Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Darkhan and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Darkhan: $655 a month against $1,190 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Darkhan
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Darkhan Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Darkhan

🇲🇳 Mongolia

$655

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $655 in Darkhan versus $1,190 in Phuket.

Darkhan $655
Phuket $1,190

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,075 in Darkhan versus $2,006 in Phuket.

Darkhan $1,075
Phuket $2,006

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,496 in Darkhan versus $2,822 in Phuket.

Darkhan $1,496
Phuket $2,822

Living in Darkhan costs roughly 45% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Darkhan 51% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.46 MNT 19.6K

$4.35 ฿146

25.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.74 MNT 114.0K

$32.45 ฿1,087

-2.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.62 MNT 20.2K

$8.42 ฿282

-33.25%

Cappuccino

$2.39 MNT 8,575

$2.81 ฿94.0

-14.95%

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

$0.87 MNT 3,140

$0.87 ฿29.29

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 MNT 2,065

$0.46 ฿15.39

23.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.35 MNT 8,427

$2.59 ฿86.6

-9.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.41 MNT 12.3K

$3.64 ฿122

-6.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MNT 5,184

$1.71 ฿57.2

-15.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 MNT 3,653

$1.45 ฿48.42

-29.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.06 MNT 7,389

$1.56 ฿52.3

32.05%

Eggs

$2.16 MNT 7,750

$2.10 ฿70.3

2.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 MNT 44.8K

$19.53 ฿654

-36.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.87 MNT 17.5K

$3.40 ฿114

43.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.44 MNT 26.7K

$11.14 ฿373

-33.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.21 MNT 11.5K

$2.83 ฿94.8

13.43%

Banana (1kg)

$2.39 MNT 8,592

$1.62 ฿54.3

47.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.84 MNT 13.8K

$2.22 ฿74.5

72.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 MNT 11.0K

$2.15 ฿71.9

42.79%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 MNT 2,567

$1.49 ฿49.95

-52.35%

Onion (1kg)

$1.05 MNT 3,772

$1.33 ฿44.40

-21.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 MNT 6,146

$1.07 ฿35.72

59.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 MNT 2,626

$0.51 ฿17.01

43.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.67 MNT 5,985

$4.38 ฿147

-61.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.29 MNT 37.0K

$18.77 ฿629

-45.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.43 MNT 5,126

$1.74 ฿58.3

-17.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 MNT 6,455

$2.78 ฿92.9

-35.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.17 ฿72.6

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.28 ฿746

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.55 MNT 1,967

$3.02 ฿101

-81.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.54 MNT 1,950

$1.06 ฿35.43

-49.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.48 MNT 23.3K

$3.71 ฿124

74.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 MNT 3,852

$1.43 ฿47.88

-25.17%

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

$27.3K MNT 98.2M

$26.3K ฿882.1K

3.74%

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

$35.4K MNT 127.4M

$26.2K ฿877.3K

35.27%

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

$70.6 MNT 253.8K

$96.7 ฿3,236

-26.93%

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

$7.68 MNT 27.6K

$11.41 ฿382

-32.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.82 MNT 49.7K

$17.11 ฿573

-19.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ฿1,768

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.07 ฿371

Cinema Ticket

$4.24 MNT 15.2K

$7.65 ฿256

-44.58%

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

$831 MNT 3.0M

$555 ฿18.6K

49.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,568 MNT 30.8M

$11.3K ฿377.7K

-24.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.5 MNT 299.8K

$63.4 ฿2,123

31.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.49 MNT 163.5K

$28.61 ฿958

59.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 MNT 371.8K

$96.7 ฿3,238

7.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$185 MNT 665.6K

$88.6 ฿2,967

109.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$735 ฿24.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$458 ฿15.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 ฿70.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 ฿39.7K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,493 ฿116.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,491 ฿83.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.32

5.57

85.28%

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

Last update for Darkhan: October 5, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Darkhan

$238 37%

Phuket

$268 22.3% 12.7% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Darkhan

$188 29.2%

Phuket

$125 10.4% 33.6% $63

Eating Out

Darkhan

$114 17.7%

Phuket

$119 9.9% 5% $5.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Darkhan

$92 14.3%

Phuket

$125 10.4% 35.9% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Darkhan

$8.5 * 1.3%

Phuket

$68 5.7% 702% $60

Getting Around

Darkhan

$3.3 * 0.5%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 1104% $36

Accommodation & Living

Darkhan

- * 0%

Phuket

$458 38.1%

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $32.00 in Darkhan vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $238 vs $268 per month, with Darkhan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇳 Darkhan

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

14:03 2:03 PM

13:03 1:03 PM

1 h behind Darkhan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,738

79,308

💱 Currency

Mongolian Tögrög MNT ₮

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD

10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MNT – Mongolian Tögrög Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇳 Mongolian Tögrög (₮)

Mongolian Tögrög exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,593 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD). 1 EUR = 4,030 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MNT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Darkhan Phuket 4,680 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Darkhan
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

Darkhan vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Darkhan wins on cost – living expenses run 82% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Darkhan the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $983 in Darkhan and $1,785 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 $831 in Darkhan versus $555 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Darkhan – a meal for two runs $32.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $655 in Darkhan versus $1,190 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Darkhan but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Darkhan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Darkhan delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $655 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Darkhan hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Darkhan 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 Darkhan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 82% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.