Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kingston upon Thames and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $3,276 in Kingston upon Thames, rent and utilities included – about $24,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

161

Cost of Living Index in Kingston upon Thames
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Kingston upon Thames Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Kingston upon Thames

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,276

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,276 in Kingston upon Thames versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Kingston upon Thames $3,276
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,746 in Kingston upon Thames versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Kingston upon Thames $4,746
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,216 in Kingston upon Thames versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Kingston upon Thames $6,216
Phuket $2,867

Living in Kingston upon Thames is roughly 171% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Kingston upon Thames is 143% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.10 £16.58

$4.58 ฿153

382.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$86.6 £65.0

$32.48 ฿1,086

166.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.42 £7.82

$8.55 ฿286

21.87%

Cappuccino

$5.46 £4.09

$2.72 ฿91.0

100.74%

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

$3.00 £2.25

$0.94 ฿31.25

219.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$0.49 ฿16.39

267.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.20 £6.91

$2.59 ฿86.6

255.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.91 £5.93

$3.83 ฿128

106.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 £1.26

$1.74 ฿58.1

-3.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.73 £1.30

$1.43 ฿47.82

20.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.45 £1.84

$1.53 ฿51.0

60.13%

Eggs

$4.91 £3.68

$2.17 ฿72.7

126.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.46 £6.35

$19.15 ฿640

-55.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.72 £6.54

$3.30 ฿110

164.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.99 £9.74

$11.14 ฿372

16.61%

Apples (1kg)

$3.13 £2.35

$2.95 ฿98.5

6.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.35 £1.01

$1.68 ฿56.1

-19.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 £1.96

$2.30 ฿76.8

13.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.90 £2.18

$2.13 ฿71.3

36.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.25

$1.53 ฿51.1

9.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 £1.28

$1.36 ฿45.55

25.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 £0.93

$1.12 ฿37.44

10.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$0.55 ฿18.24

227.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$4.26 ฿142

446.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.31 £6.99

$18.19 ฿608

-48.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.09 £2.32

$1.74 ฿58.2

77.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.45 £3.34

$2.79 ฿93.3

59.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.37 £1.78

$2.22 ฿74.1

6.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.49 £31.88

$22.06 ฿737

92.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 £3.69

$2.91 ฿97.3

68.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 £1.07

$1.01 ฿33.79

41.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.70 £17.78

$3.83 ฿128

518.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.98 £1.49

$1.49 ฿49.85

32.89%

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

$37.7K £28.3K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

41.26%

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

$39.8K £29.9K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

49.07%

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

$371 £278

$99.4 ฿3,321

272.91%

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

$15.63 £11.73

$11.28 ฿377

38.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.78 £30.60

$17.36 ฿580

134.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$102 £76.8

$52.3 ฿1,747

95.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.49 £7.87

$10.85 ฿362

-3.32%

Cinema Ticket

$19.46 £14.60

$7.57 ฿253

157.07%

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

$2,594 £1,946

$558 ฿18.7K

364.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.2K £16.6K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

92.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.7

$62.9 ฿2,102

81.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.6 £40.19

$28.58 ฿955

87.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.1 £58.6

$96.1 ฿3,213

-18.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 £79.7

$88.1 ฿2,943

20.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,035 £1,527

$729 ฿24.4K

179.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,832 £1,374

$460 ฿15.4K

298.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,567 £2,676

$2,096 ฿70.0K

70.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,164 £2,374

$1,222 ฿40.8K

158.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,303 £3,978

$493 ฿16.5K

975.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

5.57

-14.90%

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

Last update for Kingston upon Thames: October 13, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kingston upon Thames

$1.8K 55.9%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 74.9% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kingston upon Thames

$427 13%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 70% $299

Eating Out

Kingston upon Thames

$355 10.8%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 65.8% $233

Groceries & Markets

Kingston upon Thames

$298 9.1%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 10.3% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Kingston upon Thames

$158 4.8%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 21.7% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Kingston upon Thames

$141 4.3%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 52.3% $74

Getting Around

Kingston upon Thames

$64 2%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 39.3% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,035 in Kingston upon Thames and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kingston upon Thames pays 976% 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: $87.0 in Kingston upon Thames vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $298 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Kingston upon Thames

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

18:55 6:55 PM

00:55 12:55 AM

6 h ahead of Kingston upon Thames

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

43,013

79,308

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

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Kingston upon Thames Phuket 9,920 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

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Kingston upon Thames
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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

Kingston upon Thames vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kingston upon Thames and Phuket differ by about 171% in total monthly costs ($3,276 vs $1,207 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 976% higher in Kingston upon Thames, 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: $2,035 in Kingston upon Thames versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 93% less than in Kingston upon Thames. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $2,594 in Kingston upon Thames versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $3,276 in Kingston upon Thames, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Kingston upon Thames. 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, Kingston upon Thames 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 Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 171% less than in Kingston upon Thames. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.