Cost of Living Comparison Between Lae and Phuket Cost of Living Comparison Between Lae and Phuket

🙂 Solo nomad: Lae is 32.5% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 1% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Lae is 23.8% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 58.7% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Lae
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.68 PGK 43.6
$4.68 ฿151
128.21%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$55.7 PGK 227
$46.4 ฿1,502
20.06%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
-
$8.65 ฿280
-
Cappuccino
$2.92 PGK 11.94
$3.09 ฿100
-5.50%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 PGK 3.55
$0.73 ฿23.53
19.18%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.59 PGK 2.4
$0.37 ฿11.95
59.46%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.68 PGK 15
$2.39 ฿77.4
53.97%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.63 PGK 22.99
$3.62 ฿117
55.52%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Lae
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.11 PGK 8.61
$2.24 ฿72.5
-5.80%
White Bread (500g)
$1.55 PGK 6.33
$1.8 ฿58.2
-13.89%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.42 PGK 5.78
$2.24 ฿72.3
-36.61%
Eggs
$4.32 PGK 17.63
$2.23 ฿72.1
93.72%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.09 PGK 41.21
$19.31 ฿625
-47.75%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.62 PGK 39.28
$3.77 ฿122
155.17%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.32 PGK 46.21
$13.05 ฿422
-13.26%
Apples (1kg)
$4.71 PGK 19.24
$3.28 ฿106
43.60%
Banana (1kg)
$2.93 PGK 11.95
$1.63 ฿52.6
79.75%
Oranges (1kg)
$6.41 PGK 26.17
$2.4 ฿77.7
167.08%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.64 PGK 6.69
$1.99 ฿64.3
-17.59%
Potato (1kg)
$3.67 PGK 14.96
$1.53 ฿49.62
139.87%
Onion (1kg)
$2.55 PGK 10.4
$1.49 ฿48.11
71.14%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.75 PGK 3.07
$1.02 ฿32.87
-26.47%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.94 PGK 3.84
$0.48 ฿15.61
95.83%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.02 PGK 28.68
$4.32 ฿140
62.50%
Wine (Bottle)
$13.11 PGK 53.5
$21.68 ฿702
-39.53%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.7 PGK 11.04
$1.77 ฿57.3
52.54%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.8 PGK 19.58
$2.79 ฿90.4
72.04%
🚌 Getting Around
Lae
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.34 PGK 1.41
$1.35 ฿43.74
-74.81%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$11.76 ฿380
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
-
$3.15 ฿102
-
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
-
$1 ฿32.3
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
-
$13.64 ฿442
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.16 PGK 4.72
$1.3 ฿42.2
-10.77%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
-
$27.4K ฿885.2K
-
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
-
$33.9K ฿1.1M
-
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lae
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
-
$123 ฿3,970
-
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
-
$13.93 ฿451
-
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
-
$18.24 ฿590
-
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Lae
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$60.8 ฿1,966
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$17.11 ฿554
-
Cinema Ticket
-
$9.07 ฿294
-
🧸 Childcare & Education
Lae
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
-
$694 ฿22.5K
-
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
-
$15.9K ฿514.4K
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Lae
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
-
$57.5 ฿1,861
-
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
-
$34.51 ฿1,117
-
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
-
$115 ฿3,727
-
Men's Leather Business Shoes
-
$84.8 ฿2,743
-
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Lae
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$7,981 PGK 32.6K
$611 ฿19.8K
1206.11%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$736 PGK 3,004
$442 ฿14.3K
66.37%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,456 PGK 5,942
$2,014 ฿65.2K
-27.74%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,460 ฿47.2K
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,244 ฿137.3K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$2,886 ฿93.4K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Lae
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$164 PGK 669
$697 ฿22.5K
-76.48%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
0
5.33
-

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

Last update for Lae: October 28, 2025

Last update for Phuket: October 29, 2025

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