Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kununurra and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,371 in Kununurra, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

122

Cost of Living Index in Kununurra
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Kununurra Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Kununurra

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,371

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,371 in Kununurra versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Kununurra $2,371
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,541 in Kununurra versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Kununurra $3,541
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,711 in Kununurra versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Kununurra $4,711
Phuket $3,154

Living in Kununurra is roughly 86% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Kununurra is 74% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.09 A$22.86

$4.47 ฿151

259.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.5 A$117

$32.41 ฿1,094

154.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.02 A$17.07

$8.81 ฿297

36.44%

Cappuccino

$4.18 A$5.94

$2.83 ฿95.5

47.70%

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

$2.83 A$4.02

$0.87 ฿29.43

225.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 A$2.79

$0.49 ฿16.67

300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.61 A$9.40

$2.56 ฿86.4

158.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.67 A$10.90

$3.68 ฿124

108.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 A$2.16

$1.66 ฿56.0

-8.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.72 A$3.86

$1.46 ฿49.35

86.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.29 A$3.25

$1.50 ฿50.6

52.67%

Eggs

$5.49 A$7.80

$2.09 ฿70.5

162.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.16 A$13.01

$19.07 ฿644

-51.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.44 A$13.42

$3.30 ฿111

186.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.75 A$20.96

$10.91 ฿368

35.20%

Apples (1kg)

$3.76 A$5.35

$2.93 ฿99.0

28.33%

Banana (1kg)

$3.12 A$4.44

$1.69 ฿57.1

84.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.65

$2.25 ฿75.8

45.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.56 A$6.48

$2.08 ฿70.1

119.23%

Potato (1kg)

$2.65 A$3.77

$1.51 ฿51.0

75.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.38 A$3.39

$1.38 ฿46.56

72.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.41 A$3.42

$1.07 ฿35.99

125.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 A$2.17

$0.52 ฿17.52

194.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$26.81 A$38.09

$4.20 ฿142

538.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.89 A$19.74

$18.79 ฿634

-26.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.86 A$6.91

$1.82 ฿61.5

167.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 A$7.33

$2.84 ฿95.9

81.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.45 A$3.48

$1.45 ฿49.03

68.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.3 A$120

$56.7 ฿1,913

48.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.80 A$5.40

$3.02 ฿102

25.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 A$2.53

$1.02 ฿34.36

74.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.87 A$51.0

$3.69 ฿125

872.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 A$1.94

$1.47 ฿49.81

-7.48%

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

$28.5K A$40.5K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

6.43%

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

$22.6K A$32.1K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-15.45%

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

$209 A$297

$96.4 ฿3,254

117.20%

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

$27.61 A$39.23

$11.26 ฿380

145.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.8 A$82.1

$16.85 ฿569

242.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.8 A$80.7

$67.2 ฿2,270

-15.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.06 A$22.82

$10.73 ฿362

49.67%

Cinema Ticket

$12.94 A$18.39

$7.50 ฿253

72.53%

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

$2,289 A$3,252

$476 ฿16.1K

380.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.0K A$32.7K

$11.3K ฿380.4K

104.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$75.8 A$108

$62.4 ฿2,106

21.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.66 A$67.7

$28.41 ฿959

67.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 A$152

$94.3 ฿3,184

13.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 A$168

$85.8 ฿2,898

37.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 A$1,999

$716 ฿24.2K

96.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,079 A$1,533

$491 ฿16.6K

119.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,336 A$3,319

$1,927 ฿65.1K

21.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,827 A$2,596

$1,431 ฿48.3K

27.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,605 A$7,964

$4,175 ฿141.0K

34.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,305 A$7,537

$3,045 ฿102.8K

74.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

5.57

5.92%

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

Last update for Kununurra: October 27, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kununurra

$1.1K 45.5%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 54.5% $588

Groceries & Markets

Kununurra

$369 15.6%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 27.8% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kununurra

$295 12.4%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 57.8% $170

Eating Out

Kununurra

$283 11.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 56.9% $161

Clothing & Footwear

Kununurra

$157 6.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 22.2% $35

Getting Around

Kununurra

$107 4.5%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 33.9% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Kununurra

$83 3.5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 0.5% $0.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,407 in Kununurra and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $82 in Kununurra vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $369 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Kununurra

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

23:44 11:44 PM

22:44 10:44 PM

1 h behind Kununurra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,300

79,308

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.704 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

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).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kununurra Phuket 4,250 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Kununurra
Phuket

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

Kununurra vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 46% lower than in Kununurra. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $3,557 in Kununurra and $1,917 in Phuket 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: $1,407 in Kununurra versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $82 in Kununurra. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,371 per month in Kununurra versus $1,278 in Phuket – a 86% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,371 in Kununurra, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Kununurra. 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, Kununurra 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 46% less than in Kununurra. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.