Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oulu and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,878 in Oulu, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

91

Cost of Living Index in Oulu
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Oulu Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Oulu

🇫🇮 Finland

$1,878

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,878 in Oulu versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Oulu $1,878
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,905 in Oulu versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Oulu $2,905
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,932 in Oulu versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Oulu $3,932
Phuket $3,154

Living in Oulu is roughly 47% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Oulu is 38% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.48 €15.66

$4.47 ฿151

291.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.5 €81.1

$32.41 ฿1,094

179.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.02 €13.46

$8.81 ฿297

70.49%

Cappuccino

$4.83 €4.33

$2.83 ฿95.4

70.67%

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

$2.95 €2.65

$0.87 ฿29.42

239.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 €2.05

$0.49 ฿16.66

365.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.68 €6.88

$2.56 ฿86.3

200.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.96 €7.13

$3.68 ฿124

116.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.07

$1.66 ฿56.0

-28.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 €2.05

$1.46 ฿49.32

56.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.78 €2.49

$1.50 ฿50.5

85.33%

Eggs

$3.16 €2.84

$2.09 ฿70.5

51.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.40 €6.63

$19.07 ฿643

-61.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.67 €12.25

$3.30 ฿111

314.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.93 €20.55

$10.91 ฿368

110.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 €2.07

$2.93 ฿98.9

-21.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.69 ฿57.0

16.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.10 €1.88

$2.25 ฿75.8

-6.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.20 €3.77

$2.08 ฿70.1

101.92%

Potato (1kg)

$0.97 €0.87

$1.51 ฿51.0

-35.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 €1.47

$1.38 ฿46.54

18.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.69 €2.41

$1.07 ฿35.97

151.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 €1.44

$0.52 ฿17.51

209.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.25 €11.87

$4.20 ฿142

215.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.35 €11.07

$18.79 ฿634

-34.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.62 €3.24

$1.82 ฿61.5

98.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.09 €2.77

$2.84 ฿95.9

8.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.45 ฿49.00

106.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.4 €56.8

$56.7 ฿1,912

11.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$9.58 €8.58

$3.02 ฿102

217.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 €1.41

$1.02 ฿34.34

54.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$55.5 €49.69

$3.69 ฿125

1402.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.24 €2.01

$1.47 ฿49.78

52.38%

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

$35.9K €32.2K

$26.8K ฿903.7K

34.13%

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

$37.0K €33.1K

$26.7K ฿900.8K

38.53%

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

$116 €104

$96.4 ฿3,252

20.22%

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

$25.74 €23.06

$11.26 ฿380

128.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.15 €18.95

$16.85 ฿569

25.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.45 €33.55

$67.2 ฿2,269

-44.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.34 €17.33

$10.73 ฿362

80.24%

Cinema Ticket

$17.03 €15.26

$7.50 ฿253

127.07%

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

$519 €465

$476 ฿16.1K

8.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.4 €81.9

$62.4 ฿2,105

46.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.05 €39.47

$28.41 ฿959

55.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 €98.0

$94.3 ฿3,182

15.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$209 €188

$85.8 ฿2,896

144.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$848 €760

$716 ฿24.2K

18.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$673 €603

$491 ฿16.6K

37.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,384 €1,240

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-28.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,040 €932

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-27.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,725 €3,338

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-10.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,990 €1,783

$3,045 ฿102.8K

-34.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,504 €2,244

$502 ฿17.0K

398.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.1

5.57

-26.39%

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

Last update for Oulu: 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

Oulu

$673 35.8%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 27% $182

Groceries & Markets

Oulu

$356 19%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 25.2% $90

Eating Out

Oulu

$318 16.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 61.7% $196

Clothing & Footwear

Oulu

$204 10.9%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 40.4% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oulu

$163 8.7%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 23.5% $38

Getting Around

Oulu

$93 4.9%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 24% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Oulu

$72 3.8%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 15% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $848 in Oulu and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Oulu pays about 5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $90 in Oulu vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $356 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇮 Oulu

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

09:00 9:00 AM

14:00 2:00 PM

5 h ahead of Oulu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

214,651

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Oulu Phuket 8,420 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Oulu
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

Oulu vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 32% lower than in Oulu. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Oulu is about 5 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: $848 in Oulu versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $90 in Oulu. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,878 per month in Oulu versus $1,278 in Phuket – Phuket is about 32% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,878 in Oulu, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Oulu. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Phuket delivers better value at $1,278 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Phuket hard to pass up.

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

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 32% less than in Oulu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.