Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dargaville and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,134 in Dargaville, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

96

Cost of Living Index in Dargaville
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Dargaville Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Dargaville

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,134

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,134 in Dargaville versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Dargaville $2,134
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,019 in Dargaville versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Dargaville $3,019
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,904 in Dargaville versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Dargaville $3,904
Phuket $3,154

Living in Dargaville is roughly 67% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dargaville is 57% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.54 NZ$25.60

$4.47 ฿151

225.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.9 NZ$121

$32.41 ฿1,094

112.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.05 NZ$15.93

$8.81 ฿297

2.72%

Cappuccino

$3.69 NZ$6.50

$2.83 ฿95.5

30.39%

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

$2.18 NZ$3.84

$0.87 ฿29.43

150.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 NZ$3.68

$0.49 ฿16.67

326.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.31 NZ$11.10

$2.56 ฿86.4

146.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.63 NZ$9.91

$3.68 ฿124

52.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 NZ$3.61

$1.66 ฿56.0

23.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 NZ$3.45

$1.46 ฿49.35

34.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 NZ$2.68

$1.50 ฿50.6

1.33%

Eggs

$6.70 NZ$11.79

$2.09 ฿70.5

220.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.49 NZ$14.95

$19.07 ฿644

-55.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.47 NZ$18.43

$3.30 ฿111

217.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 NZ$22.34

$10.91 ฿368

16.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.65 NZ$4.66

$2.93 ฿99.0

-9.56%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 NZ$3.76

$1.69 ฿57.1

26.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.92 NZ$5.14

$2.25 ฿75.8

29.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.86 NZ$10.32

$2.08 ฿70.1

181.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.73 NZ$3.04

$1.51 ฿51.0

14.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 NZ$2.43

$1.38 ฿46.56

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.49 NZ$4.38

$1.07 ฿35.99

132.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 NZ$2.07

$0.52 ฿17.52

126.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$26.67 NZ$46.94

$4.20 ฿142

535.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.24 NZ$18.03

$18.79 ฿634

-45.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.02 NZ$5.32

$1.82 ฿61.5

65.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.13 NZ$5.50

$2.84 ฿95.9

10.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.89 NZ$3.33

$1.45 ฿49.03

30.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$115 NZ$203

$56.7 ฿1,913

103.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 NZ$4.25

$3.02 ฿102

-19.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 NZ$3.18

$1.02 ฿34.36

77.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.35 NZ$46.38

$3.69 ฿125

614.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 NZ$2.63

$1.47 ฿49.81

1.36%

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

$25.5K NZ$44.8K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-4.87%

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

$23.7K NZ$41.7K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-11.19%

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

$128 NZ$225

$96.4 ฿3,254

32.92%

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

$29.15 NZ$51.3

$11.26 ฿380

158.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.3 NZ$90.3

$16.85 ฿569

204.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.91 NZ$68.5

$67.2 ฿2,270

-42.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$11.48 NZ$20.20

$7.50 ฿253

53.07%

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

$659 NZ$1,159

$476 ฿16.1K

38.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K NZ$25.7K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

29.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.3 NZ$119

$62.4 ฿2,106

7.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.09 NZ$68.8

$28.41 ฿959

37.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 NZ$160

$94.3 ฿3,184

-3.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 NZ$203

$85.8 ฿2,898

34.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 NZ$1,981

$716 ฿24.2K

57.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,011 NZ$1,780

$491 ฿16.6K

105.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,404 NZ$2,471

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-27.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,352 NZ$2,379

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-5.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,216 NZ$7,421

$4,175 ฿141.0K

0.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,111 NZ$5,475

$3,045 ฿102.8K

2.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.83

5.57

4.67%

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

Last update for Dargaville: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dargaville

$1K 47.4%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 51.5% $520

Groceries & Markets

Dargaville

$330 15.5%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 19.3% $64

Eating Out

Dargaville

$248 11.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 50.9% $126

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dargaville

$209 9.8%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 40.3% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Dargaville

$141 6.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 13.3% $19

Getting Around

Dargaville

$134 6.3%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 47.4% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Dargaville

$62 2.9%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 32.9% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,125 in Dargaville and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $69 in Dargaville vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $330 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Dargaville

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

00:56 12:56 AM

18:56 6:56 PM

6 h behind Dargaville

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,600

79,308

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.568 USD

1 NZD = 0.511 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.76 NZD (1 NZD = 0.568 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 NZD (1 NZD = 0.511 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dargaville Phuket 9,240 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Dargaville
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

Dargaville vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dargaville and Phuket differ by about 67% in total monthly costs ($2,134 vs $1,278 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,201 in Dargaville 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,125 in Dargaville versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $659 in Dargaville versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 24% higher in Dargaville. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,134 in Dargaville, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Dargaville. 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, Dargaville 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 40% less than in Dargaville. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.