Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fuzhou and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Fuzhou: $762 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Fuzhou
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Fuzhou Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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Fuzhou

🇨🇳 China

$762

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $762 in Fuzhou versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Fuzhou $762
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,227 in Fuzhou versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Fuzhou $1,227
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,692 in Fuzhou versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Fuzhou $1,692
Phuket $2,867

Living in Fuzhou costs roughly 37% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Fuzhou 44% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.06 ¥20.47

$4.58 ฿153

-33.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.06 ¥154

$32.48 ฿1,086

-29.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.08 ¥33.98

$8.55 ฿286

-40.58%

Cappuccino

$2.50 ¥16.74

$2.72 ฿91.0

-8.09%

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

$0.47 ¥3.12

$0.94 ฿31.25

-50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.78

$0.49 ฿16.39

-44.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.86 ¥5.73

$2.59 ฿86.6

-66.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 ¥11.66

$3.83 ฿128

-54.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 ¥13.81

$1.74 ฿58.1

18.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 ¥9.43

$1.43 ฿47.82

-1.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.23

$1.53 ฿51.0

-39.22%

Eggs

$1.55 ¥10.39

$2.17 ฿72.7

-28.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.65 ¥51.1

$19.15 ฿640

-60.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.18 ¥14.58

$3.30 ฿110

-33.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.97 ¥60.0

$11.14 ฿372

-19.48%

Apples (1kg)

$1.80 ¥12.07

$2.95 ฿98.5

-38.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.32 ¥8.81

$1.68 ฿56.1

-21.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.68 ¥11.22

$2.30 ฿76.8

-26.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.07 ¥7.14

$2.13 ฿71.3

-49.77%

Potato (1kg)

$0.84 ¥5.63

$1.53 ฿51.1

-45.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 ¥6.75

$1.36 ฿45.55

-25.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.44 ¥2.93

$1.12 ฿37.44

-60.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ¥3.49

$0.55 ฿18.24

-5.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.01 ¥20.13

$4.26 ฿142

-29.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.99 ¥73.5

$18.19 ฿608

-39.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 ¥4.81

$1.74 ฿58.2

-58.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.22 ¥8.13

$2.79 ฿93.3

-56.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.93

$2.22 ฿74.1

-86.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.66 ¥158

$22.06 ฿737

7.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.52 ¥10.14

$2.91 ฿97.3

-47.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 ¥1.91

$1.01 ฿33.79

-71.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.28 ¥48.68

$3.83 ฿128

90.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ¥8.37

$1.49 ฿49.85

-16.11%

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

$19.4K ¥129.7K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

-27.30%

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

$15.6K ¥104.1K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

-41.72%

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

$43.17 ¥289

$99.4 ฿3,321

-56.56%

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

$8.53 ¥57.1

$11.28 ฿377

-24.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.94 ¥59.8

$17.36 ฿580

-48.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.27 ¥283

$52.3 ฿1,747

-19.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.76 ¥98.7

$10.85 ฿362

36.04%

Cinema Ticket

$7.38 ¥49.31

$7.57 ฿253

-2.51%

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

$209 ¥1,395

$558 ฿18.7K

-62.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K ¥81.0K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

5.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.90 ¥267

$62.9 ฿2,102

-36.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.42 ¥197

$28.58 ฿955

2.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.5 ¥605

$96.1 ฿3,213

-5.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.9 ¥581

$88.1 ฿2,943

-1.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$458 ¥3,060

$729 ฿24.4K

-37.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$250 ¥1,672

$460 ฿15.4K

-45.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,038 ¥6,939

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-50.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$514 ¥3,438

$1,222 ฿40.8K

-57.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,514 ¥30.2K

$3,459 ฿115.6K

30.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,346 ¥15.7K

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-5.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,006 ¥6,728

$493 ฿16.5K

104.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.46

5.57

-37.88%

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

Last update for Fuzhou: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Fuzhou

$250 32.8%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 84% $210

Groceries & Markets

Fuzhou

$175 23%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 52.9% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Fuzhou

$111 14.6%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 11.7% $13

Eating Out

Fuzhou

$80 10.6%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 50.7% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fuzhou

$61 8%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 111% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Fuzhou

$57 7.5%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 18.2% $10

Getting Around

Fuzhou

$28 3.6%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 40.1% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $458 in Fuzhou and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fuzhou pays 104% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $23.00 in Fuzhou vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $175 vs $268 per month, with Fuzhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Fuzhou

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

01:55 1:55 AM

00:55 12:55 AM

1 h behind Fuzhou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,291,268

79,308

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Fuzhou Phuket 3,000 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Fuzhou
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

Fuzhou vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Fuzhou wins on cost – living expenses run 58% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Fuzhou the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 104% higher in Fuzhou, 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: $458 in Fuzhou versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Fuzhou – a meal for two runs $23.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $762 per month in Fuzhou versus $1,207 in Phuket – a 58% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $762 in Fuzhou versus $1,207 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Fuzhou but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Fuzhou the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Fuzhou delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $762 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Fuzhou hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Fuzhou 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 Fuzhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 58% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.