Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gizo and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,169 in Gizo, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Gizo, Solomon Islands
Phuket, Thailand
Gizo
🇸🇧 Solomon Islands
$2,169
/mo nomad
Phuket
🇹🇭 Thailand
$1,278
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,169 in Gizo versus $1,278 in Phuket.

  • Gizo $2,169
  • Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,078 in Gizo versus $2,216 in Phuket.

  • Gizo $3,078
  • Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,987 in Gizo versus $3,154 in Phuket.

  • Gizo $3,987
  • Phuket $3,154

Living in Gizo is roughly 70% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Gizo is 59% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.16 SBD 25.48
$4.47 ฿151
-29.31%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$55.9 SBD 451
$32.41 ฿1,094
72.60%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$15.52 SBD 125
$8.81 ฿297
76.16%
Cappuccino
$2.75 SBD 22.12
$2.83 ฿95.4
-2.83%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.27 SBD 10.26
$0.87 ฿29.42
45.98%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.22 SBD 9.81
$0.49 ฿16.66
148.98%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.43 SBD 19.58
$2.56 ฿86.3
-5.08%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.46 SBD 19.83
$3.68 ฿124
-33.15%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$3.21 SBD 25.83
$1.66 ฿56.0
93.37%
White Bread (500g)
$1.40 SBD 11.25
$1.46 ฿49.32
-4.11%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.45 SBD 11.68
$1.50 ฿50.5
-3.33%
Eggs
$7.03 SBD 56.6
$2.09 ฿70.5
236.36%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.92 SBD 71.9
$19.07 ฿643
-53.22%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.27 SBD 50.5
$3.30 ฿111
90.00%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$8.54 SBD 68.8
$10.91 ฿368
-21.72%
Apples (1kg)
$6.68 SBD 53.8
$2.93 ฿98.9
127.99%
Banana (1kg)
$6.09 SBD 49.07
$1.69 ฿57.0
260.36%
Oranges (1kg)
$6.08 SBD 48.95
$2.25 ฿75.8
170.22%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.14 SBD 25.29
$2.08 ฿70.1
50.96%
Potato (1kg)
$3.06 SBD 24.64
$1.51 ฿51.0
102.65%
Onion (1kg)
$2.43 SBD 19.59
$1.38 ฿46.54
76.09%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.53 SBD 20.38
$1.07 ฿35.97
136.45%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.38 SBD 11.08
$0.52 ฿17.51
165.38%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.24 SBD 34.14
$4.20 ฿142
0.95%
Wine (Bottle)
$12.30 SBD 99.1
$18.79 ฿634
-34.54%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.83 SBD 14.77
$1.82 ฿61.5
0.55%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.25 SBD 18.10
$2.84 ฿95.9
-20.77%
🚌 Getting Around
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.39 SBD 3.11
$1.45 ฿49.00
-73.10%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$30.48 SBD 246
$56.7 ฿1,912
-46.21%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.26 SBD 10.15
$3.02 ฿102
-58.28%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.55 SBD 20.52
$1.02 ฿34.34
150.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$12.61 SBD 102
$3.69 ฿125
241.73%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.76 SBD 14.19
$1.47 ฿49.78
19.73%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$20.8K SBD 167.7K
$26.8K ฿903.7K
-22.24%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$21.8K SBD 175.5K
$26.7K ฿900.8K
-18.40%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$749 SBD 6,033
$96.4 ฿3,252
677.27%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.86 SBD 112
$11.26 ฿380
23.09%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$125 SBD 1,011
$16.85 ฿569
644.69%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$18.34 SBD 148
$67.2 ฿2,269
-72.72%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.30 SBD 50.7
$10.73 ฿362
-41.29%
Cinema Ticket
$4.36 SBD 35.10
$7.50 ฿253
-41.87%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$125 SBD 1,010
$476 ฿16.1K
-73.67%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$1,246 SBD 10.0K
$11.3K ฿380.1K
-88.94%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$25.56 SBD 206
$62.4 ฿2,105
-59.01%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$94.2 SBD 759
$28.41 ฿959
231.43%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$101 SBD 814
$94.3 ฿3,182
7.14%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$87.8 SBD 707
$85.8 ฿2,896
2.30%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$593 SBD 4,776
$716 ฿24.2K
-17.19%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$584 SBD 4,708
$491 ฿16.6K
19.05%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$623 SBD 5,015
$1,927 ฿65.0K
-67.69%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,261 SBD 10.2K
$1,431 ฿48.3K
-11.86%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$85.7K SBD 690.0K
$4,175 ฿140.9K
1951.34%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$3,045 ฿102.8K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Gizo
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$401 SBD 3,234
$502 ฿17.0K
-20.08%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
16.33
5.57
193.18%

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

Last update for Gizo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Gizo
$888
Phuket
$124 86% $764
Accommodation & Living
Gizo
$584
Phuket
$491 16% $94
Groceries & Markets
Gizo
$353
Phuket
$266 24.5% $86
Clothing & Footwear
Gizo
$139
Phuket
$122 12.2% $17
Eating Out
Gizo
$132
Phuket
$122 7.7% $10
Getting Around
Gizo
$46
Phuket
$71 53.4% $25
Sport & Entertainment
Gizo
$27
Phuket
$82 204% $55

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $593 in Gizo and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 25% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $56 in Gizo vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $353 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇸🇧 Gizo
🇹🇭 Phuket
🕒 Local time
17:23 5:23 PM
13:23 1:23 PM
4 h behind Gizo
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
7,177
79,308
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to SBD – Solomon Islands Dollar Converter

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 8.99 SBD (1 SBD = 0.111 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Gizo Phuket 6,710 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Gizo
  • 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
Gizo vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Gizo or Phuket?
Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 41% lower than in Gizo. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
Are salaries higher in Gizo or in Phuket?
On paper, salaries run 20% lower in Gizo. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Gizo compared to Phuket?
Rent for a central apartment: $593 in Gizo versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Are groceries more expensive in Gizo or in Phuket?
Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Gizo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
How do dining costs compare in Gizo and in Phuket?
Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $56 in Gizo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Can you live on $1,500/month in Gizo or in Phuket?
At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,169 in Gizo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Gizo. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Gizo or Phuket?
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.
How safe is Gizo compared to Phuket?
Safety-wise, Gizo and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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