Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Koh Lanta

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $426 a month against $907 in Koh Lanta, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

21

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Koh Lanta
Learn more

Koh Lanta Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$426

/mo nomad

Koh Lanta

🇹🇭 Thailand

$907

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Koh Lanta

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Dhaka and in Koh Lanta actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $426 in Dhaka versus $907 in Koh Lanta.

Dhaka $426
Koh Lanta $907

Estimated couple costs with rent: $735 in Dhaka versus $1,498 in Koh Lanta.

Dhaka $735
Koh Lanta $1,498

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,043 in Dhaka versus $2,089 in Koh Lanta.

Dhaka $1,043
Koh Lanta $2,089

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 53% less than in Koh Lanta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 68% lower, Koh Lanta 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.49 ৳305

$3.62 ฿121

-31.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.06 ৳1,604

$25.92 ฿868

-49.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.83 ৳594

$6.84 ฿229

-29.39%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.93 ৳606

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 ৳504

Cappuccino

$2.34 ৳287

$2.26 ฿75.5

3.54%

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

$0.30 ৳37.38

$0.78 ฿25.96

-61.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.96

$0.36 ฿12.15

-55.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.08 ฿69.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 ฿98.7

Milk (1 liter)

$0.80 ৳98.1

$1.53 ฿51.4

-47.71%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 ৳79.3

$1.31 ฿43.96

-50.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.71 ৳87.2

$1.36 ฿45.45

-47.79%

Eggs

$1.21 ৳149

$1.87 ฿62.6

-35.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.67 ৳1,065

$17.72 ฿593

-51.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.21 ৳395

$3.00 ฿101

7.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.70 ৳823

$9.85 ฿330

-31.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 ৳335

$2.55 ฿85.4

7.06%

Banana (1kg)

$0.88 ৳108

$1.52 ฿50.9

-42.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 ৳291

$2.04 ฿68.3

16.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.65 ৳79.5

$1.91 ฿63.8

-65.97%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.19

$1.30 ฿43.56

-81.54%

Onion (1kg)

$0.49 ৳60.6

$1.20 ฿40.09

-59.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.32 ৳38.87

$1.02 ฿34.11

-68.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.30 ৳37.30

$0.46 ฿15.55

-34.78%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.07 ৳1,483

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.51 ৳677

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.66 ৳818

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.23 ৳396

$3.80 ฿127

-15.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.52 ฿553

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ฿54.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.53 ฿84.7

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.1

$1.83 ฿61.3

-77.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.54 ৳2,769

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$2.42 ฿81.1

-50.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 ৳48.58

$0.82 ฿27.40

-51.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.35 ৳411

$3.00 ฿100

11.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.15 ৳141

$1.18 ฿39.60

-2.54%

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

$30.3K ৳3.7M

$21.4K ฿716.8K

41.48%

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

$33.0K ৳4.1M

$20.9K ฿698.6K

58.30%

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

$46.32 ৳5,690

$93.3 ฿3,122

-50.33%

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

$4.33 ৳531

$10.49 ฿351

-58.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.63 ৳1,306

$16.60 ฿556

-35.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.37 ৳2,011

$44.05 ฿1,475

-62.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.14 ৳1,982

$9.20 ฿308

75.43%

Cinema Ticket

$4.13 ৳508

$6.55 ฿219

-36.95%

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

$90.7 ৳11.1K

$491 ฿16.4K

-81.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,649 ৳325.4K

$10.5K ฿351.4K

-74.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.48 ৳2,024

$59.6 ฿1,997

-72.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.00 ৳2,579

$27.29 ฿914

-23.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.3 ৳6,173

$90.7 ฿3,038

-44.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.46 ৳4,478

$83.0 ฿2,778

-56.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$152 ৳18.6K

$439 ฿14.7K

-65.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$73.6 ৳9,041

$280 ฿9,373

-73.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$436 ৳53.5K

$1,264 ฿42.3K

-65.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$214 ৳26.3K

$716 ฿24.0K

-70.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,622 ৳199.2K

$2,095 ฿70.2K

-22.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$761 ৳93.5K

$1,519 ฿50.9K

-49.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$249 ৳30.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

5.57

88.15%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 4, 2026

Last update for Koh Lanta: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$123 28.5%

Koh Lanta

$241 26% 96.5% $118

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$74 17.1%

Koh Lanta

$280 30.2% 280% $206

Eating Out

Dhaka

$64 15%

Koh Lanta

$97 10.5% 51.6% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$61 14.3%

Koh Lanta

$120 13% 96.4% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$56 13%

Koh Lanta

$117 12.7% 110% $61

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.4%

Koh Lanta

$14 * 1.5% 49.5% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$25 5.7%

Koh Lanta

$57 6.2% 132% $33

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 $152 in Dhaka and $439 in Koh Lanta. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $13.00 in Dhaka vs $26.00 in Koh Lanta for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $123 vs $241 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇹🇭 Koh Lanta

🕒 Local time

17:52 5:52 PM

18:52 6:52 PM

1 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

32,000

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.27 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇩 Bangladeshi Taka (৳)

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 123 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.27 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

USD to BDT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Koh Lanta 2,020 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Koh Lanta

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

Dhaka vs Koh Lanta: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 113% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $639 in Dhaka and $1,361 in Koh Lanta 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: $152 in Dhaka versus $439 in Koh Lanta. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $90.7 in Dhaka versus $491 in Koh Lanta. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Dhaka – a meal for two runs $13.00 versus $26.00 in Koh Lanta. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Dhaka and Koh Lanta 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 Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 113% less than in Koh Lanta. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.