Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Koh Phangan and Surin

For one person, living is cheaper in Surin: $869 a month against $1,024 in Koh Phangan, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Koh Phangan
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Koh Phangan Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Surin
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Surin Living Index

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Koh Phangan

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,024

/mo nomad

Surin

🇹🇭 Thailand

$869

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,024 in Koh Phangan versus $869 in Surin.

Koh Phangan $1,024
Surin $869

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,693 in Koh Phangan versus $1,444 in Surin.

Koh Phangan $1,693
Surin $1,444

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,361 in Koh Phangan versus $2,018 in Surin.

Koh Phangan $2,361
Surin $2,018

Living in Koh Phangan is roughly 18% more expensive than in Surin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Koh Phangan 24% lower, Surin 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.97 ฿133

$3.03 ฿101

31.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.08 ฿972

$24.70 ฿826

17.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.90 ฿264

$7.23 ฿242

9.27%

Cappuccino

$2.53 ฿84.5

$1.74 ฿58.3

45.40%

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

$0.87 ฿28.98

$0.61 ฿20.30

42.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.42 ฿13.98

$0.33 ฿10.89

27.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.21 ฿73.9

$2.20 ฿73.5

0.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 ฿115

$3.42 ฿114

0.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ฿52.9

$1.57 ฿52.4

0.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.39 ฿46.52

$1.31 ฿43.79

6.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.0

$1.47 ฿48.98

2.04%

Eggs

$2.05 ฿68.5

$1.90 ฿63.5

7.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.33 ฿613

$17.41 ฿582

5.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.31 ฿111

$2.48 ฿83.0

33.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.35 ฿346

$8.89 ฿297

16.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 ฿93.9

$2.57 ฿86.0

9.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 ฿55.3

$1.02 ฿34.23

62.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.11 ฿70.4

$2.48 ฿82.9

-14.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.5

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿48.81

$1.44 ฿48.20

1.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.32 ฿44.04

$0.95 ฿31.77

38.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 ฿35.46

$0.94 ฿31.37

12.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.45

$0.44 ฿14.59

18.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿140

$4.27 ฿143

-1.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.36 ฿580

$16.36 ฿547

6.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 ฿58.7

$1.57 ฿52.4

12.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 ฿89.4

$3.01 ฿100

-11.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.06 ฿68.9

$0.92 ฿30.79

123.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.64 ฿88.3

$1.37 ฿45.65

92.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ฿30.81

$1.01 ฿33.73

-8.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.47 ฿116

$6.04 ฿202

-42.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 ฿44.17

$1.35 ฿45.06

-2.22%

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

$23.8K ฿796.2K

$22.7K ฿758.4K

4.99%

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

$24.5K ฿818.5K

$27.1K ฿904.4K

-9.50%

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

$98.4 ฿3,287

$77.8 ฿2,601

26.41%

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

$11.11 ฿371

$11.53 ฿385

-3.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.91 ฿565

$18.68 ฿624

-9.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ฿1,764

$41.58 ฿1,390

26.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.82 ฿362

$11.45 ฿383

-5.50%

Cinema Ticket

$7.69 ฿257

$6.51 ฿218

18.13%

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

$560 ฿18.7K

$628 ฿21.0K

-10.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K ฿391.0K

$12.1K ฿405.0K

-3.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.7 ฿2,129

$53.1 ฿1,773

20.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.59 ฿955

$27.95 ฿934

2.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.9 ฿3,205

$73.3 ฿2,451

30.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.9 ฿2,905

$68.0 ฿2,274

27.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.0K

$440 ฿14.7K

15.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$326 ฿10.9K

$273 ฿9,126

19.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,464 ฿48.9K

$1,185 ฿39.6K

23.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$833 ฿27.8K

$714 ฿23.9K

16.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,509 ฿83.9K

$1,730 ฿57.8K

45.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,781 ฿59.5K

$1,518 ฿50.7K

17.35%

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 Surin: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Koh Phangan

$326 31.8%

Surin

$273 31.4% 16.3% $53

Groceries & Markets

Koh Phangan

$256 25%

Surin

$235 27% 8.2% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Koh Phangan

$126 12.3%

Surin

$108 12.4% 14.5% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Koh Phangan

$124 12.1%

Surin

$100 11.5% 19.2% $24

Eating Out

Koh Phangan

$109 10.6%

Surin

$88 10.2% 18.7% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Koh Phangan

$68 6.7%

Surin

$55 6.3% 19.9% $14

Getting Around

Koh Phangan

$16 * 1.5%

Surin

$10 * 1.2% 34.8% $5.4

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 $440 in Surin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $29.00 in Koh Phangan vs $25.00 in Surin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $256 vs $235 per month, with Surin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Koh Phangan

🇹🇭 Surin

🕒 Local time

10:18 10:18 AM

Same time as Koh Phangan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

40,104

💱 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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Highest

Between locations

Koh Phangan Surin 680 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Koh Phangan
Surin

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 Surin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Koh Phangan and Surin differ by about 18% in total monthly costs ($1,024 vs $869 including rent). Surin is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,537 in Koh Phangan and $1,303 in Surin 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 $440 in Surin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Koh Phangan. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,024 per month in Koh Phangan versus $869 in Surin – a 18% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $869 in Surin versus $1,024 in Koh Phangan, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Surin but tight or insufficient in Koh Phangan. The gap between the two cities makes Surin 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 Surin 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 Surin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Koh Phangan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.