Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Palmerston North and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,598 in Palmerston North, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Palmerston North
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Palmerston North Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

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Palmerston North

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,598

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,598 in Palmerston North versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Palmerston North $1,598
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,662 in Palmerston North versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Palmerston North $2,662
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,726 in Palmerston North versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Palmerston North $3,726
Phuket $3,154

Living in Palmerston North is roughly 25% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Palmerston North is 17% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.14 NZ$25.10

$4.47 ฿151

216.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.5 NZ$114

$32.41 ฿1,093

98.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.93 NZ$15.85

$8.81 ฿297

1.36%

Cappuccino

$3.30 NZ$5.87

$2.83 ฿95.4

16.61%

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

$2.29 NZ$4.07

$0.87 ฿29.41

163.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 NZ$3.14

$0.49 ฿16.65

261.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.56 NZ$11.64

$2.56 ฿86.3

156.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.01 NZ$12.45

$3.68 ฿124

90.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 NZ$3.23

$1.66 ฿55.9

9.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.17 NZ$3.85

$1.46 ฿49.31

48.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.37 NZ$2.43

$1.50 ฿50.5

-8.67%

Eggs

$5.06 NZ$8.99

$2.09 ฿70.5

142.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.67 NZ$11.83

$19.07 ฿643

-65.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.54 NZ$16.94

$3.30 ฿111

189.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.59 NZ$18.81

$10.91 ฿368

-2.93%

Apples (1kg)

$2.62 NZ$4.65

$2.93 ฿98.9

-10.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.24 NZ$3.97

$1.69 ฿57.0

32.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 NZ$4.15

$2.25 ฿75.8

4.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.55 NZ$9.86

$2.08 ฿70.0

166.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 NZ$2.58

$1.51 ฿51.0

-3.31%

Onion (1kg)

$0.87 NZ$1.55

$1.38 ฿46.52

-36.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.74 NZ$3.09

$1.07 ฿35.96

62.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 NZ$1.35

$0.52 ฿17.51

46.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.42 NZ$39.81

$4.20 ฿142

433.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.07 NZ$14.34

$18.79 ฿634

-57.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.69 NZ$4.77

$1.82 ฿61.5

47.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 NZ$5.20

$2.84 ฿95.8

3.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.01 NZ$3.56

$1.45 ฿48.98

38.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$117 NZ$208

$56.7 ฿1,912

107.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.89 NZ$3.35

$3.02 ฿102

-37.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 NZ$3.17

$1.02 ฿34.33

74.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.19 NZ$30.51

$3.69 ฿125

365.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.68 NZ$2.99

$1.47 ฿49.76

14.29%

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

$27.3K NZ$48.4K

$26.8K ฿903.4K

1.88%

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

$24.0K NZ$42.6K

$26.7K ฿900.5K

-10.11%

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

$69.0 NZ$122

$96.4 ฿3,251

-28.41%

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

$33.60 NZ$59.7

$11.26 ฿380

198.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.32 NZ$62.7

$16.85 ฿568

109.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.91 NZ$44.22

$67.2 ฿2,268

-62.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.01 NZ$24.87

$10.73 ฿362

30.57%

Cinema Ticket

$11.66 NZ$20.70

$7.50 ฿253

55.47%

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

$1,058 NZ$1,879

$476 ฿16.1K

122.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,589 NZ$15.2K

$11.3K ฿380.0K

-23.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.7 NZ$124

$62.4 ฿2,104

11.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.83 NZ$51.2

$28.41 ฿958

1.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.3 NZ$150

$94.3 ฿3,181

-10.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.6 NZ$150

$85.8 ฿2,895

-1.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$914 NZ$1,623

$716 ฿24.2K

27.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$627 NZ$1,113

$491 ฿16.6K

27.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,618 NZ$2,872

$1,927 ฿65.0K

-16.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,428 NZ$2,536

$1,431 ฿48.3K

-0.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,058 NZ$3,654

$4,175 ฿140.9K

-50.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,907 NZ$3,385

$3,045 ฿102.7K

-37.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,521 NZ$4,475

$502 ฿16.9K

401.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

5.57

-3.23%

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

Last update for Palmerston North: 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

Palmerston North

$627 39.2%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 21.7% $136

Groceries & Markets

Palmerston North

$286 17.9%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 7% $20

Eating Out

Palmerston North

$243 15.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 49.8% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Palmerston North

$138 8.6%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 9.7% $13

Getting Around

Palmerston North

$136 8.5%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 48.2% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Palmerston North

$120 7.5%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 1.3% $1.6

Sport & Entertainment

Palmerston North

$48 3%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 70.5% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $914 in Palmerston North and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

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

Dining out: $64 in Palmerston North vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $286 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Palmerston North

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

11:16 11:16 AM

05:16 5:16 AM

6 h behind Palmerston North

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

90,500

79,308

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 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 NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Palmerston North Phuket 9,510 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Palmerston North
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

Palmerston North vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,598 in Palmerston North and $1,278 in Phuket, so Phuket is about 20% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Palmerston North 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: $914 in Palmerston North versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,058 in Palmerston North versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 8% higher in Palmerston North. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,598 in Palmerston North, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Palmerston North. 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.

Safety-wise, Palmerston North 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 20% less than in Palmerston North. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.