Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nagoya and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,375 in Nagoya, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. The total is higher in Nagoya despite lower rent and utilities.

66

Cost of Living Index in Nagoya
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Nagoya Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Nagoya

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,375

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,375 in Nagoya versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Nagoya $1,375
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,052 in Nagoya versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Nagoya $2,052
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,730 in Nagoya versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Nagoya $2,730
Phuket $3,154

Living in Nagoya is roughly 8% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.58 ¥1,352

$4.47 ฿151

91.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.23 ¥5,077

$32.41 ฿1,093

-0.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.18 ¥815

$8.81 ฿297

-41.20%

Cappuccino

$2.55 ¥402

$2.83 ฿95.4

-9.89%

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

$1.26 ¥199

$0.87 ฿29.41

44.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.91 ¥143

$0.49 ฿16.65

85.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.11 ¥489

$2.56 ฿86.3

21.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 ¥485

$3.68 ฿124

-16.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 ¥238

$1.66 ฿55.9

-9.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 ¥234

$1.46 ฿49.31

2.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.22 ¥665

$1.50 ฿50.5

181.33%

Eggs

$2.23 ¥352

$2.09 ฿70.5

6.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.05 ¥2,528

$19.07 ฿643

-15.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 ¥1,078

$3.30 ฿111

107.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.07 ¥2,689

$10.91 ฿368

56.46%

Apples (1kg)

$8.56 ¥1,349

$2.93 ฿98.9

192.15%

Banana (1kg)

$3.03 ¥478

$1.69 ฿57.0

79.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.98 ¥785

$2.25 ฿75.8

121.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.66 ¥1,207

$2.08 ฿70.0

268.27%

Potato (1kg)

$3.97 ¥625

$1.51 ฿51.0

162.91%

Onion (1kg)

$4.72 ¥743

$1.38 ฿46.52

242.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 ¥186

$1.07 ฿35.96

10.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 ¥148

$0.52 ฿17.51

80.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.05 ¥637

$4.20 ฿142

-3.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.72 ¥1,531

$18.79 ฿634

-48.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 ¥394

$1.82 ฿61.5

37.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 ¥345

$2.84 ฿95.8

-22.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 ¥213

$1.45 ฿48.98

-6.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$89.2 ¥14.1K

$56.7 ฿1,912

57.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.15 ¥496

$3.02 ฿102

4.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.87 ¥452

$1.02 ฿34.33

181.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.97 ¥2,516

$3.69 ฿125

332.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ¥175

$1.47 ฿49.76

-24.49%

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

$21.6K ¥3.4M

$26.8K ฿903.4K

-19.48%

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

$15.1K ¥2.4M

$26.7K ฿900.5K

-43.47%

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

$114 ¥18.0K

$96.4 ฿3,251

18.65%

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

$23.77 ¥3,744

$11.26 ฿380

111.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.40 ¥4,946

$16.85 ฿568

86.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.67 ¥6,879

$67.2 ฿2,268

-35.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.90 ¥2,189

$10.73 ฿362

29.54%

Cinema Ticket

$12.59 ¥1,984

$7.50 ฿253

67.87%

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

$687 ¥108.2K

$476 ฿16.1K

44.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.7K ¥2.3M

$11.3K ฿380.0K

30.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.2 ¥8,067

$62.4 ฿2,104

-17.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.35 ¥5,568

$28.41 ฿958

24.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.8 ¥9,740

$94.3 ฿3,181

-34.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.9 ¥15.7K

$85.8 ฿2,895

16.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$558 ¥87.9K

$716 ฿24.2K

-22.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$385 ¥60.6K

$491 ฿16.6K

-21.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$937 ¥147.6K

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-51.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$555 ¥87.4K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-61.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,555 ¥560.0K

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-14.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,971 ¥310.5K

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-35.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,881 ¥296.3K

$502 ฿16.9K

274.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.02

5.57

-63.73%

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

Last update for Nagoya: October 24, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nagoya

$385 28%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 27.5% $106

Groceries & Markets

Nagoya

$382 27.8%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 30.4% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nagoya

$169 12.3%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 26.6% $45

Eating Out

Nagoya

$145 10.6%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 16.2% $23

Getting Around

Nagoya

$112 8.2%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 37% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Nagoya

$112 8.1%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 9.1% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Nagoya

$69 5%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 19.4% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $558 in Nagoya and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nagoya pays about 3.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Nagoya vs $32 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $382 vs $266, with Phuket cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Nagoya

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

22:21 10:21 PM

20:21 8:21 PM

2 h behind Nagoya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,236,000

79,308

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 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 November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.35 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 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 JPY in detail →

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Between locations

Nagoya Phuket 4,950 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Nagoya
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

Nagoya vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 7% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Nagoya is about 3.7 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $558 in Nagoya versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 44% higher in Nagoya. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,375 per month in Nagoya versus $1,278 in Phuket – Phuket is about 7% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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.

Safety-wise, Nagoya and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Nagoya on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.