Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between George and Bangkok

For one person, living costs are similar in George and in Bangkok: $1,105 and $1,114 a month, rent and utilities included.

54

Cost of Living Index in George
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George Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Bangkok
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Bangkok Living Index

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George

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,105

/mo nomad

Bangkok

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,114

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in George and in Bangkok

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,105 in George versus $1,114 in Bangkok.

George $1,105
Bangkok $1,114

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,834 in George versus $1,784 in Bangkok.

George $1,834
Bangkok $1,784

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,563 in George versus $2,455 in Bangkok.

George $2,563
Bangkok $2,455

Living in George costs roughly 1% less than in Bangkok, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: George 18% lower, Bangkok 18% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.87 R 179

$2.90 ฿96.9

274.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.26 R 680

$35.45 ฿1,185

16.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.81 R 79.3

$6.46 ฿216

-25.54%

Cappuccino

$2.10 R 34.66

$2.74 ฿91.7

-23.36%

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

$1.06 R 17.47

$0.67 ฿22.26

58.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 R 12.63

$0.34 ฿11.32

126.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.72 R 44.76

$2.69 ฿90.0

1.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 R 52.8

$4.59 ฿153

-30.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 R 18.55

$1.87 ฿62.6

-39.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 R 17.20

$1.48 ฿49.56

-29.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 R 23.63

$1.42 ฿47.37

0.70%

Eggs

$2.80 R 46.05

$2.55 ฿85.3

9.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.36 R 138

$16.98 ฿568

-50.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.45 R 89.8

$3.70 ฿124

47.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.66 R 110

$12.79 ฿428

-47.93%

Apples (1kg)

$1.61 R 26.49

$3.90 ฿130

-58.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.19

$1.74 ฿58.2

-15.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 R 25.33

$2.72 ฿90.9

-43.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 R 28.44

$1.95 ฿65.2

-11.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 R 26.89

$1.69 ฿56.6

-3.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.42 R 23.41

$1.51 ฿50.6

-5.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 R 20.53

$1.29 ฿43.18

-3.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 R 15.99

$0.52 ฿17.37

86.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.18 R 52.4

$4.52 ฿151

-29.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.72 R 77.8

$14.90 ฿498

-68.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 R 20.09

$1.78 ฿59.3

-31.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 R 28.48

$3.18 ฿106

-45.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.54 R 25.37

$1.07 ฿35.75

43.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.77 R 457

$35.69 ฿1,193

-22.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.58 R 9.50

$1.02 ฿34.04

-43.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 R 7.67

$1.21 ฿40.56

-61.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.38 R 138

$5.94 ฿199

41.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 R 20.03

$1.44 ฿48.06

-15.28%

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

$29.7K R 488.9K

$31.8K ฿1.1M

-6.80%

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

$29.4K R 483.7K

$27.3K ฿910.9K

7.72%

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

$121 R 1,995

$106 ฿3,546

14.09%

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

$17.44 R 287

$15.05 ฿503

15.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.19 R 745

$17.60 ฿588

156.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.75 R 490

$57.4 ฿1,918

-48.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.64 R 175

$18.78 ฿628

-43.34%

Cinema Ticket

$6.08 R 100

$7.48 ฿250

-18.72%

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

$137 R 2,263

$563 ฿18.8K

-75.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,187 R 85.5K

$16.3K ฿544.0K

-68.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.5 R 1,177

$71.4 ฿2,386

0.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.94 R 625

$43.53 ฿1,455

-12.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 R 1,845

$95.7 ฿3,198

17.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 R 1,413

$106 ฿3,559

-19.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$422 R 6,956

$680 ฿22.7K

-37.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$365 R 6,010

$338 ฿11.3K

7.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$773 R 12.7K

$2,002 ฿66.9K

-61.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$929 R 15.3K

$725 ฿24.2K

28.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$871 R 14.4K

$6,106 ฿204.1K

-85.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$652 R 10.7K

$3,111 ฿104.0K

-79.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,364 R 22.5K

$605 ฿20.2K

125.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.92

5.25

108.00%

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

Last update for George: October 13, 2026

Last update for Bangkok: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

George

$365 33%

Bangkok

$338 30.4% 7.3% $27

Groceries & Markets

George

$186 16.8%

Bangkok

$272 24.5% 46.5% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

George

$184 16.6%

Bangkok

$139 12.5% 24.5% $45

Eating Out

George

$154 13.9%

Bangkok

$102 9.2% 33.7% $52

Clothing & Footwear

George

$138 12.5%

Bangkok

$143 12.8% 3.2% $4.5

Sport & Entertainment

George

$42 3.8%

Bangkok

$72 6.5% 72.6% $30

Getting Around

George

$37 3.3%

Bangkok

$47 4.2% 27.7% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $422 in George and $680 in Bangkok. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

George pays 126% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $41.00 in George vs $35.00 in Bangkok. Groceries flip the comparison at $186 vs $272, with George cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇿🇦 George

🇹🇭 Bangkok

🕒 Local time

06:32 6:32 AM

11:32 11:32 AM

5 h ahead of George

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

188,580

5,666,264 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 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 ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

George Bangkok 9,790 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

George
Bangkok

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

George vs Bangkok: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

George and Bangkok differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($1,105 vs $1,114 including rent). George is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 126% higher in George, 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: $422 in George versus $680 in Bangkok. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in George – a meal for two runs $41.00 versus $35.00 in Bangkok. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,105 per month in George versus $1,114 in Bangkok – a 1% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,105 in George versus $1,114 in Bangkok, a $1,500 budget is realistic in George but tight or insufficient in Bangkok. The gap between the two cities makes George 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, George and Bangkok 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 George gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1% less than in Bangkok. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.