Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hefei and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Hefei: $768 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Hefei
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Hefei Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

Jump to prices

Hefei

🇨🇳 China

$768

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $768 in Hefei versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Hefei $768
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,225 in Hefei versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Hefei $1,225
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,681 in Hefei versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Hefei $1,681
Phuket $2,845

Living in Hefei costs roughly 36% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Hefei 43% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.58 ¥17.28

$4.40 ฿147

-41.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.44 ¥150

$32.26 ฿1,078

-30.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.36 ¥29.18

$8.76 ฿293

-50.23%

Cappuccino

$2.75 ¥18.39

$2.83 ฿94.5

-2.83%

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

$0.49 ¥3.26

$0.90 ฿30.14

-45.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.80

$0.47 ฿15.56

-42.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.06 ¥7.09

$2.55 ฿85.2

-58.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 ¥13.35

$3.83 ฿128

-47.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 ¥10.84

$1.73 ฿57.7

-6.36%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 ¥13.75

$1.47 ฿49.11

40.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 ¥5.42

$1.51 ฿50.6

-46.36%

Eggs

$1.92 ¥12.84

$2.17 ฿72.7

-11.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.10 ¥94.3

$19.70 ฿658

-28.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.90 ¥32.76

$3.34 ฿112

46.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.57 ¥77.3

$11.16 ฿373

3.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 ¥15.45

$2.85 ฿95.1

-18.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 ¥11.52

$1.70 ฿56.9

1.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 ¥10.95

$2.19 ฿73.3

-25.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ¥10.79

$2.05 ฿68.4

-21.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.80 ¥5.37

$1.45 ฿48.57

-44.83%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 ¥6.26

$1.38 ฿46.16

-31.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.79 ¥5.26

$1.07 ฿35.69

-26.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 ¥4.70

$0.51 ฿16.91

37.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.08 ¥20.59

$4.26 ฿142

-27.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.16 ¥81.3

$18.58 ฿621

-34.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 ¥6.21

$1.78 ฿59.7

-47.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 ¥13.28

$2.85 ฿95.2

-30.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 ¥2.09

$2.26 ฿75.6

-86.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.22 ¥302

$22.10 ฿738

104.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.23 ¥8.21

$3.01 ฿101

-59.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 ¥2.20

$1.06 ฿35.34

-68.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.51 ¥23.48

$3.86 ฿129

-9.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ¥8.91

$1.45 ฿48.45

-8.28%

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

$19.0K ¥127.2K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-27.74%

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

$16.9K ¥112.9K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-37.31%

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

$48.54 ¥325

$96.4 ฿3,221

-49.64%

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

$9.54 ¥63.8

$11.04 ฿369

-13.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.08 ¥80.8

$17.14 ฿573

-29.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.66 ¥105

$52.2 ฿1,744

-69.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.31 ¥102

$11.16 ฿373

37.19%

Cinema Ticket

$6.41 ¥42.85

$7.81 ฿261

-17.93%

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

$236 ¥1,581

$556 ฿18.6K

-57.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,656 ¥57.9K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-25.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.7 ¥600

$64.2 ฿2,146

39.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.76 ¥219

$28.69 ฿959

14.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$62.7 ¥419

$95.4 ฿3,187

-34.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.9 ¥648

$88.0 ฿2,940

10.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$241 ¥1,609

$737 ฿24.6K

-67.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$179 ¥1,197

$462 ฿15.5K

-61.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$532 ¥3,558

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-74.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$340 ¥2,270

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-71.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,573 ¥23.9K

$3,488 ฿116.6K

2.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,975 ¥13.2K

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-21.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,011 ¥6,763

$501 ฿16.7K

102.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.15

5.57

-43.45%

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

Last update for Hefei: October 19, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Hefei

$235 30.6%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 14.5% $34

Accommodation & Living

Hefei

$179 23.3%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 158% $283

Clothing & Footwear

Hefei

$127 16.5%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 2.1% $2.6

Eating Out

Hefei

$79 10.3%

Phuket

$121 10% 53.3% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hefei

$70 9.1%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 77.5% $54

Getting Around

Hefei

$49 6.4%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 20.1% $9.9

Sport & Entertainment

Hefei

$28 3.7%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 138% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $241 in Hefei and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hefei pays 102% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $22.00 in Hefei vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $235 vs $269 per month, with Hefei cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Hefei

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

14:00 2:00 PM

13:00 1:00 PM

1 h behind Hefei

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,369,881

79,308

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Hefei Phuket 3,310 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Hefei
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

Hefei vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hefei wins on cost – living expenses run 57% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Hefei the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 102% higher in Hefei, 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: $241 in Hefei versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Hefei – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $768 per month in Hefei versus $1,208 in Phuket – a 57% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $768 in Hefei versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Hefei but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Hefei the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Hefei delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $768 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Hefei hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Hefei and Phuket 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 Hefei gentler on the wallet – expenses run 57% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.