Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hat Yai and Hong Kong

For one person, living is cheaper in Hat Yai: $731 a month against $2,984 in Hong Kong, rent and utilities included – about $27,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Hat Yai
Learn more

Hat Yai Living Index
144

Cost of Living Index in Hong Kong
Learn more

Hong Kong Living Index

Jump to prices

Hat Yai

🇹🇭 Thailand

$731

/mo nomad

Hong Kong

🇭🇰 Hong Kong (China)

$2,984

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hat Yai and in Hong Kong

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Hat Yai and in Hong Kong actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $731 in Hat Yai versus $2,984 in Hong Kong.

Hat Yai $731
Hong Kong $2,984

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,300 in Hat Yai versus $4,584 in Hong Kong.

Hat Yai $1,300
Hong Kong $4,584

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,870 in Hat Yai versus $6,183 in Hong Kong.

Hat Yai $1,870
Hong Kong $6,183

Living in Hat Yai costs roughly 76% less than in Hong Kong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Hat Yai is 46% below, Hong Kong is 121% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.90 ฿96.9

$7.75 HK$60.8

-62.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.67 ฿1,460

$64.7 HK$508

-32.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.66 ฿122

$6.18 HK$48.51

-40.78%

Cappuccino

$2.88 ฿96.3

$5.08 HK$39.85

-43.31%

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

$1.33 ฿44.34

$1.31 HK$10.31

1.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ฿18.60

$1.09 HK$8.56

-48.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.80 ฿60.1

$7.47 HK$58.6

-75.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 ฿116

$6.50 HK$51.0

-46.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.55

$2.89 HK$22.71

-49.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 ฿41.68

$2.31 HK$18.14

-45.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.24 ฿41.28

$2.13 HK$16.71

-41.78%

Eggs

$2.51 ฿83.9

$3.52 HK$27.65

-28.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$22.15 ฿740

$24.72 HK$194

-10.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.24 ฿74.7

$8.52 HK$66.9

-73.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.19 ฿374

$18.00 HK$141

-37.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.54 ฿84.8

$4.18 HK$32.79

-39.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.10

$2.68 HK$21.07

-48.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 ฿63.3

$4.49 HK$35.22

-57.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ฿60.3

$4.03 HK$31.66

-55.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿48.94

$3.12 HK$24.51

-53.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 ฿34.38

$3.15 HK$24.72

-67.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.74

$1.62 HK$12.75

-33.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.41 ฿13.57

$1.74 HK$13.66

-76.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.36 ฿146

$13.50 HK$106

-67.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.03 ฿502

$16.54 HK$130

-9.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.2

$1.94 HK$15.19

-8.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 ฿66.4

$2.18 HK$17.11

-8.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 ฿18.98

$1.41 HK$11.04

-59.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$88.6 HK$696

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.25 ฿41.71

$3.69 HK$28.94

-66.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 ฿37.78

$1.32 HK$10.36

-14.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.94 ฿165

$15.77 HK$124

-68.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 ฿43.15

$4.03 HK$31.65

-67.99%

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

$18.9K ฿630.6K

$44.7K HK$350.5K

-57.75%

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

$45.1K ฿1.5M

$37.8K HK$296.6K

19.39%

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

$84.4 ฿2,819

$250 HK$1,959

-66.20%

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

$11.75 ฿393

$15.60 HK$122

-24.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.65 ฿322

$21.77 HK$171

-55.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.45 ฿1,619

$94.2 HK$739

-48.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.10 ฿471

$9.29 HK$72.9

51.78%

Cinema Ticket

$7.19 ฿240

$13.91 HK$109

-48.31%

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

$562 ฿18.8K

$1,162 HK$9,122

-51.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K ฿357.3K

$21.9K HK$171.6K

-51.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.54 ฿1,255

$68.0 HK$534

-44.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.26 ฿878

$41.91 HK$329

-37.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.9 ฿2,369

$79.7 HK$626

-11.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.3 ฿3,250

$122 HK$956

-20.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$270 ฿9,010

$2,241 HK$17.6K

-87.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$107 ฿3,576

$1,718 HK$13.5K

-93.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$5,041 HK$39.6K

-85.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$397 ฿13.3K

$3,435 HK$27.0K

-88.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,915 ฿64.0K

$29.2K HK$229.0K

-93.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,584 ฿52.9K

$17.6K HK$137.9K

-90.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$452 ฿15.1K

$3,271 HK$25.7K

-86.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.36

3.91

62.66%

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

Last update for Hat Yai: October 11, 2026

Last update for Hong Kong: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Hat Yai

$249 34.1%

Hong Kong

$411 13.8% 64.8% $162

Accommodation & Living

Hat Yai

$107 14.7%

Hong Kong

$1.7K 57.6% 1506% $1.6K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hat Yai

$106 14.5%

Hong Kong

$287 9.6% 171% $181

Clothing & Footwear

Hat Yai

$104 14.3%

Hong Kong

$140 4.7% 34.3% $36

Eating Out

Hat Yai

$92 12.6%

Hong Kong

$201 6.8% 118% $109

Sport & Entertainment

Hat Yai

$63 8.6%

Hong Kong

$122 4.1% 94.1% $59

Getting Around

Hat Yai

$9.2 * 1.3%

Hong Kong

$105 3.5% 1040% $95

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $270 in Hat Yai and $2,241 in Hong Kong. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hong Kong pays 624% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $44.00 in Hat Yai vs $65.0 in Hong Kong for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $249 vs $411 per month, with Hat Yai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Hat Yai

🇭🇰 Hong Kong

🕒 Local time

01:22 1:22 AM

02:22 2:22 AM

1 h ahead of Hat Yai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

156,802

1,367,900 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Hong Kong Dollar HKD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 HKD = 0.127 USD

1 HKD = 0.113 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HKD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Hong Kong Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 7.85 HKD (1 HKD = 0.127 USD). 1 EUR = 8.82 HKD (1 HKD = 0.113 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hat Yai Hong Kong 2,240 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Hat Yai
Hong Kong

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

Hat Yai vs Hong Kong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hat Yai wins on cost – living expenses run 308% lower than in Hong Kong. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Hat Yai the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 624% lower in Hong Kong. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $270 in Hat Yai versus $2,241 in Hong Kong. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $562 in Hat Yai versus $1,162 in Hong Kong. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Hat Yai – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $65.0 in Hong Kong. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $731 in Hat Yai versus $2,984 in Hong Kong, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Hat Yai but tight or insufficient in Hong Kong. The gap between the two cities makes Hat Yai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Hat Yai delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $731 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Hat Yai hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Hat Yai and Hong Kong are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Hat Yai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 308% less than in Hong Kong. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.