Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Merrillville, IN and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $2,725 in Merrillville, IN, rent and utilities included – about $17,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

122

Cost of Living Index in Merrillville, IN
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Merrillville, IN Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Merrillville, IN

🇺🇸 United States

$2,725

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,725 in Merrillville, IN versus $1,294 in Phuket.

Merrillville, IN $2,725
Phuket $1,294

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,722 in Merrillville, IN versus $2,204 in Phuket.

Merrillville, IN $3,722
Phuket $2,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,719 in Merrillville, IN versus $3,115 in Phuket.

Merrillville, IN $4,719
Phuket $3,115

Living in Merrillville, IN is roughly 111% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Merrillville, IN is 102% above, Phuket is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.29 $15.29

$4.39 ฿148

248.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.2 $55.2

$32.31 ฿1,086

70.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.14 $9.14

$8.70 ฿293

5.06%

Cappuccino

$1.98 $1.98

$2.72 ฿91.6

-27.21%

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

$1.49 $1.49

$0.93 ฿31.28

60.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 $2.32

$0.50 ฿16.79

364.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 $4.48

$2.53 ฿85.1

77.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.13 $6.13

$3.63 ฿122

68.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.77 $0.77

$1.74 ฿58.5

-55.75%

White Bread (500g)

$3.08 $3.08

$1.45 ฿48.77

112.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.60 $4.60

$1.50 ฿50.5

206.67%

Eggs

$4.61 $4.61

$2.17 ฿73.0

112.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.23 $11.23

$19.09 ฿642

-41.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 $9.28

$3.40 ฿114

172.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.61 $21.61

$10.90 ฿366

98.26%

Apples (1kg)

$5.99 $5.99

$2.94 ฿98.9

103.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.09 $1.09

$1.69 ฿56.9

-35.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$2.19 ฿73.8

107.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.48 $5.48

$2.12 ฿71.4

158.49%

Potato (1kg)

$3.73 $3.73

$1.46 ฿49.03

155.48%

Onion (1kg)

$4.37 $4.37

$1.37 ฿45.99

218.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.38 $2.38

$1.08 ฿36.17

120.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 $1.23

$0.55 ฿18.34

123.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.43 $11.43

$4.43 ฿149

158.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.82 $11.82

$18.25 ฿614

-35.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.77 ฿59.6

13.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.56 $3.56

$2.88 ฿96.8

23.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.45 ฿48.66

22.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.1 $67.1

$54.9 ฿1,845

22.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.10 $5.10

$1.51 ฿50.9

237.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.82 $1.82

$0.78 ฿26.08

133.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$49.04 $49.04

$3.84 ฿129

1177.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 $0.98

$1.49 ฿50.0

-34.23%

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

$27.4K $27.4K

$26.9K ฿903.7K

1.81%

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

$26.5K $26.5K

$26.3K ฿885.7K

0.75%

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

$258 $258

$97.8 ฿3,288

164.17%

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

$55.0 $55.0

$11.29 ฿380

386.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.2 $55.2

$17.19 ฿578

221.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.74 $36.74

$68.3 ฿2,297

-46.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿367

Cinema Ticket

$15.02 $15.02

$7.43 ฿250

102.15%

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

$1,347 $1,347

$530 ฿17.8K

153.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.9K $15.9K

$18.8K ฿631.4K

-15.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.4 $54.4

$61.7 ฿2,073

-11.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.53 $40.53

$28.25 ฿950

43.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 $107

$96.0 ฿3,228

11.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.8 $93.8

$86.8 ฿2,919

8.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,753 $1,753

$721 ฿24.2K

143.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,457 $1,457

$509 ฿17.1K

186.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,325 $2,325

$1,950 ฿65.6K

19.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,052 $2,052

$1,397 ฿47.0K

46.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,169 $3,169

$4,192 ฿140.9K

-24.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,247 $2,247

$3,298 ฿110.9K

-31.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.66

5.57

19.57%

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

Last update for Merrillville, IN: November 1, 2026

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Merrillville, IN

$1.5K 53.5%

Phuket

$509 39.3% 65.1% $948

Groceries & Markets

Merrillville, IN

$387 14.2%

Phuket

$267 20.6% 31.1% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Merrillville, IN

$369 13.5%

Phuket

$126 9.8% 65.7% $242

Eating Out

Merrillville, IN

$223 8.2%

Phuket

$120 9.2% 46.5% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Merrillville, IN

$133 4.9%

Phuket

$123 9.5% 7.8% $10

Getting Around

Merrillville, IN

$88 3.2%

Phuket

$66 5.1% 25.3% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Merrillville, IN

$67 2.5%

Phuket

$83 6.4% 24.6% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,753 in Merrillville, IN and $721 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $55 in Merrillville, IN vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $387 vs $267 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Merrillville, IN

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

16:16 4:16 PM

05:16 5:16 AM

13 h ahead of Merrillville, IN

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

36,444

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.888 EUR

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.13 USD (1 USD = 0.888 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Merrillville, IN Phuket 14,490 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Merrillville, IN
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

Merrillville, IN vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,725 in Merrillville, IN and $1,294 in Phuket, so Phuket is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $4,087 in Merrillville, IN and $1,940 in Phuket to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,753 in Merrillville, IN versus $721 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,347 in Merrillville, IN versus $530 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 45% higher in Merrillville, IN. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $2,725 in Merrillville, IN, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Merrillville, IN. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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 Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Merrillville, IN. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.