Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gimcheon and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,437 in Gimcheon, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

69

Cost of Living Index in Gimcheon
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Gimcheon Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Gimcheon

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,437

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,437 per month in Gimcheon vs $1,278 in Phuket, rent included.

Gimcheon $1,437
Phuket $1,278

A couple spends around $2,340 per month in Gimcheon vs $2,216 in Phuket, rent included.

Gimcheon $2,340
Phuket $2,216

A family of three spends $3,242 per month in Gimcheon vs $3,154 in Phuket, rent included.

Gimcheon $3,242
Phuket $3,154

Gimcheon costs about 12% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Gimcheon sits 6% above the global median, while Phuket is 6% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.90 ₩7,917

$4.47 ฿151

31.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.08 ₩45.8K

$32.41 ฿1,094

5.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.62 ₩8,895

$8.81 ฿297

-24.86%

Cappuccino

$3.59 ₩4,817

$2.83 ฿95.5

26.86%

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

$1.60 ₩2,142

$0.87 ฿29.43

83.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₩846

$0.49 ฿16.67

28.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 ₩4,565

$2.56 ฿86.4

32.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ₩6,186

$3.68 ฿124

25.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.32 ₩3,109

$1.66 ฿56.0

39.76%

White Bread (500g)

$3.21 ₩4,309

$1.46 ฿49.35

119.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 ₩3,011

$1.50 ฿50.6

49.33%

Eggs

$3.39 ₩4,549

$2.09 ฿70.5

62.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.60 ₩21.0K

$19.07 ฿644

-18.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.82 ₩10.5K

$3.30 ฿111

136.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.25 ₩15.1K

$10.91 ฿368

3.12%

Apples (1kg)

$7.61 ₩10.2K

$2.93 ฿99.0

159.73%

Banana (1kg)

$3.34 ₩4,491

$1.69 ฿57.1

97.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.73 ₩10.4K

$2.25 ฿75.8

243.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.84 ₩9,182

$2.08 ฿70.1

228.85%

Potato (1kg)

$3.43 ₩4,603

$1.51 ฿51.0

127.15%

Onion (1kg)

$2.38 ₩3,192

$1.38 ฿46.56

72.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.12 ₩2,845

$1.07 ฿35.99

98.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₩1,807

$0.52 ฿17.52

159.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.42 ₩4,586

$4.20 ฿142

-18.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.52 ₩24.9K

$18.79 ฿634

-1.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.23 ₩2,989

$1.82 ฿61.5

22.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.86 ₩5,183

$2.84 ฿95.9

35.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₩1,498

$1.45 ฿49.03

-22.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.04 ₩4,082

$3.02 ฿102

0.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.65 ₩878

$1.02 ฿34.36

-36.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.92 ₩12.0K

$3.69 ฿125

141.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ₩1,492

$1.47 ฿49.81

-24.49%

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

$29.3K ₩39.4M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

9.46%

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

$35.5K ₩47.7M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

33.11%

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

$209 ₩281.1K

$96.4 ฿3,254

117.26%

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

$42.72 ₩57.4K

$11.26 ฿380

279.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.99 ₩28.2K

$16.85 ฿569

24.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.9 ₩71.0K

$67.2 ฿2,270

-21.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.50 ₩18.1K

$10.73 ฿362

25.82%

Cinema Ticket

$11.21 ₩15.1K

$7.50 ฿253

49.47%

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

$304 ₩407.8K

$476 ฿16.1K

-36.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.1K ₩24.4M

$11.3K ฿380.4K

61.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.4 ₩89.2K

$62.4 ฿2,106

6.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$63.2 ₩84.9K

$28.41 ฿959

122.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.4 ₩99.9K

$94.3 ฿3,184

-21.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 ₩134.9K

$85.8 ฿2,898

17.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$499 ₩670.5K

$716 ฿24.2K

-30.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$379 ₩509.3K

$491 ฿16.6K

-22.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,349 ₩1.8M

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-29.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,020 ₩1.4M

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-28.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,129 ₩10.9M

$4,175 ฿141.0K

94.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,412 ₩7.3M

$3,045 ฿102.8K

77.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,915 ₩2.6M

$502 ฿17.0K

281.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.1

5.57

-26.39%

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

Last update for Gimcheon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Gimcheon

$416 29%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 36% $150

Accommodation & Living

Gimcheon

$379 26.4%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 29.4% $112

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gimcheon

$273 19%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 54.4% $149

Eating Out

Gimcheon

$145 10.1%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 16.2% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Gimcheon

$137 9.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 11% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Gimcheon

$75 5.2%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 9.2% $6.9

Getting Around

Gimcheon

$11 * 0.8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 555% $60

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $499 in Gimcheon versus $716 in Phuket. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Gimcheon are about 3.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $34 in Gimcheon versus $32 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $416 vs $266 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Gimcheon

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

05:22 5:22 AM

03:22 3:22 AM

2 h behind Gimcheon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

143,056

79,308

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,343 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Gimcheon Phuket 4,350 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Gimcheon
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

Gimcheon vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Gimcheon is pricier by about 12%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,155 per month in Gimcheon and $1,917 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Gimcheon, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $499 there versus $716 in Phuket.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,437 in Gimcheon and $1,278 in Phuket. That makes Phuket about 11% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $304 per month in Gimcheon and $476 in Phuket. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,278 in Phuket to $1,437 in Gimcheon. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Phuket. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Gimcheon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.