Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gulbene and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,289 in Gulbene, rent and utilities included – about $970 less a year. The total is higher in Gulbene despite lower rent and utilities.

62

Cost of Living Index in Gulbene
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Gulbene Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Gulbene

🇱🇻 Latvia

$1,289

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,289 per month in Gulbene vs $1,208 in Phuket, rent included.

Gulbene $1,289
Phuket $1,208

A couple spends around $1,973 per month in Gulbene vs $2,027 in Phuket, rent included.

Gulbene $1,973
Phuket $2,027

A family of three spends $2,657 per month in Gulbene vs $2,845 in Phuket, rent included.

Gulbene $2,657
Phuket $2,845

Gulbene costs about 7% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Gulbene and Phuket are more affordable than the global median – Gulbene 5% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.73 €14.88

$4.40 ฿147

280.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.5 €60.9

$32.26 ฿1,078

112.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.45 €8.41

$8.76 ฿293

7.88%

Cappuccino

$3.82 €3.40

$2.83 ฿94.5

34.98%

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

$1.59 €1.41

$0.90 ฿30.14

76.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.07

$0.47 ฿15.56

155.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.57 €4.95

$2.55 ฿85.2

118.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.18 €4.61

$3.83 ฿128

35.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.73 ฿57.7

-31.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 €1.33

$1.47 ฿49.11

2.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.51 ฿50.6

68.21%

Eggs

$3.72 €3.30

$2.17 ฿72.7

71.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.70 €9.52

$19.70 ฿658

-45.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.74 €7.77

$3.34 ฿112

161.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.98 €12.43

$11.16 ฿373

25.27%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$2.85 ฿95.1

-26.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.70 ฿56.9

4.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$2.19 ฿73.3

16.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.25 €2.89

$2.05 ฿68.4

58.54%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.45 ฿48.57

-39.31%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 €0.84

$1.38 ฿46.16

-31.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.07 ฿35.69

65.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.87

$0.51 ฿16.91

92.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.53 €5.81

$4.26 ฿142

53.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.02 €7.14

$18.58 ฿621

-56.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 €1.79

$1.78 ฿59.7

12.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 €1.79

$2.85 ฿95.2

-29.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.41 €3.03

$3.01 ฿101

13.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 €0.88

$1.06 ฿35.34

-6.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.96 €15.97

$3.86 ฿129

365.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.45 ฿48.45

46.21%

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

$27.3K €24.3K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

3.73%

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

$29.7K €26.4K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

10.31%

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

$368 €328

$96.4 ฿3,221

282.29%

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

$19.94 €17.74

$11.04 ฿369

80.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.84 €17.65

$17.14 ฿573

15.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.83

$7.81 ฿261

41.61%

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

$674 €599

$556 ฿18.6K

21.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.4K €16.4K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

59.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.2 €62.4

$64.2 ฿2,146

9.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.0 €45.33

$28.69 ฿959

77.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.2 €76.7

$95.4 ฿3,187

-9.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$136 €121

$88.0 ฿2,940

54.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$190 €169

$737 ฿24.6K

-74.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$168 €149

$462 ฿15.5K

-63.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$352 €313

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-83.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 €295

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-72.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$681 €605

$3,488 ฿116.6K

-80.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$568 €505

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-77.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

5.57

-14.36%

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

Last update for Gulbene: October 20, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gulbene

$408 31.7%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 69.5% $284

Groceries & Markets

Gulbene

$271 21%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 0.7% $1.9

Eating Out

Gulbene

$257 20%

Phuket

$121 10% 52.9% $136

Accommodation & Living

Gulbene

$168 13%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 176% $295

Clothing & Footwear

Gulbene

$155 12%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 19.6% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Gulbene

$22 * 1.7%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 207% $46

Getting Around

Gulbene

$8.3 * 0.7%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 373% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $190 in Gulbene versus $737 in Phuket. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69.0 in Gulbene versus $32.00 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $271 vs $269 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇻 Gulbene

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

01:00 1:00 AM

05:00 5:00 AM

4 h ahead of Gulbene

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,500

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Gulbene Phuket 8,170 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Gulbene
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

Gulbene vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,289 in Gulbene, $1,208 in Phuket – roughly 7% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,934 per month in Gulbene and $1,813 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Phuket, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,289 in Gulbene and $1,208 in Phuket. That's a gap of about 7%.

Kindergarten costs $674 per month in Gulbene and $556 in Phuket. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,208, than in Gulbene at $1,289. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Gulbene it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,208 in Phuket to $1,289 in Gulbene. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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