Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hvar and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,522 in Hvar, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Hvar
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Hvar Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Hvar

🇭🇷 Croatia

$1,522

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,522 in Hvar versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Hvar $1,522
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,310 in Hvar versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Hvar $2,310
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,097 in Hvar versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Hvar $3,097
Phuket $3,154

Living in Hvar is roughly 19% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Hvar is 12% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.08 €11.75

$4.47 ฿151

192.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.8 €65.4

$32.41 ฿1,094

124.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.13 €8.20

$8.81 ฿297

3.63%

Cappuccino

$2.53 €2.27

$2.83 ฿95.5

-10.60%

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

$3.12 €2.80

$0.87 ฿29.43

258.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 €2.05

$0.49 ฿16.67

365.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.54 €3.18

$2.56 ฿86.4

38.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.09 €3.68

$3.68 ฿124

11.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.07

$1.66 ฿56.0

-28.31%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 €1.39

$1.46 ฿49.35

5.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 €2.69

$1.50 ฿50.6

99.33%

Eggs

$3.88 €3.49

$2.09 ฿70.5

85.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.69 €9.60

$19.07 ฿644

-43.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 €8.52

$3.30 ฿111

187.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 €10.53

$10.91 ฿368

7.42%

Apples (1kg)

$1.72 €1.55

$2.93 ฿99.0

-41.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 €1.50

$1.69 ฿57.1

-1.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 €1.79

$2.25 ฿75.8

-11.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.31

$2.08 ฿70.1

23.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.29 €1.16

$1.51 ฿51.0

-14.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 €1.15

$1.38 ฿46.56

-7.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 €1.14

$1.07 ฿35.99

18.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.08

$0.52 ฿17.52

130.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.73 €5.14

$4.20 ฿142

36.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.89 €6.19

$18.79 ฿634

-63.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 €1.35

$1.82 ฿61.5

-17.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 €1.79

$2.84 ฿95.9

-29.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 €1.58

$1.45 ฿49.03

21.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.21 €38.83

$56.7 ฿1,913

-23.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.77

$3.02 ฿102

1.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.11 €1.00

$1.02 ฿34.36

8.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.80 €7.91

$3.69 ฿125

138.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.78 €1.60

$1.47 ฿49.81

21.09%

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

$38.2K €34.4K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

42.79%

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

$26.6K €23.9K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-0.48%

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

$190 €171

$96.4 ฿3,254

96.96%

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

$22.50 €20.22

$11.26 ฿380

99.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.64 €28.43

$16.85 ฿569

87.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.5 €45.38

$67.2 ฿2,270

-24.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.55 €13.07

$10.73 ฿362

35.60%

Cinema Ticket

$8.86 €7.96

$7.50 ฿253

18.13%

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

$243 €218

$476 ฿16.1K

-48.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,090 €7,269

$11.3K ฿380.4K

-28.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$94.0 €84.4

$62.4 ฿2,106

50.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.00 €35.04

$28.41 ฿959

37.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €94.2

$94.3 ฿3,184

11.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 €94.8

$85.8 ฿2,898

23.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$681 €612

$716 ฿24.2K

-4.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$526 €473

$491 ฿16.6K

7.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,116 €1,002

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-42.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$828 €744

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-42.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,155 €3,734

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-0.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,241 €2,912

$3,045 ฿102.8K

6.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.35

5.57

-21.90%

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

Last update for Hvar: 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

Hvar

$526 34.6%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 6.7% $36

Groceries & Markets

Hvar

$260 17.1%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 2.4% $6.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hvar

$244 16%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 49% $119

Eating Out

Hvar

$210 13.8%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 42% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Hvar

$155 10.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 21.1% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Hvar

$68 4.5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 20.5% $14

Getting Around

Hvar

$59 3.9%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 19.9% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $681 in Hvar and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $73 in Hvar vs $32 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $260 vs $266, with Hvar cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇭🇷 Hvar

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

12:03 12:03 PM

18:03 6:03 PM

6 h ahead of Hvar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,979

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

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Between locations

Hvar Phuket 8,760 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Hvar
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

Hvar vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. The 19% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,283 in Hvar and $1,917 in Phuket to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $681 in Hvar versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $243 in Hvar versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $73 in Hvar. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,522 in Hvar, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Hvar. 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.

Safety-wise, Hvar 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.