Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Male and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,530 in Male, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Male
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Male Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Male

🇲🇻 Maldives

$1,530

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,530 in Male versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Male $1,530
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,451 in Male versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Male $2,451
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,373 in Male versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Male $3,373
Phuket $2,867

Living in Male is roughly 27% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Male is 13% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.82 MVR 89.7

$4.58 ฿153

27.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.04 MVR 602

$32.48 ฿1,086

20.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.84 MVR 152

$8.55 ฿286

15.09%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.80 MVR 74.0

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.89 MVR 75.5

Cappuccino

$3.51 MVR 54.1

$2.72 ฿91.0

29.04%

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

$1.67 MVR 25.69

$0.94 ฿31.25

77.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 MVR 4.80

$0.49 ฿16.39

-36.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

Milk (1 liter)

$1.99 MVR 30.68

$1.74 ฿58.1

14.37%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 MVR 26.08

$1.43 ฿47.82

18.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.25 MVR 19.33

$1.53 ฿51.0

-18.30%

Eggs

$1.88 MVR 29.07

$2.17 ฿72.7

-13.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.61 MVR 164

$19.15 ฿640

-44.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.16 MVR 95.0

$3.30 ฿110

86.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.56 MVR 147

$11.14 ฿372

-14.18%

Apples (1kg)

$3.98 MVR 61.4

$2.95 ฿98.5

34.92%

Banana (1kg)

$2.98 MVR 45.98

$1.68 ฿56.1

77.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.03 MVR 62.1

$2.30 ฿76.8

75.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.73 MVR 42.16

$2.13 ฿71.3

28.17%

Potato (1kg)

$2.08 MVR 32.01

$1.53 ฿51.1

35.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 MVR 28.77

$1.36 ฿45.55

37.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.12 MVR 32.73

$1.12 ฿37.44

89.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 MVR 9.09

$0.55 ฿18.24

7.27%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.47 MVR 192

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 MVR 40.81

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 MVR 29.47

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$15.18 MVR 234

$4.26 ฿142

256.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.67 MVR 10.26

$2.22 ฿74.1

-69.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.32 MVR 467

$22.06 ฿737

37.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.99 MVR 30.69

$2.91 ฿97.3

-31.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.98 MVR 30.55

$1.01 ฿33.79

96.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.20 MVR 157

$3.83 ฿128

166.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 MVR 15.19

$1.49 ฿49.85

-34.23%

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

$32.1K MVR 495.0K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

20.33%

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

$29.2K MVR 451.0K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

9.50%

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

$119 MVR 1,829

$99.4 ฿3,321

19.36%

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

$30.12 MVR 465

$11.28 ฿377

167.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.9 MVR 1,140

$17.36 ฿580

325.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.4 MVR 1,100

$52.3 ฿1,747

36.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$33.67 MVR 519

$10.85 ฿362

210.32%

Cinema Ticket

$9.76 MVR 150

$7.57 ฿253

28.93%

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

$181 MVR 2,797

$558 ฿18.7K

-67.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,056 MVR 47.1K

$11.5K ฿383.9K

-73.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.52 MVR 609

$62.9 ฿2,102

-37.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.45 MVR 763

$28.58 ฿955

73.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.8 MVR 1,323

$96.1 ฿3,213

-10.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.6 MVR 812

$88.1 ฿2,943

-40.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$938 MVR 14.5K

$729 ฿24.4K

28.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$709 MVR 10.9K

$460 ฿15.4K

54.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,012 MVR 31.0K

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-3.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,570 MVR 24.2K

$1,222 ฿40.8K

28.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,213 MVR 34.1K

$3,459 ฿115.6K

-36.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,385 MVR 21.4K

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-44.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$842 MVR 13.0K

$493 ฿16.5K

70.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

151.35%

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

Last update for Male: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Male

$709 46.4%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 35.2% $249

Groceries & Markets

Male

$234 15.3%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 14.5% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Male

$223 14.6%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 42.5% $95

Eating Out

Male

$126 8.2%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 3.8% $4.8

Clothing & Footwear

Male

$102 6.7%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 21.2% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Male

$91 5.9%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 25.8% $23

Getting Around

Male

$45 2.9%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 13.3% $6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $938 in Male and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Male pays 71% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $39.00 in Male vs $32.00 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $234 vs $268, with Male cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇻 Male

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

16:36 4:36 PM

18:36 6:36 PM

2 h ahead of Male

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

103,693 Capital

79,308

💱 Currency

Maldivian Rufiyaa MVR Rf

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 MVR = 6.49 USD

100 MVR = 5.77 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to MVR – Maldivian Rufiyaa Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇻 Maldivian Rufiyaa (Rf)

Maldivian Rufiyaa exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 15.42 MVR (100 MVR = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 17.34 MVR (100 MVR = 5.77 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to MVR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Male Phuket 2,780 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Male
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

Male vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, utilities, and leisure. The 27% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 71% higher in Male, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $938 in Male versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,530 per month in Male versus $1,207 in Phuket – a 27% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 37% less than in Male. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,530 in Male, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Male. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Male, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Male 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 27% less than in Male. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.