Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mataram and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Mataram: $605 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Mataram
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Mataram Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Mataram

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$605

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $605 in Mataram versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Mataram $605
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $977 in Mataram versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Mataram $977
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,348 in Mataram versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Mataram $1,348
Phuket $3,154

Living in Mataram costs roughly 53% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mataram 56% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.00 Rp 18.0K

$4.47 ฿151

-77.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.82 Rp 159.8K

$32.41 ฿1,093

-72.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.24 Rp 58.7K

$8.81 ฿297

-63.22%

Cappuccino

$1.53 Rp 27.7K

$2.83 ฿95.4

-45.94%

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

$0.46 Rp 8,344

$0.87 ฿29.41

-47.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 Rp 5,390

$0.49 ฿16.65

-38.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.68 Rp 48.5K

$2.56 ฿86.3

4.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.36 Rp 61.0K

$3.68 ฿124

-8.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 Rp 24.9K

$1.66 ฿55.9

-17.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 Rp 26.6K

$1.46 ฿49.31

0.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.84 Rp 15.2K

$1.50 ฿50.5

-44.00%

Eggs

$1.39 Rp 25.2K

$2.09 ฿70.5

-33.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.07 Rp 146.3K

$19.07 ฿643

-57.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.85 Rp 51.7K

$3.30 ฿111

-13.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.47 Rp 135.4K

$10.91 ฿368

-31.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 Rp 37.2K

$2.93 ฿98.9

-29.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.18 Rp 21.3K

$1.69 ฿57.0

-30.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.53 Rp 27.7K

$2.25 ฿75.8

-32.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.24 Rp 22.4K

$2.08 ฿70.0

-40.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 Rp 22.9K

$1.51 ฿51.0

-16.56%

Onion (1kg)

$2.17 Rp 39.4K

$1.38 ฿46.52

57.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.79 Rp 14.3K

$1.07 ฿35.96

-26.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.39 Rp 7,106

$0.52 ฿17.51

-25.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.60 Rp 47.2K

$4.20 ฿142

-38.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.31 Rp 386.1K

$18.79 ฿634

13.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 Rp 33.0K

$1.82 ฿61.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.12 Rp 56.6K

$2.84 ฿95.8

9.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 Rp 3,809

$1.45 ฿48.98

-85.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.53 Rp 209.0K

$56.7 ฿1,912

-79.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.49 Rp 8,897

$3.02 ฿102

-83.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.37 Rp 6,626

$1.02 ฿34.33

-63.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.80 Rp 50.7K

$3.69 ฿125

-24.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.57 Rp 10.2K

$1.47 ฿49.76

-61.22%

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

$22.9K Rp 415.3M

$26.8K ฿903.4K

-14.40%

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

$29.7K Rp 538.7M

$26.7K ฿900.5K

11.38%

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

$57.9 Rp 1.0M

$96.4 ฿3,251

-39.90%

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

$3.75 Rp 67.9K

$11.26 ฿380

-66.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.52 Rp 335.6K

$16.85 ฿568

9.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.47 Rp 334.6K

$67.2 ฿2,268

-72.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.43 Rp 134.6K

$10.73 ฿362

-30.75%

Cinema Ticket

$2.73 Rp 49.5K

$7.50 ฿253

-63.60%

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

$98.6 Rp 1.8M

$476 ฿16.1K

-79.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,614 Rp 156.1M

$11.3K ฿380.0K

-23.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.36 Rp 731.4K

$62.4 ฿2,104

-35.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.06 Rp 508.4K

$28.41 ฿958

-1.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.8 Rp 1.4M

$94.3 ฿3,181

-20.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.9 Rp 1.3M

$85.8 ฿2,895

-18.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$228 Rp 4.1M

$716 ฿24.2K

-68.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$130 Rp 2.4M

$491 ฿16.6K

-73.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$516 Rp 9.3M

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-73.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$371 Rp 6.7M

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-74.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,170 Rp 21.2M

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-71.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$752 Rp 13.6M

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-75.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$217 Rp 3.9M

$502 ฿16.9K

-56.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

5.57

69.84%

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

Last update for Mataram: October 27, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Mataram

$202 33.4%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 31.9% $64

Accommodation & Living

Mataram

$130 21.4%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 279% $361

Clothing & Footwear

Mataram

$96 15.8%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 27% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mataram

$80 13.2%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 55.2% $44

Eating Out

Mataram

$59 9.8%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 106% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Mataram

$24 4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 244% $58

Getting Around

Mataram

$15 2.4%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 381% $56

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $228 in Mataram and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $9 in Mataram vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $202 vs $266 per month, with Mataram cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Mataram

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

10:29 10:29 AM

09:29 9:29 AM

1 h behind Mataram

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

402,843

79,308

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18,120 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.52 USD). 1 EUR = 20,232 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 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).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mataram Phuket 2,680 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mataram
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

Mataram vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $605 in Mataram and $1,278 in Phuket, so Mataram is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 57% lower in Mataram. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $228 in Mataram versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Mataram – a meal for two runs $9 versus $32 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $605 in Mataram versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Mataram but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Mataram 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.

Expats usually find Mataram gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.