Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamar and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,461 in Hamar, rent and utilities included – about $14,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

118

Cost of Living Index in Hamar
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Hamar Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Hamar

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,461

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,461 in Hamar versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Hamar $2,461
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,857 in Hamar versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Hamar $3,857
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,253 in Hamar versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Hamar $5,253
Phuket $3,154

Living in Hamar is roughly 93% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Hamar is 81% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.67 NOK 201

$4.47 ฿151

384.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$129 NOK 1,201

$32.41 ฿1,094

298.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.21 NOK 151

$8.81 ฿297

84.00%

Cappuccino

$5.89 NOK 54.7

$2.83 ฿95.5

108.13%

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

$4.52 NOK 42.00

$0.87 ฿29.43

419.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 NOK 31.48

$0.49 ฿16.67

591.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.04 NOK 112

$2.56 ฿86.4

370.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.70 NOK 80.9

$3.68 ฿124

136.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.56 NOK 23.79

$1.66 ฿56.0

54.22%

White Bread (500g)

$3.10 NOK 28.82

$1.46 ฿49.35

112.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.10 NOK 19.47

$1.50 ฿50.6

40.00%

Eggs

$6.23 NOK 57.9

$2.09 ฿70.5

198.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.12 NOK 103

$19.07 ฿644

-41.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.62 NOK 117

$3.30 ฿111

282.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$31.47 NOK 292

$10.91 ฿368

188.45%

Apples (1kg)

$3.36 NOK 31.23

$2.93 ฿99.0

14.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.77 NOK 25.76

$1.69 ฿57.1

63.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 NOK 28.66

$2.25 ฿75.8

36.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.17 NOK 57.3

$2.08 ฿70.1

196.63%

Potato (1kg)

$2.50 NOK 23.26

$1.51 ฿51.0

65.56%

Onion (1kg)

$2.61 NOK 24.28

$1.38 ฿46.56

89.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.19 NOK 20.39

$1.07 ฿35.99

104.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 NOK 18.66

$0.52 ฿17.52

286.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.50 NOK 181

$4.20 ฿142

364.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.93 NOK 157

$18.79 ฿634

-9.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.55 NOK 33.03

$1.82 ฿61.5

95.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 NOK 40.69

$2.84 ฿95.9

54.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.66 NOK 43.25

$1.45 ฿49.03

221.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$69.2 NOK 643

$56.7 ฿1,913

22.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$12.31 NOK 114

$3.02 ฿102

307.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 NOK 17.94

$1.02 ฿34.36

89.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$72.8 NOK 677

$3.69 ฿125

1873.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.39 NOK 22.20

$1.47 ฿49.81

62.59%

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

$49.6K NOK 460.7K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

85.18%

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

$46.3K NOK 429.9K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

73.38%

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

$230 NOK 2,137

$96.4 ฿3,254

138.75%

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

$34.38 NOK 319

$11.26 ฿380

205.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.1 NOK 512

$16.85 ฿569

226.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$59.1 NOK 549

$67.2 ฿2,270

-12.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 NOK 274

$10.73 ฿362

174.56%

Cinema Ticket

$20.16 NOK 187

$7.50 ฿253

168.80%

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

$217 NOK 2,013

$476 ฿16.1K

-54.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K NOK 149.1K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

42.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 NOK 968

$62.4 ฿2,106

67.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.5 NOK 562

$28.41 ฿959

112.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$136 NOK 1,264

$94.3 ฿3,184

44.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 NOK 983

$85.8 ฿2,898

23.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,270 NOK 11.8K

$716 ฿24.2K

77.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$884 NOK 8,214

$491 ฿16.6K

80.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,595 NOK 14.8K

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-17.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,517 NOK 14.1K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

6.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,359 NOK 40.5K

$4,175 ฿141.0K

4.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,609 NOK 33.5K

$3,045 ฿102.8K

18.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,415 NOK 41.0K

$502 ฿17.0K

778.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.94

5.57

-11.31%

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

Last update for Hamar: October 26, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hamar

$884 35.9%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 44.5% $393

Groceries & Markets

Hamar

$463 18.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 42.6% $197

Eating Out

Hamar

$402 16.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 69.7% $280

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamar

$319 13%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 61% $195

Clothing & Footwear

Hamar

$183 7.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 33.4% $61

Getting Around

Hamar

$110 4.5%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 35.7% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Hamar

$99 4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 17.3% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,270 in Hamar and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hamar pays about 8.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $129 in Hamar vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $463 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Hamar

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

00:45 12:45 AM

06:45 6:45 AM

6 h ahead of Hamar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

33,059

79,308

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.76 USD

100 NOK = 9.67 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 9.29 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.34 NOK (100 NOK = 9.67 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 NOK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hamar Phuket 9,090 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Hamar
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

Hamar vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,461 in Hamar and $1,278 in Phuket, so Phuket is about 48% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Hamar is about 8.8 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: $1,270 in Hamar versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 74% higher in Hamar. 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 $129 in Hamar. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,461 in Hamar, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Hamar. 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.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 48% less than in Hamar. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.