Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dunedin and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,794 in Dunedin, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Dunedin
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Dunedin Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Dunedin

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,794

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,794 in Dunedin versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Dunedin $1,794
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,661 in Dunedin versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Dunedin $2,661
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,527 in Dunedin versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Dunedin $3,527
Phuket $2,867

Living in Dunedin is roughly 49% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dunedin is 33% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.81 NZ$24.43

$4.58 ฿153

201.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 NZ$109

$32.48 ฿1,086

89.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.05 NZ$19.54

$8.55 ฿286

29.24%

Cappuccino

$3.28 NZ$5.80

$2.72 ฿91.0

20.59%

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

$2.03 NZ$3.58

$0.94 ฿31.25

115.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 NZ$3.61

$0.49 ฿16.39

316.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.74 NZ$11.92

$2.59 ฿86.6

160.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.27 NZ$11.09

$3.83 ฿128

63.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.13 NZ$3.77

$1.74 ฿58.1

22.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 NZ$3.47

$1.43 ฿47.82

37.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 NZ$2.98

$1.53 ฿51.0

9.80%

Eggs

$5.75 NZ$10.16

$2.17 ฿72.7

164.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.54 NZ$15.10

$19.15 ฿640

-55.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.45 NZ$16.72

$3.30 ฿110

186.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.50 NZ$29.19

$11.14 ฿372

48.11%

Apples (1kg)

$3.00 NZ$5.30

$2.95 ฿98.5

1.69%

Banana (1kg)

$2.39 NZ$4.22

$1.68 ฿56.1

42.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.14 NZ$5.56

$2.30 ฿76.8

36.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.93 NZ$8.72

$2.13 ฿71.3

131.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 NZ$3.28

$1.53 ฿51.1

20.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 NZ$3.22

$1.36 ฿45.55

33.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 NZ$4.13

$1.12 ฿37.44

108.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 NZ$1.04

$0.55 ฿18.24

7.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.71 NZ$36.63

$4.26 ฿142

386.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.90 NZ$15.75

$18.19 ฿608

-51.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.09 NZ$5.47

$1.74 ฿58.2

77.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 NZ$2.12

$2.79 ฿93.3

-56.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.11 NZ$1.96

$2.22 ฿74.1

-50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.0 NZ$117

$22.06 ฿737

199.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.46 NZ$9.66

$2.91 ฿97.3

87.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.62 NZ$48.84

$3.83 ฿128

621.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.76 NZ$3.12

$1.49 ฿49.85

18.12%

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

$25.6K NZ$45.2K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

-4.17%

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

$24.9K NZ$44.0K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

-6.83%

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

$111 NZ$196

$99.4 ฿3,321

11.66%

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

$28.15 NZ$49.78

$11.28 ฿377

149.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.5 NZ$92.9

$17.36 ฿580

202.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.73 NZ$84.4

$52.3 ฿1,747

-8.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$10.36 NZ$18.33

$7.57 ฿253

36.86%

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

$570 NZ$1,009

$558 ฿18.7K

2.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 NZ$104

$62.9 ฿2,102

-6.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.56 NZ$61.1

$28.58 ฿955

20.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.5 NZ$164

$96.1 ฿3,213

-3.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 NZ$234

$88.1 ฿2,943

50.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$873 NZ$1,545

$729 ฿24.4K

19.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$749 NZ$1,324

$460 ฿15.4K

62.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,480 NZ$2,617

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-29.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 NZ$2,031

$1,222 ฿40.8K

-6.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,200 NZ$3,890

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-11.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,425 NZ$4,288

$493 ฿16.5K

391.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.07

5.57

26.93%

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

Last update for Dunedin: October 11, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dunedin

$749 41.7%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 38.6% $289

Groceries & Markets

Dunedin

$321 17.9%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 16.6% $53

Eating Out

Dunedin

$246 13.7%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 50.6% $124

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dunedin

$192 10.7%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 33.2% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Dunedin

$143 8%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 13.4% $19

Getting Around

Dunedin

$76 * 4.2%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 48.8% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Dunedin

$68 3.8%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 1.5% $1

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 $873 in Dunedin and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dunedin pays 392% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $62.0 in Dunedin vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $321 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Dunedin

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

12:41 12:41 PM

06:41 6:41 AM

6 h behind Dunedin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

105,000

79,308

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dunedin Phuket 9,280 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Dunedin
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

Dunedin vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dunedin and Phuket differ by about 49% in total monthly costs ($1,794 vs $1,207 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 392% higher in Dunedin, 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: $873 in Dunedin versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 199% less than in Dunedin. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $570 in Dunedin versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,794 in Dunedin, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Dunedin. 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, Dunedin 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 49% less than in Dunedin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.