Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,190 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $34,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $4,086 per month in London vs $1,190 in Phuket, rent included.

London $4,086
Phuket $1,190

A couple spends around $5,816 per month in London vs $2,006 in Phuket, rent included.

London $5,816
Phuket $2,006

A family of three spends $7,546 per month in London vs $2,822 in Phuket, rent included.

London $7,546
Phuket $2,822

London costs about 243% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

London sits 205% above the global median, while Phuket is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$4.35 ฿146

511.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$32.45 ฿1,087

231.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$8.42 ฿282

23.40%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$2.81 ฿94.0

106.05%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$0.87 ฿29.29

245.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$0.46 ฿15.39

367.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$2.59 ฿86.6

261.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$3.64 ฿122

115.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.71 ฿57.2

4.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$1.45 ฿48.42

42.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$1.56 ฿52.3

48.08%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$2.10 ฿70.3

140.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$19.53 ฿654

-35.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$3.40 ฿114

213.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$11.14 ฿373

53.77%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$2.83 ฿94.8

7.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.62 ฿54.3

-12.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$2.22 ฿74.5

37.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$2.15 ฿71.9

57.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.49 ฿49.95

12.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.33 ฿44.40

30.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.07 ฿35.72

31.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$0.51 ฿17.01

250.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$4.38 ฿147

430.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$18.77 ฿629

-30.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$1.74 ฿58.3

82.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$2.78 ฿92.9

58.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$2.17 ฿72.6

78.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$22.28 ฿746

1022.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$3.02 ฿101

89.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$1.06 ฿35.43

214.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$3.71 ฿124

1460.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$1.43 ฿47.88

42.66%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$26.3K ฿882.1K

42.52%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$26.2K ฿877.3K

56.07%

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

$376 £284

$96.7 ฿3,236

289.09%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$11.41 ฿382

56.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$17.11 ฿573

133.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$52.8 ฿1,768

15.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$11.07 ฿371

90.33%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$7.65 ฿256

134.64%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$555 ฿18.6K

416.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$11.3K ฿377.7K

213.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$63.4 ฿2,123

82.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$28.61 ฿958

89.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$96.7 ฿3,238

30.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$88.6 ฿2,967

79.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$735 ฿24.6K

288.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$458 ฿15.3K

402.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$2,102 ฿70.4K

147.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$1,187 ฿39.7K

213.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$3,493 ฿116.9K

444.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$2,491 ฿83.4K

216.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$501 ฿16.8K

861.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

5.57

-16.52%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Phuket

$458 38.1% 80.1% $1.8K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Phuket

$125 10.4% 71.2% $309

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Phuket

$119 9.9% 69.9% $277

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Phuket

$268 22.3% 23.3% $81

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 86.4% $249

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Phuket

$125 10.4% 39.2% $80

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Phuket

$68 5.7% 29.8% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,853 in London versus $735 in Phuket. 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 862% higher in London, 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 $108 in London versus $32.00 in Phuket. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $268 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

16:41 4:41 PM

6 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

79,308

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

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).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Phuket 9,910 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

London
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

London vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $4,086 in London, $1,190 in Phuket – roughly 243% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,129 per month in London and $1,785 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 30% more in London, 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 $108 in London and $32.00 in Phuket. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,190, than in London at $4,086. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,190 in Phuket to $4,086 in London. 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 Phuket. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.