Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kaunas and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,509 in Kaunas, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Kaunas
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Kaunas Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Kaunas

🇱🇹 Lithuania

$1,509

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,509 in Kaunas versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Kaunas $1,509
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,259 in Kaunas versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Kaunas $2,259
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,008 in Kaunas versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Kaunas $3,008
Phuket $3,154

Living in Kaunas is roughly 18% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Kaunas is 11% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.03 €10.77

$4.47 ฿151

169.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.4

$32.41 ฿1,093

108.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.20 €9.13

$8.81 ฿297

15.78%

Cappuccino

$3.43 €3.07

$2.83 ฿95.4

21.20%

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

$3.36 €3.01

$0.87 ฿29.41

286.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 €2.90

$0.49 ฿16.65

561.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.24 €4.69

$2.56 ฿86.3

104.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 €4.06

$3.68 ฿124

23.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 €1.45

$1.66 ฿55.9

-3.01%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 €1.54

$1.46 ฿49.31

17.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.26 €2.02

$1.50 ฿50.5

50.67%

Eggs

$3.24 €2.91

$2.09 ฿70.5

55.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.95 €13.39

$19.07 ฿643

-21.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.13 €7.28

$3.30 ฿111

146.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.49 €12.08

$10.91 ฿368

23.65%

Apples (1kg)

$1.59 €1.42

$2.93 ฿98.9

-45.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.69 ฿57.0

-11.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$2.25 ฿75.8

-3.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.36 €3.01

$2.08 ฿70.0

61.54%

Potato (1kg)

$0.91 €0.81

$1.51 ฿51.0

-39.74%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.38 ฿46.52

-31.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.07 ฿35.96

70.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 €0.83

$0.52 ฿17.51

78.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.25 €5.60

$4.20 ฿142

48.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.03 €8.98

$18.79 ฿634

-46.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.82 ฿61.5

-4.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 €1.93

$2.84 ฿95.8

-24.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.45 ฿48.98

-20.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.91 €28.58

$56.7 ฿1,912

-43.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 €1.02

$3.02 ฿102

-62.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.89 €0.80

$1.02 ฿34.33

-12.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.76 €14.11

$3.69 ฿125

327.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 €1.80

$1.47 ฿49.76

36.73%

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

$27.8K €24.9K

$26.8K ฿903.4K

3.75%

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

$28.1K €25.1K

$26.7K ฿900.5K

5.15%

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

$196 €176

$96.4 ฿3,251

103.64%

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

$15.98 €14.31

$11.26 ฿380

41.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.68 €14.04

$16.85 ฿568

-6.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.37 €28.99

$67.2 ฿2,268

-51.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.72 €24.83

$10.73 ฿362

158.34%

Cinema Ticket

$11.93 €10.68

$7.50 ฿253

59.07%

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

$643 €576

$476 ฿16.1K

35.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,792 €7,874

$11.3K ฿380.0K

-21.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.8 €76.8

$62.4 ฿2,104

37.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.41 €36.20

$28.41 ฿958

42.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$119 €107

$94.3 ฿3,181

26.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$162 €145

$85.8 ฿2,895

89.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$710 €636

$716 ฿24.2K

-0.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$490 €439

$491 ฿16.6K

-0.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,056 €946

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-45.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$698 €626

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-51.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,369 €3,017

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-19.31%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,272 €2,035

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-25.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,718 €1,539

$502 ฿16.9K

242.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

5.57

-27.29%

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

Last update for Kaunas: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kaunas

$490 32.5%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 0.2% $1.2

Groceries & Markets

Kaunas

$280 18.5%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 4.8% $14

Eating Out

Kaunas

$230 15.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 47% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kaunas

$228 15.1%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 45.4% $103

Clothing & Footwear

Kaunas

$183 12.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 33.6% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Kaunas

$56 3.7%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 46.3% $26

Getting Around

Kaunas

$42 2.8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 67.6% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $710 in Kaunas and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kaunas pays about 3.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Kaunas vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $280 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇹 Kaunas

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

21:24 9:24 PM

02:24 2:24 AM

5 h ahead of Kaunas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

315,993

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Kaunas Phuket 8,300 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Kaunas
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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

Kaunas vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 15% lower than in Kaunas. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Kaunas is about 3.4 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: $710 in Kaunas versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $67 in Kaunas. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,509 per month in Kaunas versus $1,278 in Phuket – Phuket is about 15% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,509 in Kaunas, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Kaunas. 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, Kaunas and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Kaunas on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.