Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Koh Phangan and Selangor

For one person, living costs are similar in Koh Phangan and in Selangor: $1,103 and $1,145 a month, rent and utilities included.

53

Cost of Living Index in Koh Phangan
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Koh Phangan Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Selangor
Learn more

Selangor Living Index

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Koh Phangan

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,103

/mo nomad

Selangor

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,145

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Selangor actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,103 in Koh Phangan versus $1,145 in Selangor.

Koh Phangan $1,103
Selangor $1,145

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,874 in Koh Phangan versus $1,656 in Selangor.

Koh Phangan $1,874
Selangor $1,656

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,646 in Koh Phangan versus $2,168 in Selangor.

Koh Phangan $2,646
Selangor $2,168

Living in Koh Phangan costs roughly 4% less than in Selangor, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Koh Phangan 19% lower, Selangor 16% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.88 ฿131

$4.23 MYR 17.28

-8.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.98 ฿979

$19.90 MYR 81.3

45.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.88 ฿266

$3.87 MYR 15.80

103.62%

Cappuccino

$2.46 ฿83.2

$2.20 MYR 8.99

11.82%

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

$0.80 ฿27.06

$0.88 MYR 3.61

-9.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.44 ฿14.90

$0.47 MYR 1.92

-6.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.25 ฿76.0

$4.51 MYR 18.44

-50.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.26 ฿110

$5.12 MYR 20.92

-36.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 ฿53.6

$1.83 MYR 7.49

-13.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 ฿46.60

$1.05 MYR 4.29

31.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 ฿48.50

$1.48 MYR 6.07

-2.70%

Eggs

$2.00 ฿67.4

$1.88 MYR 7.70

6.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.46 ฿623

$23.03 MYR 94.1

-19.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.29 ฿111

$4.96 MYR 20.27

-33.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.67 ฿360

$10.94 MYR 44.71

-2.47%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 ฿91.7

$4.13 MYR 16.87

-34.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 ฿52.0

$1.77 MYR 7.22

-12.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.07 ฿69.9

$3.45 MYR 14.12

-40.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.93 ฿65.3

$2.68 MYR 10.95

-27.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.44 ฿48.63

$1.75 MYR 7.15

-17.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.23 ฿41.67

$1.07 MYR 4.38

14.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$1.11 MYR 4.54

-3.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 ฿16.06

$0.57 MYR 2.35

-15.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.04 ฿136

$4.28 MYR 17.50

-5.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.83 ฿602

$31.12 MYR 127

-42.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 ฿57.5

$4.60 MYR 18.79

-63.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.65 ฿89.6

$5.64 MYR 23.05

-53.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.32 ฿44.64

$0.76 MYR 3.12

73.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.08 ฿1,657

$12.37 MYR 50.6

296.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 ฿88.3

$1.19 MYR 4.88

119.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 ฿32.44

$1.25 MYR 5.11

-23.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.32 ฿112

$4.37 MYR 17.84

-24.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ฿44.99

$0.75 MYR 3.05

77.33%

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

$23.5K ฿795.2K

$46.2K MYR 189.0K

-49.07%

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

$23.7K ฿799.5K

$36.0K MYR 147.1K

-34.23%

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

$98.0 ฿3,311

$76.2 MYR 311

28.67%

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

$11.12 ฿376

$10.68 MYR 43.66

4.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.94 ฿572

$30.89 MYR 126

-45.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.7 ฿2,286

$39.74 MYR 162

70.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.81 ฿365

$7.00 MYR 28.62

54.43%

Cinema Ticket

$7.68 ฿259

$5.92 MYR 24.19

29.73%

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

$478 ฿16.2K

$121 MYR 493

296.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿391.7K

$7,093 MYR 29.0K

63.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.1 ฿2,098

$116 MYR 473

-46.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.52 ฿963

$65.8 MYR 269

-56.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,242

$78.7 MYR 322

22.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.5 ฿2,922

$82.0 MYR 335

5.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$498 ฿16.8K

$510 MYR 2,084

-2.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$348 ฿11.7K

$346 MYR 1,413

0.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,349 ฿45.6K

$894 MYR 3,655

50.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,007 ฿34.0K

$485 MYR 1,982

107.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,927 ฿98.8K

$1,787 MYR 7,303

63.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,098 ฿70.9K

$1,015 MYR 4,147

106.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$724 ฿24.4K

$1,048 MYR 4,285

-30.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.96

40.66%

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

Last update for Koh Phangan: October 25, 2026

Last update for Selangor: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Koh Phangan

$348 31.6%

Selangor

$346 30.2% 0.6% $2.1

Groceries & Markets

Koh Phangan

$254 23.1%

Selangor

$343 29.9% 34.8% $88

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Koh Phangan

$126 11.4%

Selangor

$118 10.3% 6.6% $8.3

Clothing & Footwear

Koh Phangan

$123 11.1%

Selangor

$154 13.5% 25.2% $31

Eating Out

Koh Phangan

$107 9.7%

Selangor

$110 9.6% 2.8% $3

Sport & Entertainment

Koh Phangan

$83 7.5%

Selangor

$52 4.5% 37.9% $31

Getting Around

Koh Phangan

$62 5.6%

Selangor

$23 2% 63% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $498 in Koh Phangan and $510 in Selangor. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Selangor pays 45% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $29 in Koh Phangan vs $20 in Selangor. Groceries flip the comparison at $254 vs $343, with Koh Phangan cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Koh Phangan

🇲🇾 Selangor

🕒 Local time

21:05 9:05 PM

22:05 10:05 PM

1 h ahead of Koh Phangan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

281,717

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.09 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.55 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Koh Phangan Selangor 730 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Koh Phangan
Selangor

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 Selangor: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Koh Phangan and Selangor differ by about 4% in total monthly costs ($1,103 vs $1,145 including rent). Koh Phangan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 31% lower in Koh Phangan. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $498 in Koh Phangan versus $510 in Selangor. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Selangor – a meal for two runs $20 versus $29 in Koh Phangan. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,103 per month in Koh Phangan versus $1,145 in Selangor – a 4% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Koh Phangan gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Selangor are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

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