Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Grafton and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $2,424 in Grafton, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

116

Cost of Living Index in Grafton
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Grafton Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Grafton

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,424

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,424 in Grafton versus $1,294 in Phuket.

Grafton $2,424
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,460 in Grafton versus $2,204 in Phuket.

Grafton $3,460
Phuket $2,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,496 in Grafton versus $3,115 in Phuket.

Grafton $4,496
Phuket $3,115

Living in Grafton is roughly 87% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Grafton is 79% above, Phuket is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.28 A$24.64

$4.39 ฿148

293.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.4 A$103

$32.31 ฿1,086

124.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.26 A$16.06

$8.70 ฿293

29.43%

Cappuccino

$3.37 A$4.80

$2.72 ฿91.6

23.90%

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

$2.88 A$4.11

$0.93 ฿31.28

209.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 A$3.44

$0.50 ฿16.79

382.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.62 A$12.29

$2.53 ฿85.1

240.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.25 A$11.76

$3.63 ฿122

127.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 A$1.58

$1.74 ฿58.5

-36.21%

White Bread (500g)

$2.62 A$3.74

$1.45 ฿48.77

80.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 A$3.17

$1.50 ฿50.5

48.67%

Eggs

$3.68 A$5.25

$2.17 ฿73.0

69.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.57 A$13.64

$19.09 ฿642

-49.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.50 A$10.69

$3.40 ฿114

120.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.36 A$20.47

$10.90 ฿366

31.74%

Apples (1kg)

$2.86 A$4.07

$2.94 ฿98.9

-2.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 A$2.01

$1.69 ฿56.9

-16.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.95 A$4.21

$2.19 ฿73.8

34.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.78 A$6.81

$2.12 ฿71.4

125.47%

Potato (1kg)

$2.08 A$2.96

$1.46 ฿49.03

42.47%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 A$3.21

$1.37 ฿45.99

64.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 A$2.43

$1.08 ฿36.17

57.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 A$1.62

$0.55 ฿18.34

107.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$30.29 A$43.19

$4.43 ฿149

583.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.42 A$17.70

$18.25 ฿614

-31.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.18 A$7.38

$1.77 ฿59.6

192.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.17 A$7.37

$2.88 ฿96.8

79.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.82 A$4.01

$1.45 ฿48.66

94.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.9 A$121

$54.9 ฿1,845

54.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.05 A$4.35

$1.51 ฿50.9

101.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.79 A$2.55

$0.78 ฿26.08

129.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.71 A$58.0

$3.84 ฿129

960.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 A$1.89

$1.49 ฿50.0

-11.41%

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

$28.9K A$41.2K

$26.9K ฿903.7K

7.39%

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

$24.5K A$35.0K

$26.3K ฿885.7K

-6.88%

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

$158 A$225

$97.8 ฿3,288

61.27%

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

$26.75 A$38.13

$11.29 ฿380

136.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.18 A$70.1

$17.19 ฿578

186.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.2 A$80.1

$68.3 ฿2,297

-17.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.04 A$25.72

$10.92 ฿367

65.20%

Cinema Ticket

$11.82 A$16.85

$7.43 ฿250

59.08%

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

$700 A$997

$530 ฿17.8K

31.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,199 A$4,561

$18.8K ฿631.4K

-82.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.6 A$121

$61.7 ฿2,073

37.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.34 A$64.6

$28.25 ฿950

60.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 A$161

$96.0 ฿3,228

17.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 A$161

$86.8 ฿2,919

29.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,412 A$2,014

$721 ฿24.2K

95.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,228 A$1,751

$509 ฿17.1K

141.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,258 A$3,220

$1,950 ฿65.6K

15.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,816 A$2,589

$1,397 ฿47.0K

30.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,769 A$8,224

$4,192 ฿140.9K

37.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,933 A$7,032

$3,298 ฿110.9K

49.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,511 A$3,580

$492 ฿16.5K

410.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.81

5.57

4.31%

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

Last update for Grafton: November 2, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Grafton

$1.2K 50.7%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 58.6% $719

Groceries & Markets

Grafton

$321 13.2%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 16.8% $54

Eating Out

Grafton

$293 12.1%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 59.2% $174

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Grafton

$234 9.6%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 46% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Grafton

$160 6.6%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 23.4% $37

Getting Around

Grafton

$108 4.5%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 38.9% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Grafton

$80 3.3%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 4.2% $3.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,412 in Grafton and $721 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Grafton pays about 5.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $72 in Grafton vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $321 vs $267 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Grafton

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

07:30 7:30 AM

03:30 3:30 AM

4 h behind Grafton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,255

79,308

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.701 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.701 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Between locations

Grafton Phuket 7,170 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Grafton
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

Grafton vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,424 in Grafton and $1,294 in Phuket, so Phuket is about 47% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Grafton is about 5.1 times higher, 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: $1,412 in Grafton versus $721 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in Grafton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $72 in Grafton. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $2,424 in Grafton, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Grafton. 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, Grafton and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Grafton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.