Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medan and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Medan: $613 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Medan
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Medan Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Medan

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$613

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $613 in Medan versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Medan $613
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $940 in Medan versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Medan $940
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,266 in Medan versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Medan $1,266
Phuket $2,867

Living in Medan costs roughly 49% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Medan 55% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.71 Rp 30.8K

$4.58 ฿153

-62.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$8.30 Rp 149.4K

$32.48 ฿1,086

-74.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.95 Rp 53.0K

$8.55 ฿286

-65.50%

Cappuccino

$1.53 Rp 27.5K

$2.72 ฿91.0

-43.75%

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

$0.35 Rp 6,215

$0.94 ฿31.25

-62.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 Rp 4,534

$0.49 ฿16.39

-48.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.66 Rp 29.9K

$2.59 ฿86.6

-35.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Rp 64.6K

$3.83 ฿128

-6.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 Rp 20.0K

$1.74 ฿58.1

-36.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 Rp 21.2K

$1.43 ฿47.82

-17.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.81 Rp 14.7K

$1.53 ฿51.0

-47.06%

Eggs

$1.32 Rp 23.8K

$2.17 ฿72.7

-39.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.12 Rp 146.2K

$19.15 ฿640

-57.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.59 Rp 64.6K

$3.30 ฿110

8.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.36 Rp 114.5K

$11.14 ฿372

-42.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 Rp 43.1K

$2.95 ฿98.5

-18.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.05 Rp 18.9K

$1.68 ฿56.1

-37.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.42 Rp 25.5K

$2.30 ฿76.8

-38.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.93 Rp 16.7K

$2.13 ฿71.3

-56.34%

Potato (1kg)

$0.84 Rp 15.1K

$1.53 ฿51.1

-45.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.3K

$1.36 ฿45.55

32.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.38 Rp 6,905

$1.12 ฿37.44

-66.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 Rp 7,872

$0.55 ฿18.24

-20.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.87 Rp 51.7K

$4.26 ฿142

-32.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.72 Rp 282.9K

$18.19 ฿608

-13.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 Rp 32.9K

$1.74 ฿58.2

5.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 Rp 54.1K

$2.79 ฿93.3

7.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 Rp 4,816

$2.22 ฿74.1

-87.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.93 Rp 106.7K

$22.06 ฿737

-73.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.51 Rp 9,186

$2.91 ฿97.3

-82.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.19 Rp 3,465

$1.01 ฿33.79

-81.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.80 Rp 14.4K

$1.49 ฿49.85

-46.31%

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

$24.7K Rp 444.1M

$26.7K ฿891.6K

-7.53%

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

$32.2K Rp 579.9M

$26.7K ฿892.7K

20.60%

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

$84.8 Rp 1.5M

$99.4 ฿3,321

-14.62%

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

$3.17 Rp 57.0K

$11.28 ฿377

-71.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.57 Rp 424.3K

$17.36 ฿580

35.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.95 Rp 305.0K

$52.3 ฿1,747

-67.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.41 Rp 151.5K

$10.85 ฿362

-22.49%

Cinema Ticket

$3.29 Rp 59.3K

$7.57 ฿253

-56.54%

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

$112 Rp 2.0M

$558 ฿18.7K

-80.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,692 Rp 30.5M

$11.5K ฿383.9K

-85.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.2 Rp 975.9K

$62.9 ฿2,102

-13.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.53 Rp 693.6K

$28.58 ฿955

34.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 Rp 1.9M

$96.1 ฿3,213

12.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 Rp 2.0M

$88.1 ฿2,943

25.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$233 Rp 4.2M

$729 ฿24.4K

-68.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$89.8 Rp 1.6M

$460 ฿15.4K

-80.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 Rp 8.9M

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-76.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$212 Rp 3.8M

$1,222 ฿40.8K

-82.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,158 Rp 20.8M

$3,459 ฿115.6K

-66.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$560 Rp 10.1M

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-77.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$215 Rp 3.9M

$493 ฿16.5K

-56.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.25

5.57

66.07%

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

Last update for Medan: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Medan

$181 29.5%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 47.9% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Medan

$140 22.9%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 11.6% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medan

$112 18.2%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 14.7% $16

Accommodation & Living

Medan

$90 14.6%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 413% $370

Eating Out

Medan

$59 9.6%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 107% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Medan

$24 3.8%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 187% $44

Getting Around

Medan

$8.5 1.4%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 359% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $233 in Medan and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 129% 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: $8.00 in Medan vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $181 vs $268 per month, with Medan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Medan

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

16:29 4:29 PM

Same time as Medan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,097,610

79,308

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 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 October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 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 IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medan Phuket 480 km

From you

Medan
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

Medan vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medan is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 97% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 129% lower in Phuket. 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: $233 in Medan versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Medan runs roughly 272% less than in Phuket. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $112 in Medan versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $613 in Medan versus $1,207 in Phuket, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Medan but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Medan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Medan 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 Medan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 97% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.