Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chilanga and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Chilanga: $586 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Chilanga
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Chilanga Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Chilanga

🇿🇲 Zambia

$586

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $586 in Chilanga versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Chilanga $586
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $929 in Chilanga versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Chilanga $929
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,273 in Chilanga versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Chilanga $1,273
Phuket $3,154

Living in Chilanga costs roughly 54% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Chilanga 57% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.59 ZMW 113

$4.47 ฿151

25.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.76 ZMW 601

$32.41 ฿1,093

-8.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.16 ZMW 104

$8.81 ฿297

-41.43%

Cappuccino

$2.85 ZMW 57.6

$2.83 ฿95.4

0.71%

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

$0.78 ZMW 15.75

$0.87 ฿29.40

-10.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.48 ZMW 9.77

$0.49 ฿16.65

-2.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.28 ZMW 25.95

$2.56 ฿86.3

-50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 ZMW 46.07

$3.68 ฿124

-38.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 ZMW 33.80

$1.66 ฿55.9

0.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 ZMW 23.73

$1.46 ฿49.29

-19.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.12 ZMW 42.80

$1.50 ฿50.5

41.33%

Eggs

$2.00 ZMW 40.32

$2.09 ฿70.5

-4.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 ZMW 206

$19.07 ฿643

-46.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.18 ZMW 125

$3.30 ฿111

87.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.36 ZMW 128

$10.91 ฿368

-41.70%

Apples (1kg)

$3.35 ZMW 67.6

$2.93 ฿98.8

14.33%

Banana (1kg)

$2.47 ZMW 49.88

$1.69 ฿57.0

46.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.58 ZMW 72.3

$2.25 ฿75.7

59.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.51 ZMW 30.43

$2.08 ฿70.0

-27.40%

Potato (1kg)

$2.51 ZMW 50.7

$1.51 ฿51.0

66.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.86 ZMW 37.57

$1.38 ฿46.51

34.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ZMW 23.22

$1.07 ฿35.95

7.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 ZMW 16.01

$0.52 ฿17.50

51.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.08 ZMW 62.3

$4.20 ฿142

-26.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.92 ZMW 200

$18.79 ฿634

-47.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 ZMW 29.51

$1.82 ฿61.4

-19.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 ZMW 47.12

$2.84 ฿95.8

-17.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.97

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,911

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.54 ZMW 51.3

$3.02 ฿102

-15.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 ZMW 29.74

$1.02 ฿34.32

44.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.94 ZMW 99.8

$3.69 ฿124

33.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 ZMW 31.28

$1.47 ฿49.75

5.44%

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

$7,460 ZMW 150.7K

$26.8K ฿903.2K

-72.14%

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

$27.6K ZMW 558.5K

$26.7K ฿900.3K

3.59%

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

$81.3 ZMW 1,641

$96.4 ฿3,250

-15.66%

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

$10.26 ZMW 207

$11.26 ฿380

-8.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.8 ZMW 1,106

$16.85 ฿568

224.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$6.09 ZMW 123

$7.50 ฿253

-18.80%

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

$136 ZMW 2,740

$476 ฿16.1K

-71.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K ZMW 332.7K

$11.3K ฿379.9K

46.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.34 ZMW 471

$62.4 ฿2,103

-62.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.13 ZMW 306

$28.41 ฿958

-46.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.44 ZMW 918

$94.3 ฿3,180

-51.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.8 ZMW 1,491

$85.8 ฿2,894

-13.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

420.65%

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

Last update for Chilanga: October 24, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Chilanga

$236 40.3%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 12.8% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chilanga

$146 25%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 14.9% $22

Eating Out

Chilanga

$110 18.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 10.2% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Chilanga

$71 12.1%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 71.7% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Chilanga

$12 * 2.1%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 576% $70

Getting Around

Chilanga

$9.9 * 1.7%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 613% $61

Accommodation & Living

Chilanga

- * 0%

Phuket

$491 38.4%

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $30 in Chilanga vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $236 vs $266 per month, with Chilanga cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇲 Chilanga

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

14:07 2:07 PM

19:07 7:07 PM

5 h ahead of Chilanga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

107,051

79,308

💱 Currency

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZMW = 4.95 USD

100 ZMW = 4.44 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to ZMW – Zambian Kwacha Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇲 Zambian Kwacha (ZK)

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 20.2 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.95 USD). 1 EUR = 22.54 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.44 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to ZMW in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chilanga Phuket 8,150 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chilanga
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

Chilanga vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $586 in Chilanga and $1,278 in Phuket, so Chilanga is about 54% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $879 in Chilanga and $1,917 in Phuket to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $136 in Chilanga 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 Chilanga – a meal for two runs $30 versus $32 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $586 in Chilanga versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Chilanga but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Chilanga 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.