Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hilo, HI and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $2,865 in Hilo, HI, rent and utilities included – about $18,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

136

Cost of Living Index in Hilo, HI
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Hilo, HI Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Hilo, HI

🇺🇸 United States

$2,865

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,865 per month in Hilo, HI vs $1,294 in Phuket, rent included.

Hilo, HI $2,865
Phuket $1,294

A couple spends around $4,388 per month in Hilo, HI vs $2,204 in Phuket, rent included.

Hilo, HI $4,388
Phuket $2,204

A family of three spends $5,910 per month in Hilo, HI vs $3,115 in Phuket, rent included.

Hilo, HI $5,910
Phuket $3,115

Hilo, HI costs about 121% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Hilo, HI sits 112% above the global median, while Phuket is 4% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.77 $20.77

$4.39 ฿148

373.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.9 $79.9

$32.31 ฿1,090

147.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.17 $12.17

$8.70 ฿294

39.89%

Cappuccino

$5.63 $5.63

$2.72 ฿91.9

106.99%

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

$2.90 $2.90

$0.93 ฿31.38

211.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 $2.42

$0.50 ฿16.85

384.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.32 $6.32

$2.53 ฿85.4

149.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.57 $7.57

$3.63 ฿122

108.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.75 $1.75

$1.74 ฿58.7

0.57%

White Bread (500g)

$10.08 $10.08

$1.45 ฿48.93

595.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.28 $4.28

$1.50 ฿50.7

185.33%

Eggs

$7.07 $7.07

$2.17 ฿73.3

225.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.98 $19.98

$19.09 ฿644

4.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.57 $17.57

$3.40 ฿115

416.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$30.15 $30.15

$10.90 ฿368

176.61%

Apples (1kg)

$8.57 $8.57

$2.94 ฿99.2

191.50%

Banana (1kg)

$2.39 $2.39

$1.69 ฿57.1

41.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$10.48 $10.48

$2.19 ฿74.0

378.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$12.21 $12.21

$2.12 ฿71.6

475.94%

Potato (1kg)

$9.04 $9.04

$1.46 ฿49.19

519.18%

Onion (1kg)

$7.81 $7.81

$1.37 ฿46.14

470.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$5.36 $5.36

$1.08 ฿36.29

396.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.02 $3.02

$0.55 ฿18.40

449.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.90 $11.90

$4.43 ฿149

168.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.03 $22.03

$18.25 ฿616

20.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.77 ฿59.8

-0.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿97.2

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,851

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.95 $2.95

$1.51 ฿51.0

95.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.00 $2.00

$0.78 ฿26.17

156.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.57 $23.57

$3.84 ฿129

513.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 $1.41

$1.49 ฿50.2

-5.37%

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

$25.5K $25.5K

$26.9K ฿906.7K

-5.12%

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

$26.0K $26.0K

$26.3K ฿888.6K

-1.17%

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

$302 $302

$97.8 ฿3,299

208.70%

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

$67.7 $67.7

$11.29 ฿381

499.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$125 $125

$17.19 ฿580

629.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.04 $37.04

$68.3 ฿2,305

-45.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.30 $25.30

$10.92 ฿368

131.68%

Cinema Ticket

$13.24 $13.24

$7.43 ฿251

78.20%

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

$530 ฿17.9K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.8K $11.8K

$18.8K ฿633.5K

-37.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$36.77 $36.77

$61.7 ฿2,080

-40.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.88 $29.88

$28.25 ฿953

5.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$66.8 $66.8

$96.0 ฿3,238

-30.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.9 $83.9

$86.8 ฿2,928

-3.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,463 $1,463

$721 ฿24.3K

102.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,142 $1,142

$509 ฿17.2K

124.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,574 $2,574

$1,950 ฿65.8K

32.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,199 $2,199

$1,397 ฿47.1K

57.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,600 $5,600

$4,192 ฿141.4K

33.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,662 $4,662

$3,298 ฿111.3K

41.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,795 $3,795

$492 ฿16.6K

672.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.62

5.57

18.85%

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

Last update for Hilo, HI: November 1, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hilo, HI

$1.1K 39.9%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 55.4% $633

Groceries & Markets

Hilo, HI

$715 * 25%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 62.7% $448

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hilo, HI

$495 17.3%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 74.5% $369

Eating Out

Hilo, HI

$338 11.8%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 64.7% $219

Clothing & Footwear

Hilo, HI

$98 3.4%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 25.5% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Hilo, HI

$64 2.2%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 30.9% $20

Getting Around

Hilo, HI

$13 * 0.5%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 409% $53

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,463 in Hilo, HI versus $721 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 Hilo, HI are about 7.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $80 in Hilo, HI versus $32 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $715 vs $267 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Hilo, HI

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

01:16 1:16 AM

18:16 6:16 PM

17 h ahead of Hilo, HI

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

44,186

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hilo, HI Phuket 11,410 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Hilo, HI
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

Hilo, HI vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hilo, HI costs about 121% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,297 per month in Hilo, HI and $1,940 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 $721 there versus $1,463 in Hilo, HI.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,865 in Hilo, HI and $1,294 in Phuket. That makes Phuket about 55% cheaper.

Groceries cost about 168% more in Hilo, HI, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,294, than in Hilo, HI at $2,865. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Hilo, HI 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 $1,294 in Phuket to $2,865 in Hilo, HI. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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