Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Koh Phangan and Koh Lipe

For one person, living is cheaper in Koh Phangan: $1,024 a month against $2,098 in Koh Lipe, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Koh Phangan
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Koh Phangan Living Index
100

Cost of Living Index in Koh Lipe
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Koh Lipe Living Index

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Koh Phangan

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,024

/mo nomad

Koh Lipe

🇹🇭 Thailand

$2,098

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Koh Phangan and in Koh Lipe

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Koh Phangan and in Koh Lipe actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,024 in Koh Phangan versus $2,098 in Koh Lipe.

Koh Phangan $1,024
Koh Lipe $2,098

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,693 in Koh Phangan versus $3,592 in Koh Lipe.

Koh Phangan $1,693
Koh Lipe $3,592

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,361 in Koh Phangan versus $5,086 in Koh Lipe.

Koh Phangan $2,361
Koh Lipe $5,086

Living in Koh Phangan costs roughly 51% less than in Koh Lipe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Koh Phangan is 24% below, Koh Lipe is 55% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.97 ฿133

$6.97 ฿233

-43.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.08 ฿972

$52.3 ฿1,748

-44.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.90 ฿264

$13.86 ฿463

-43.00%

Cappuccino

$2.53 ฿84.5

$4.54 ฿152

-44.27%

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

$0.87 ฿28.98

$1.51 ฿50.5

-42.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.42 ฿13.98

$0.74 ฿24.70

-43.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.21 ฿73.9

$3.97 ฿133

-44.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 ฿115

$6.11 ฿204

-43.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ฿52.9

$2.14 ฿71.6

-26.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.39 ฿46.52

$1.77 ฿59.3

-21.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.0

$1.88 ฿63.0

-20.21%

Eggs

$2.05 ฿68.5

$2.73 ฿91.4

-24.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.33 ฿613

$24.27 ฿811

-24.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.31 ฿111

$4.17 ฿139

-20.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.35 ฿346

$13.98 ฿467

-25.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 ฿93.9

$3.74 ฿125

-24.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 ฿55.3

$2.10 ฿70.1

-20.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.11 ฿70.4

$2.79 ฿93.3

-24.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.5

$2.62 ฿87.5

-21.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿48.81

$1.83 ฿61.1

-20.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.32 ฿44.04

$1.67 ฿55.9

-20.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 ฿35.46

$1.38 ฿46.28

-23.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.45

$0.68 ฿22.89

-23.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿140

$5.52 ฿185

-23.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.36 ฿580

$22.90 ฿765

-24.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 ฿58.7

$2.19 ฿73.3

-19.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 ฿89.4

$3.59 ฿120

-25.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.06 ฿68.9

$3.44 ฿115

-40.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.64 ฿88.3

$4.46 ฿149

-40.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ฿30.81

$1.59 ฿53.1

-42.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.47 ฿116

$5.83 ฿195

-40.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 ฿44.17

$2.21 ฿74.0

-40.27%

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

$23.8K ฿796.2K

$40.4K ฿1.3M

-40.96%

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

$24.5K ฿818.5K

$40.0K ฿1.3M

-38.83%

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

$98.4 ฿3,287

$113 ฿3,773

-12.86%

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

$11.11 ฿371

$12.73 ฿425

-12.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.91 ฿565

$20.03 ฿669

-15.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ฿1,764

$66.6 ฿2,225

-20.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.82 ฿362

$13.60 ฿454

-20.44%

Cinema Ticket

$7.69 ฿257

$9.45 ฿316

-18.62%

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

$560 ฿18.7K

$696 ฿23.3K

-19.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K ฿391.0K

$14.5K ฿483.5K

-19.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.7 ฿2,129

$67.4 ฿2,253

-5.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.59 ฿955

$29.63 ฿990

-3.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.9 ฿3,205

$102 ฿3,424

-6.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.9 ฿2,905

$92.5 ฿3,090

-5.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.0K

$1,835 ฿61.3K

-72.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$326 ฿10.9K

$1,181 ฿39.5K

-72.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,464 ฿48.9K

$5,300 ฿177.1K

-72.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$833 ฿27.8K

$3,000 ฿100.3K

-72.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,509 ฿83.9K

$8,628 ฿288.3K

-70.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,781 ฿59.5K

$6,214 ฿207.7K

-71.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$713 ฿23.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

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

Last update for Koh Phangan: October 18, 2026

Last update for Koh Lipe: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Koh Phangan

$326 31.8%

Koh Lipe

$1.2K 56.3% 262% $855

Groceries & Markets

Koh Phangan

$256 25%

Koh Lipe

$335 16% 31.2% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Koh Phangan

$126 12.3%

Koh Lipe

$146 6.9% 15.2% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Koh Phangan

$124 12.1%

Koh Lipe

$131 6.3% 6.1% $7.6

Eating Out

Koh Phangan

$109 10.6%

Koh Lipe

$193 9.2% 77.2% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Koh Phangan

$68 6.7%

Koh Lipe

$85 4.1% 25.4% $17

Getting Around

Koh Phangan

$16 * 1.5%

Koh Lipe

$26 * 1.3% 68.9% $11

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $509 in Koh Phangan and $1,835 in Koh Lipe. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $29.00 in Koh Phangan vs $52.0 in Koh Lipe for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $256 vs $335 per month, with Koh Phangan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Koh Phangan

🇹🇭 Koh Lipe

🕒 Local time

18:38 6:38 PM

Same time as Koh Phangan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

800

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Koh Phangan Koh Lipe 370 km

From you

Koh Phangan
Koh Lipe

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

Koh Phangan vs Koh Lipe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Koh Phangan wins on cost – living expenses run 105% lower than in Koh Lipe. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Koh Phangan the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,537 in Koh Phangan and $3,147 in Koh Lipe 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: $509 in Koh Phangan versus $1,835 in Koh Lipe. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $560 in Koh Phangan versus $696 in Koh Lipe. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Koh Phangan – a meal for two runs $29.00 versus $52.0 in Koh Lipe. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,024 in Koh Phangan versus $2,098 in Koh Lipe, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Koh Phangan but tight or insufficient in Koh Lipe. The gap between the two cities makes Koh Phangan 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, Koh Phangan and Koh Lipe 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 Koh Phangan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 105% less than in Koh Lipe. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.