Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Morioka and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Morioka: $1,189 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

58

Cost of Living Index in Morioka
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Morioka Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Morioka

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,189

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,189 per month in Morioka vs $1,278 in Phuket, rent included.

Morioka $1,189
Phuket $1,278

A couple spends around $1,898 per month in Morioka vs $2,216 in Phuket, rent included.

Morioka $1,898
Phuket $2,216

A family of three spends $2,607 per month in Morioka vs $3,154 in Phuket, rent included.

Morioka $2,607
Phuket $3,154

Morioka is about 7% cheaper than Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Morioka and Phuket are more affordable than the global median – Morioka 13% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.22 ¥982

$4.47 ฿151

39.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.27 ¥5,094

$32.41 ฿1,094

-0.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.15 ¥813

$8.81 ฿297

-41.54%

Cappuccino

$3.06 ¥482

$2.83 ฿95.5

8.13%

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

$1.14 ¥180

$0.87 ฿29.43

31.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.80 ¥127

$0.49 ฿16.67

63.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.63 ¥415

$2.56 ฿86.4

2.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 ¥511

$3.68 ฿124

-12.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 ¥232

$1.66 ฿56.0

-11.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 ¥243

$1.46 ฿49.35

5.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.08 ¥644

$1.50 ฿50.6

172.00%

Eggs

$2.13 ¥336

$2.09 ฿70.5

1.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.94 ¥1,569

$19.07 ฿644

-47.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.45 ¥1,176

$3.30 ฿111

125.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.63 ¥2,626

$10.91 ฿368

52.43%

Apples (1kg)

$4.03 ¥636

$2.93 ฿99.0

37.54%

Banana (1kg)

$2.08 ¥328

$1.69 ฿57.1

23.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 ¥479

$2.25 ฿75.8

34.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.77 ¥752

$2.08 ฿70.1

129.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.78 ¥438

$1.51 ฿51.0

84.11%

Onion (1kg)

$2.73 ¥431

$1.38 ฿46.56

97.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 ¥210

$1.07 ฿35.99

24.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.91 ¥144

$0.52 ฿17.52

75.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.57 ¥564

$4.20 ฿142

-15.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.82 ¥1,077

$18.79 ฿634

-63.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 ¥264

$1.82 ฿61.5

-8.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 ¥378

$2.84 ฿95.9

-15.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.47 ¥232

$1.45 ฿49.03

1.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.6 ¥9,086

$56.7 ฿1,913

1.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.24 ¥511

$3.02 ฿102

7.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.11 ¥491

$1.02 ฿34.36

204.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.05 ¥3,008

$3.69 ฿125

416.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥168

$1.47 ฿49.81

-27.89%

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

$19.0K ¥3.0M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-28.92%

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

$15.5K ¥2.4M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-42.02%

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

$137 ¥21.6K

$96.4 ฿3,254

42.07%

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

$23.86 ¥3,768

$11.26 ฿380

111.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.17 ¥4,921

$16.85 ฿569

84.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.5 ¥7,975

$67.2 ฿2,270

-24.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$13.62 ¥2,151

$7.50 ฿253

81.60%

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

$759 ¥119.8K

$476 ฿16.1K

59.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.5K ¥2.1M

$11.3K ฿380.4K

19.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.09 ¥6,803

$62.4 ฿2,106

-30.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.59 ¥4,987

$28.41 ฿959

11.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.6 ¥11.0K

$94.3 ฿3,184

-26.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 ¥16.1K

$85.8 ฿2,898

18.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$626 ¥98.9K

$716 ฿24.2K

-12.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$300 ¥47.3K

$491 ฿16.6K

-38.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$916 ¥144.7K

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-52.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$706 ¥111.5K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-50.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,709 ¥743.5K

$4,175 ฿141.0K

12.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,118 ¥334.4K

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-30.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.21

5.57

-60.32%

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

Last update for Morioka: October 26, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Morioka

$300 25.2%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 63.9% $191

Groceries & Markets

Morioka

$297 25%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 10.4% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Morioka

$192 16.1%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 35.1% $67

Eating Out

Morioka

$129 10.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 5.9% $7.6

Clothing & Footwear

Morioka

$111 9.3%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 10.1% $11

Getting Around

Morioka

$82 6.9%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 14.2% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Morioka

$78 6.5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 5.7% $4.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $626 in Morioka 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 $32 in Morioka versus $32 in Phuket. Groceries tell a different story – $297 in Morioka vs $266 in Phuket – so Phuket wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Morioka

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

02:40 2:40 AM

00:40 12:40 AM

2 h behind Morioka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

289,731

79,308

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Between locations

Morioka Phuket 5,520 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Morioka
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

Morioka vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,189 in Morioka, $1,278 in Phuket – roughly 8% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,783 per month in Morioka and $1,917 in Phuket. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Morioka, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $626 there versus $716 in Phuket.

Kindergarten costs $759 per month in Morioka and $476 in Phuket. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,189 in Morioka and $1,278 in Phuket. That’s a gap of about 8%.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,189 in Morioka and $1,278 in Phuket, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,189 in Morioka to $1,278 in Phuket. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.