Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Paphos and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $2,074 in Paphos, rent and utilities included – about $10,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Paphos
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Paphos Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Paphos

🇨🇾 Cyprus

$2,074

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,074 in Paphos versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Paphos $2,074
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,178 in Paphos versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Paphos $3,178
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,283 in Paphos versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Paphos $4,283
Phuket $2,845

Living in Paphos is roughly 72% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Paphos is 53% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.58 €14.75

$4.40 ฿147

276.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.0 €48.88

$32.26 ฿1,078

70.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.92 €7.93

$8.76 ฿293

1.83%

Cappuccino

$3.70 €3.29

$2.83 ฿94.5

30.74%

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

$1.83 €1.63

$0.90 ฿30.14

103.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.14 €1.02

$0.47 ฿15.56

142.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.56 €4.06

$2.55 ฿85.2

78.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.94 €3.51

$3.83 ฿128

2.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.00 €1.78

$1.73 ฿57.7

15.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.47 ฿49.11

0.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 €2.15

$1.51 ฿50.6

59.60%

Eggs

$4.91 €4.37

$2.17 ฿72.7

126.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.31 €11.84

$19.70 ฿658

-32.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.77 €7.80

$3.34 ฿112

162.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.56 €11.17

$11.16 ฿373

12.54%

Apples (1kg)

$3.27 €2.91

$2.85 ฿95.1

14.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.70 ฿56.9

10.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.05 €1.82

$2.19 ฿73.3

-6.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.76 €3.35

$2.05 ฿68.4

83.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 €1.30

$1.45 ฿48.57

1.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.20 €1.07

$1.38 ฿46.16

-13.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.63 €0.56

$1.07 ฿35.69

-41.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 €0.90

$0.51 ฿16.91

98.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.66 €5.04

$4.26 ฿142

32.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.84 €6.08

$18.58 ฿621

-63.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 €1.50

$1.78 ฿59.7

-5.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 €1.85

$2.85 ฿95.2

-27.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.28 €2.03

$2.26 ฿75.6

0.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.0 €50.7

$22.10 ฿738

158.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.39 €10.13

$3.01 ฿101

278.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.06 ฿35.34

98.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.26 €19.80

$3.86 ฿129

476.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.75 €1.56

$1.45 ฿48.45

20.69%

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

$31.1K €27.6K

$26.3K ฿879.9K

18.00%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$26.9K ฿900.4K

25.01%

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

$186 €166

$96.4 ฿3,221

93.47%

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

$24.06 €21.40

$11.04 ฿369

117.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.31 €30.52

$17.14 ฿573

100.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.8 €61.2

$52.2 ฿1,744

31.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 €22.07

$11.16 ฿373

122.31%

Cinema Ticket

$11.13 €9.90

$7.81 ฿261

42.51%

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

$427 €380

$556 ฿18.6K

-23.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,766 €6,019

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-41.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.5 €72.5

$64.2 ฿2,146

26.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.50 €40.47

$28.69 ฿959

58.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.6 €84.1

$95.4 ฿3,187

-0.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.0 €79.1

$88.0 ฿2,940

1.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 €963

$737 ฿24.6K

46.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$976 €868

$462 ฿15.5K

111.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 €1,864

$2,095 ฿70.0K

0.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,860 €1,654

$1,201 ฿40.1K

54.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,322 €3,844

$3,488 ฿116.6K

23.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,513 €2,235

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-0.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,860 €1,655

$501 ฿16.7K

271.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.31

5.57

-40.57%

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

Last update for Paphos: October 20, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Paphos

$976 47.1%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 52.6% $514

Groceries & Markets

Paphos

$288 13.9%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 6.7% $19

Eating Out

Paphos

$246 11.9%

Phuket

$121 10% 50.8% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Paphos

$245 11.8%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 49.1% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Paphos

$140 6.7%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 11% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Paphos

$91 4.4%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 25.5% $23

Getting Around

Paphos

$88 4.3%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 55.2% $49

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,083 in Paphos and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Paphos pays 272% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $55.0 in Paphos vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $269 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇾 Paphos

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

13:48 1:48 PM

17:48 5:48 PM

4 h ahead of Paphos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

32,892

79,308

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Paphos Phuket 7,320 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

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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

Paphos vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 72% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 272% higher in Paphos, 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: $1,083 in Paphos versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,074 per month in Paphos versus $1,208 in Phuket – a 72% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 158% less than in Paphos. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $2,074 in Paphos, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Paphos. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Paphos, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Paphos and Phuket are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 72% less than in Paphos. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.