19, 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

Cheltenham Phuket 10,030 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cheltenham
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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

Cheltenham vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 93% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 864% higher in Cheltenham, 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: $1,161 in Cheltenham 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 $105 in Cheltenham. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,327 per month in Cheltenham versus $1,207 in Phuket – a 93% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,327 in Cheltenham, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Cheltenham. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cheltenham, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cheltenham 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 93% less than in Cheltenham. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.