Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cheongju and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,409 in Cheongju, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. The total is higher in Cheongju despite lower rent and utilities.

68

Cost of Living Index in Cheongju
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Cheongju Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Cheongju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,409

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,409 in Cheongju versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Cheongju $1,409
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,329 in Cheongju versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Cheongju $2,329
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,249 in Cheongju versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Cheongju $3,249
Phuket $3,154

Living in Cheongju is roughly 10% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cheongju is 4% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.47 ₩9,963

$4.47 ฿151

67.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$48.95 ₩65.3K

$32.41 ฿1,094

51.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.88 ₩7,844

$8.81 ฿297

-33.26%

Cappuccino

$3.66 ₩4,875

$2.83 ฿95.4

29.33%

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

$1.84 ₩2,458

$0.87 ฿29.42

111.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 ₩1,861

$0.49 ฿16.66

185.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.65 ₩4,872

$2.56 ฿86.3

42.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 ₩5,776

$3.68 ฿124

17.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.25 ₩3,005

$1.66 ฿56.0

35.54%

White Bread (500g)

$3.25 ₩4,340

$1.46 ฿49.32

122.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.05 ₩4,074

$1.50 ฿50.5

103.33%

Eggs

$2.73 ₩3,647

$2.09 ฿70.5

30.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.16 ₩14.9K

$19.07 ฿643

-41.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.65 ₩14.2K

$3.30 ฿111

222.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.55 ₩32.7K

$10.91 ฿368

125.02%

Apples (1kg)

$11.40 ₩15.2K

$2.93 ฿98.9

289.08%

Banana (1kg)

$3.59 ₩4,786

$1.69 ฿57.0

112.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.30 ₩11.1K

$2.25 ฿75.8

268.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.85 ₩7,801

$2.08 ฿70.1

181.25%

Potato (1kg)

$5.84 ₩7,788

$1.51 ฿51.0

286.75%

Onion (1kg)

$3.43 ₩4,570

$1.38 ฿46.54

148.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 ₩3,828

$1.07 ฿35.97

168.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 ₩1,767

$0.52 ฿17.51

155.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.45 ₩4,595

$4.20 ฿142

-17.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.71 ₩25.0K

$18.79 ฿634

-0.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.46 ₩3,280

$1.82 ฿61.5

35.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 ₩4,541

$2.84 ฿95.9

19.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.15 ₩1,527

$1.45 ฿49.00

-20.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.50 ₩4,669

$3.02 ฿102

15.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 ₩1,014

$1.02 ฿34.34

-25.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.67 ₩22.2K

$3.69 ฿125

351.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ₩1,811

$1.47 ฿49.78

-7.48%

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

$39.0K ₩52.1M

$26.8K ฿903.7K

45.78%

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

$33.7K ₩45.0M

$26.7K ฿900.8K

26.39%

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

$205 ₩273.1K

$96.4 ฿3,252

112.55%

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

$24.30 ₩32.4K

$11.26 ฿380

115.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.72 ₩37.0K

$16.85 ฿569

64.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.6 ₩71.4K

$67.2 ฿2,269

-20.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.97 ₩18.6K

$10.73 ฿362

30.20%

Cinema Ticket

$11.81 ₩15.7K

$7.50 ฿253

57.47%

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

$651 ₩867.5K

$476 ฿16.1K

36.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.8K ₩29.1M

$11.3K ฿380.1K

93.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$36.84 ₩49.1K

$62.4 ฿2,105

-40.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.4 ₩87.1K

$28.41 ฿959

130.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.9 ₩125.2K

$94.3 ฿3,182

-0.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 ₩151.0K

$85.8 ฿2,896

31.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$342 ₩456.6K

$716 ฿24.2K

-52.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$275 ₩367.1K

$491 ฿16.6K

-43.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 ₩1.6M

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-37.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$760 ₩1.0M

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-46.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,228 ₩9.6M

$4,175 ฿140.9K

73.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,619 ₩7.5M

$3,045 ฿102.8K

84.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,613 ₩3.5M

$502 ฿17.0K

420.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.22

5.57

-24.24%

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

Last update for Cheongju: October 27, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cheongju

$488 34.6%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 45.4% $222

Accommodation & Living

Cheongju

$275 19.5%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 78.3% $216

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cheongju

$257 18.2%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 51.5% $132

Eating Out

Cheongju

$161 11.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 24.5% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Cheongju

$139 9.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 12.4% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Cheongju

$77 5.5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 6.5% $5

Getting Around

Cheongju

$12 * 0.8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 494% $59

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $342 in Cheongju and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cheongju pays about 5.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $49 in Cheongju vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $488 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Cheongju

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

18:55 6:55 PM

16:55 4:55 PM

2 h behind Cheongju

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

835,669

79,308

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.5 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.72 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1,334 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.5 USD). 1 EUR = 1,488 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.72 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cheongju Phuket 4,340 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Cheongju
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

Cheongju vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 9% lower than in Cheongju. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Cheongju is about 5.2 times higher, 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: $342 in Cheongju versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $651 in Cheongju versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $49 in Cheongju. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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, Cheongju and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Cheongju on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.