Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mangaf and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Mangaf: $1,064 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Mangaf, Kuwait
Phuket, Thailand
Mangaf
🇰🇼 Kuwait
$1,064
/mo nomad
Phuket
🇹🇭 Thailand
$1,278
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,064 per month in Mangaf vs $1,278 in Phuket, rent included.

  • Mangaf $1,064
  • Phuket $1,278

A couple spends around $1,346 per month in Mangaf vs $2,216 in Phuket, rent included.

  • Mangaf $1,346
  • Phuket $2,216

A family of three spends $1,629 per month in Mangaf vs $3,154 in Phuket, rent included.

  • Mangaf $1,629
  • Phuket $3,154

Mangaf is about 17% cheaper than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Mangaf and Phuket are more affordable than the global median – Mangaf 22% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$6.46 KWD 1.99
$4.47 ฿151
44.52%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$65.5 KWD 20.20
$32.41 ฿1,093
102.22%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.49 KWD 2.00
$8.81 ฿297
-26.33%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.18 KWD 0.98
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.80 KWD 1.48
-
-
Cappuccino
$4.70 KWD 1.45
$2.83 ฿95.4
66.08%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.32 KWD 0.10
$0.87 ฿29.41
-63.22%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.31 KWD 0.10
$0.49 ฿16.65
-36.73%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$2.56 ฿86.3
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$3.68 ฿124
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.64 KWD 0.51
$1.66 ฿55.9
-1.20%
White Bread (500g)
$1.51 KWD 0.47
$1.46 ฿49.31
3.42%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.91 KWD 0.59
$1.50 ฿50.5
27.33%
Eggs
$2.11 KWD 0.65
$2.09 ฿70.5
0.96%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$4.28 KWD 1.32
$19.07 ฿643
-77.56%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.50 KWD 2.00
$3.30 ฿111
96.97%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.25 KWD 3.16
$10.91 ฿368
-6.05%
Apples (1kg)
$2.40 KWD 0.74
$2.93 ฿98.9
-18.09%
Banana (1kg)
$1.84 KWD 0.57
$1.69 ฿57.0
8.88%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.85 KWD 0.57
$2.25 ฿75.8
-17.78%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.54 KWD 0.48
$2.08 ฿70.0
-25.96%
Potato (1kg)
$1.37 KWD 0.42
$1.51 ฿51.0
-9.27%
Onion (1kg)
$1.47 KWD 0.45
$1.38 ฿46.52
6.52%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.26 KWD 0.70
$1.07 ฿35.96
111.21%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.47 KWD 0.14
$0.52 ฿17.51
-9.62%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
$3.15 KWD 0.97
-
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.05 KWD 0.32
-
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.38 KWD 0.42
-
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.76 KWD 0.85
$4.20 ฿142
-34.29%
Wine (Bottle)
-
$18.79 ฿634
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.82 ฿61.5
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$2.84 ฿95.8
-
🚌 Getting Around
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$1.45 ฿48.98
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$56.7 ฿1,912
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.97 KWD 1.53
$3.02 ฿102
64.57%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.16 KWD 0.97
$1.02 ฿34.33
209.80%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$16.39 KWD 5.05
$3.69 ฿125
344.17%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.32 KWD 0.10
$1.47 ฿49.76
-78.23%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$22.9K KWD 7,073
$26.8K ฿903.4K
-14.29%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.4K KWD 5,972
$26.7K ฿900.5K
-27.40%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$64.3 KWD 19.82
$96.4 ฿3,251
-33.24%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.96 KWD 7.07
$11.26 ฿380
103.91%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$30.05 KWD 9.26
$16.85 ฿568
78.34%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$48.05 KWD 14.81
$67.2 ฿2,268
-28.53%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$10.73 ฿362
-
Cinema Ticket
$12.64 KWD 3.90
$7.50 ฿253
68.53%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$504 KWD 155
$476 ฿16.1K
5.89%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$9,376 KWD 2,890
$11.3K ฿380.0K
-16.75%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$38.27 KWD 11.80
$62.4 ฿2,104
-38.63%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.75 KWD 11.94
$28.41 ฿958
36.40%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$96.5 KWD 29.75
$94.3 ฿3,181
2.38%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$87.3 KWD 26.89
$85.8 ฿2,895
1.70%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$242 KWD 74.5
$716 ฿24.2K
-66.24%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$422 KWD 130
$491 ฿16.6K
-14.14%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,927 ฿65.0K
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
-
$1,431 ฿48.3K
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$4,175 ฿140.9K
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$3,045 ฿102.7K
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Mangaf
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$502 ฿16.9K
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.53
5.57
17.24%

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

Last update for Mangaf: 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
Mangaf
$422
Phuket
$491 16.5% $69
Groceries & Markets
Mangaf
$184
Phuket
$266 45.1% $83
Eating Out
Mangaf
$130
Phuket
$122 6.4% $8.3
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Mangaf
$117
Phuket
$124 6.1% $7.1
Clothing & Footwear
Mangaf
$117
Phuket
$122 3.9% $4.5
Sport & Entertainment
Mangaf
$73
Phuket
$82 12.1% $8.9
Getting Around
Mangaf
$21 *
Phuket
$71 240% $50

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $242 in Mangaf versus $716 in Phuket. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $66 in Mangaf versus $32 in Phuket. Groceries tell a different story – $184 in Mangaf vs $266 in Phuket – so Mangaf wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know
🇰🇼 Mangaf
🇹🇭 Phuket
🕒 Local time
07:13 7:13 AM
11:13 11:13 AM
4 h ahead of Mangaf
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
39,025
79,308
💱 Currency
Kuwaiti Dinar KWD د.ك
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to KWD – Kuwaiti Dinar Converter

Kuwaiti Dinar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.308 KWD (1 KWD = 3.24 USD). 1 EUR = 0.344 KWD (1 KWD = 2.91 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Mangaf Phuket 5,750 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Mangaf
  • 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
Mangaf vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Mangaf cheaper than Phuket?
Yes – Phuket is pricier by about 20%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,596 per month in Mangaf and $1,917 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Mangaf, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $242 there versus $716 in Phuket.
Is eating out cheaper in Mangaf or in Phuket?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $66 in Mangaf and $32 in Phuket. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Mangaf and in Phuket?
Groceries cost about 45% more in Phuket, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Is $1,500 enough for either Mangaf or Phuket?
$1,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,064 in Mangaf and $1,278 in Phuket, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.
Is it better to live in Mangaf or in Phuket?
It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,064 in Mangaf to $1,278 in Phuket. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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