Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Haarlem and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $3,258 in Haarlem, rent and utilities included – about $23,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

156

Cost of Living Index in Haarlem
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Haarlem Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Haarlem

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$3,258

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,258 per month in Haarlem vs $1,278 in Phuket, rent included.

Haarlem $3,258
Phuket $1,278

A couple spends around $4,615 per month in Haarlem vs $2,216 in Phuket, rent included.

Haarlem $4,615
Phuket $2,216

A family of three spends $5,971 per month in Haarlem vs $3,154 in Phuket, rent included.

Haarlem $5,971
Phuket $3,154

Haarlem costs about 155% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Haarlem sits 139% above the global median, while Phuket is 6% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.24 €26.28

$4.47 ฿151

554.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$100 €89.9

$32.41 ฿1,094

208.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.67 €12.28

$8.81 ฿297

55.16%

Cappuccino

$4.14 €3.72

$2.83 ฿95.5

46.29%

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

$4.08 €3.67

$0.87 ฿29.43

368.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.37 €3.03

$0.49 ฿16.67

587.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.03 €7.21

$2.56 ฿86.4

213.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.63 €5.06

$3.68 ฿124

52.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.66 ฿56.0

-12.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 €2.51

$1.46 ฿49.35

91.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.64 €2.37

$1.50 ฿50.6

76.00%

Eggs

$4.75 €4.27

$2.09 ฿70.5

127.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.92 €12.50

$19.07 ฿644

-27.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.30 €11.95

$3.30 ฿111

303.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.49 €19.31

$10.91 ฿368

96.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$2.93 ฿99.0

1.71%

Banana (1kg)

$2.53 €2.27

$1.69 ฿57.1

49.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 €1.62

$2.25 ฿75.8

-20.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.98 €4.48

$2.08 ฿70.1

139.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.51 ฿51.0

25.17%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 €2.04

$1.38 ฿46.56

64.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 €1.16

$1.07 ฿35.99

20.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.00 €0.90

$0.52 ฿17.52

92.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.88 €12.47

$4.20 ฿142

230.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.73 €6.95

$18.79 ฿634

-58.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.82 ฿61.5

-17.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 €2.12

$2.84 ฿95.9

-16.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.84 €2.55

$1.45 ฿49.03

95.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.0 €74.6

$56.7 ฿1,913

46.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.19 €5.56

$3.02 ฿102

104.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.50 €2.25

$1.02 ฿34.36

145.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.38 €23.70

$3.69 ฿125

614.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.53 €2.27

$1.47 ฿49.81

72.11%

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

$41.4K €37.2K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

54.79%

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

$39.6K €35.5K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

48.21%

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

$249 €224

$96.4 ฿3,254

158.33%

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

$23.98 €21.55

$11.26 ฿380

112.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.9 €54.8

$16.85 ฿569

261.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.92

$67.2 ฿2,270

-20.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.02 €25.18

$10.73 ฿362

161.14%

Cinema Ticket

$16.09 €14.45

$7.50 ฿253

114.53%

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

$2,598 €2,335

$476 ฿16.1K

445.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,587 €5,919

$11.3K ฿380.4K

-41.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.1 €76.4

$62.4 ฿2,106

36.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$63.2 €56.8

$28.41 ฿959

122.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.7 €87.8

$94.3 ฿3,184

3.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$147 €132

$85.8 ฿2,898

70.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,031 €1,825

$716 ฿24.2K

183.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,781 €1,600

$491 ฿16.6K

262.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,215 €2,889

$1,927 ฿65.1K

66.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,339

$1,431 ฿48.3K

81.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,820 €7,026

$4,175 ฿141.0K

87.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,830 €5,238

$3,045 ฿102.8K

91.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,219 €3,791

$502 ฿17.0K

740.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.8

5.57

-31.78%

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

Last update for Haarlem: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Haarlem

$1.8K 54.7%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 72.4% $1.3K

Eating Out

Haarlem

$406 12.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 70% $284

Groceries & Markets

Haarlem

$362 11.1%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 26.5% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Haarlem

$334 10.3%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 62.7% $209

Clothing & Footwear

Haarlem

$177 5.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 31% $55

Getting Around

Haarlem

$113 3.5%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 37.6% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Haarlem

$86 2.6%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 3.8% $3.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,031 in Haarlem 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 Haarlem are about 8.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $100 in Haarlem versus $32 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $362 vs $266 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Haarlem

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

15:01 3:01 PM

21:01 9:01 PM

6 h ahead of Haarlem

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

165,396

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Haarlem Phuket 9,570 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Haarlem
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

Haarlem vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Haarlem costs about 155% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,887 per month in Haarlem 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 Phuket, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $716 there versus $2,031 in Haarlem.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $100 in Haarlem and $32 in Phuket. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,258 in Haarlem and $1,278 in Phuket. That’s a gap of about 155%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,278, than in Haarlem at $3,258. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Haarlem it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Phuket costs $1,278 versus $3,258 in Haarlem. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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, Haarlem makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.