Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Koh Samui and Singapore

For one person, living is cheaper in Koh Samui: $1,183 a month against $3,454 in Singapore, rent and utilities included – about $27,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Koh Samui
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Koh Samui Living Index
168

Cost of Living Index in Singapore
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Singapore Living Index

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Koh Samui

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,183

/mo nomad

Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore

$3,454

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Koh Samui and in Singapore

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

A single person spends $1,183 per month in Koh Samui vs $3,454 in Singapore, rent included.

Koh Samui $1,183
Singapore $3,454

A couple spends around $1,939 per month in Koh Samui vs $5,224 in Singapore, rent included.

Koh Samui $1,939
Singapore $5,224

A family of three spends $2,694 per month in Koh Samui vs $6,994 in Singapore, rent included.

Koh Samui $2,694
Singapore $6,994

Koh Samui is about 66% cheaper than Singapore, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Koh Samui sits 12% below the global median, while Singapore is 158% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.36 ฿146

$11.53 SGD 14.77

-62.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.80 ฿1,098

$71.2 SGD 91.2

-53.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.50 ฿285

$8.76 SGD 11.22

-2.97%

Cappuccino

$2.73 ฿91.3

$5.25 SGD 6.73

-48.00%

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

$0.94 ฿31.60

$1.83 SGD 2.34

-48.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.59

$1.25 SGD 1.60

-60.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.54 ฿84.9

$8.42 SGD 10.78

-69.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 ฿125

$10.02 SGD 12.83

-62.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$2.94 SGD 3.76

-40.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿48.79

$2.47 SGD 3.16

-40.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.2

$2.71 SGD 3.47

-42.44%

Eggs

$2.10 ฿70.3

$3.73 SGD 4.77

-43.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.60 ฿656

$21.54 SGD 27.57

-9.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.27 ฿110

$9.52 SGD 12.19

-65.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.94 ฿366

$25.98 SGD 33.26

-57.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 ฿99.0

$4.48 SGD 5.74

-33.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.5

$3.11 SGD 3.99

-45.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 ฿74.2

$4.62 SGD 5.92

-51.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 ฿70.3

$2.23 SGD 2.86

-5.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿48.79

$2.50 SGD 3.20

-41.60%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.53

$2.38 SGD 3.05

-44.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 ฿37.27

$1.78 SGD 2.28

-37.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.97

$1.51 SGD 1.93

-66.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.23 ฿142

$14.18 SGD 18.15

-70.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿611

$23.79 SGD 30.47

-23.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.3

$4.51 SGD 5.78

-61.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 ฿95.9

$4.57 SGD 5.86

-37.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.46 ฿82.5

$1.58 SGD 2.03

55.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.15 ฿1,512

$96.4 SGD 123

-53.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 ฿103

$3.63 SGD 4.65

-15.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.62

$0.80 SGD 1.02

32.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.89 ฿130

$16.18 SGD 20.71

-75.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ฿50.3

$2.51 SGD 3.21

-40.24%

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

$28.2K ฿944.4K

$155.9K SGD 199.6K

-81.90%

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

$27.7K ฿925.9K

$145.8K SGD 186.6K

-81.03%

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

$102 ฿3,405

$175 SGD 224

-41.89%

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

$11.78 ฿394

$12.45 SGD 15.94

-5.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.76 ฿595

$26.64 SGD 34.10

-33.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 ฿1,812

$112 SGD 143

-51.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.53 ฿386

$12.07 SGD 15.45

-4.47%

Cinema Ticket

$7.73 ฿259

$11.60 SGD 14.85

-33.36%

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

$615 ฿20.6K

$1,463 SGD 1,874

-57.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K ฿415.9K

$28.4K SGD 36.3K

-56.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.9 ฿2,073

$81.5 SGD 104

-23.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.96 ฿969

$50.6 SGD 64.8

-42.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.6 ฿3,167

$112 SGD 143

-15.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.2 ฿2,951

$130 SGD 166

-32.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$619 ฿20.7K

$2,916 SGD 3,734

-78.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$389 ฿13.0K

$2,128 SGD 2,724

-81.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,761 ฿59.0K

$5,654 SGD 7,239

-68.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,025 ฿34.3K

$3,968 SGD 5,080

-74.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,971 ฿99.5K

$23.6K SGD 30.2K

-87.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,176 ฿72.8K

$16.8K SGD 21.5K

-87.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$397 ฿13.3K

$4,369 SGD 5,594

-90.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.44

128.28%

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

Last update for Koh Samui: October 5, 2026

Last update for Singapore: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Koh Samui

$389 33.5%

Singapore

$2.1K 61.4% 447% $1.7K

Groceries & Markets

Koh Samui

$267 23%

Singapore

$457 13.2% 71.1% $190

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Koh Samui

$131 11.3%

Singapore

$214 6.2% 63.1% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Koh Samui

$123 10.6%

Singapore

$168 4.9% 36.5% $45

Eating Out

Koh Samui

$119 10.2%

Singapore

$256 7.4% 115% $137

Sport & Entertainment

Koh Samui

$70 6%

Singapore

$135 3.9% 93.6% $65

Getting Around

Koh Samui

$63 5.5%

Singapore

$110 3.2% 74% $47

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $619 in Koh Samui versus $2,916 in Singapore. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 1001% higher in Singapore, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $33.00 in Koh Samui versus $71.0 in Singapore. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $267 vs $457 – making Koh Samui the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Koh Samui

🇸🇬 Singapore

🕒 Local time

09:41 9:41 AM

10:41 10:41 AM

1 h ahead of Koh Samui

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

62,110

5,535,002 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Singapore Dollar SGD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 SGD = 0.781 USD

1 SGD = 0.696 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SGD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Singapore Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.28 SGD (1 SGD = 0.781 USD). 1 EUR = 1.44 SGD (1 SGD = 0.696 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Koh Samui Singapore 1,010 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Koh Samui
Singapore

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 Samui vs Singapore: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,183 in Koh Samui, $3,454 in Singapore – roughly 192% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,775 per month in Koh Samui and $5,180 in Singapore. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Koh Samui, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 71% more in Singapore, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $33.00 in Koh Samui and $71.0 in Singapore. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Koh Samui, where all-in costs run around $1,183, than in Singapore at $3,454. In Koh Samui it covers expenses comfortably, while in Singapore it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Koh Samui has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,183 in Koh Samui to $3,454 in Singapore. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Koh Samui. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Singapore makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.