Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nara, Japan and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Nara: $1,233 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $540 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

59

Cost of Living Index in Nara
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Nara Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Nara

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,233

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,233 in Nara versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Nara $1,233
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,851 in Nara versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Nara $1,851
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,468 in Nara versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Nara $2,468
Phuket $3,154

Living in Nara costs roughly 3% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Nara 9% lower, Phuket 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.33 ¥999

$4.47 ฿151

41.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.27 ¥5,095

$32.41 ฿1,094

-0.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.99 ¥787

$8.81 ฿297

-43.36%

Cappuccino

$2.50 ¥395

$2.83 ฿95.5

-11.66%

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

$1.26 ¥199

$0.87 ฿29.43

44.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.71 ¥112

$0.49 ฿16.67

44.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.21 ¥507

$2.56 ฿86.4

25.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 ¥490

$3.68 ฿124

-15.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ¥248

$1.66 ฿56.0

-5.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.30 ¥205

$1.46 ฿49.35

-10.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.12 ¥650

$1.50 ฿50.6

174.67%

Eggs

$2.23 ¥353

$2.09 ฿70.5

6.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.75 ¥1,540

$19.07 ฿644

-48.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.07 ¥1,117

$3.30 ฿111

114.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.13 ¥2,862

$10.91 ฿368

66.18%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ¥522

$2.93 ฿99.0

12.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 ¥305

$1.69 ฿57.1

14.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 ¥334

$2.25 ฿75.8

-5.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.08 ¥644

$2.08 ฿70.1

96.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.50 ¥236

$1.51 ฿51.0

-0.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 ¥179

$1.38 ฿46.56

-17.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ¥179

$1.07 ฿35.99

5.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 ¥139

$0.52 ฿17.52

69.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.88 ¥613

$4.20 ฿142

-7.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.54 ¥1,505

$18.79 ฿634

-49.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 ¥295

$1.82 ฿61.5

2.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 ¥339

$2.84 ฿95.9

-24.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.48 ¥234

$1.45 ฿49.03

2.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.3 ¥11.7K

$56.7 ฿1,913

31.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.15 ¥498

$3.02 ฿102

4.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.92 ¥462

$1.02 ฿34.36

186.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.66 ¥2,472

$3.69 ฿125

324.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.08 ¥170

$1.47 ฿49.81

-26.53%

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

$21.8K ¥3.4M

$26.8K ฿904.3K

-18.73%

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

$15.3K ¥2.4M

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-42.62%

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

$118 ¥18.6K

$96.4 ฿3,254

22.37%

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

$24.81 ¥3,918

$11.26 ฿380

120.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 ¥4,854

$16.85 ฿569

82.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$83.2 ¥13.1K

$67.2 ฿2,270

23.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.58 ¥1,197

$10.73 ฿362

-29.36%

Cinema Ticket

$12.57 ¥1,985

$7.50 ฿253

67.60%

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

$693 ¥109.4K

$476 ฿16.1K

45.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.3K ¥2.1M

$11.3K ฿380.4K

18.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.11 ¥7,437

$62.4 ฿2,106

-24.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.96 ¥4,888

$28.41 ฿959

8.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.8 ¥9,751

$94.3 ฿3,184

-34.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.9 ¥14.2K

$85.8 ฿2,898

4.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$411 ¥64.9K

$716 ฿24.2K

-42.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$340 ¥53.7K

$491 ฿16.6K

-30.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 ¥131.4K

$1,927 ฿65.1K

-56.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$547 ¥86.3K

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-61.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,671 ¥421.6K

$4,175 ฿141.0K

-36.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,040 ¥322.1K

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-33.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,123 ¥177.2K

$502 ฿17.0K

123.52%

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 Nara: 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

Nara

$340 27.6%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 44.4% $151

Groceries & Markets

Nara

$285 23.1%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 6.5% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nara

$173 14.1%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 28.2% $49

Eating Out

Nara

$126 10.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 3.2% $4

Sport & Entertainment

Nara

$108 8.8%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 24.1% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Nara

$103 8.4%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 17.9% $19

Getting Around

Nara

$98 8%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 28% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $411 in Nara and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nara pays about 2.2 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32 in Nara vs $32 in Phuket. Groceries flip the comparison at $285 vs $266, with Phuket cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Nara

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

05:22 5:22 AM

03:22 3:22 AM

2 h behind Nara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

355,280

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 →

On the map

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Between locations

Nara Phuket 4,840 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Nara
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

Nara vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nara is about 3% cheaper overall, especially in clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Nara is about 2.2 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: $411 in Nara versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Phuket pay roughly 6% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,233 per month in Nara versus $1,278 in Phuket – Nara is about 3% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Nara gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.