Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Paros and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,704 in Paros, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

82

Cost of Living Index in Paros
Learn more

Paros Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

Jump to prices

Paros

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,704

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,704 in Paros versus $1,207 in Phuket.

Paros $1,704
Phuket $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,613 in Paros versus $2,037 in Phuket.

Paros $2,613
Phuket $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,521 in Paros versus $2,867 in Phuket.

Paros $3,521
Phuket $2,867

Living in Paros is roughly 41% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Paros is 26% above, Phuket is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.98 €11.54

$4.58 ฿153

183.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.8 €50.6

$32.48 ฿1,086

74.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.21 €9.08

$8.55 ฿286

19.42%

Cappuccino

$3.87 €3.44

$2.72 ฿91.0

42.28%

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

$1.89 €1.68

$0.94 ฿31.25

101.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 €0.51

$0.49 ฿16.39

18.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.54 €4.93

$2.59 ฿86.6

113.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.43 €4.83

$3.83 ฿128

41.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.74 ฿58.1

-2.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 €1.29

$1.43 ฿47.82

0.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.62 €2.33

$1.53 ฿51.0

71.24%

Eggs

$4.56 €4.06

$2.17 ฿72.7

110.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.33 €13.64

$19.15 ฿640

-19.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.58 €9.41

$3.30 ฿110

220.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.95 €12.41

$11.14 ฿372

25.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.23 €1.98

$2.95 ฿98.5

-24.41%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 €1.90

$1.68 ฿56.1

27.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 €1.18

$2.30 ฿76.8

-42.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.74 €1.54

$2.13 ฿71.3

-18.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 €1.09

$1.53 ฿51.1

-20.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.18 €1.05

$1.36 ฿45.55

-13.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.12 ฿37.44

-16.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 €0.63

$0.55 ฿18.24

29.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.98 €4.43

$4.26 ฿142

16.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.68 €6.83

$18.19 ฿608

-57.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.24 €1.99

$1.74 ฿58.2

28.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.70 €1.51

$2.79 ฿93.3

-39.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.22 ฿74.1

2.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.98 €40.01

$22.06 ฿737

103.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.34 €3.86

$2.91 ฿97.3

49.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.10 €0.97

$1.01 ฿33.79

8.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.33 €10.08

$3.83 ฿128

195.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.49 ฿49.85

44.97%

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

$21.1K €18.8K

$26.7K ฿891.6K

-20.91%

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

$23.8K €21.2K

$26.7K ฿892.7K

-10.74%

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

$157 €140

$99.4 ฿3,321

58.42%

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

$29.95 €26.64

$11.28 ฿377

165.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.94 €32.86

$17.36 ฿580

112.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.80

$52.3 ฿1,747

-1.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.22 €22.43

$10.85 ฿362

132.44%

Cinema Ticket

$8.76 €7.79

$7.57 ฿253

15.72%

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

$417 €371

$558 ฿18.7K

-25.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,998 €3,556

$11.5K ฿383.9K

-65.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 €79.9

$62.9 ฿2,102

42.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.43 €27.07

$28.58 ฿955

6.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.7 €67.4

$96.1 ฿3,213

-21.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €101

$88.1 ฿2,943

28.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$733 €652

$729 ฿24.4K

0.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$691 €615

$460 ฿15.4K

50.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,368 €1,217

$2,096 ฿70.0K

-34.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,247 €1,109

$1,222 ฿40.8K

2.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,616 €2,327

$3,459 ฿115.6K

-24.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,202 €1,959

$2,489 ฿83.2K

-11.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,063 €946

$493 ฿16.5K

115.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

5.57

-20.29%

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

Last update for Paros: October 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Paros

$691 40.6%

Phuket

$460 38.1% 33.4% $231

Groceries & Markets

Paros

$287 16.9%

Phuket

$268 22.2% 6.8% $20

Eating Out

Paros

$229 13.5%

Phuket

$121 10.1% 47.1% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Paros

$224 13.2%

Phuket

$128 10.6% 42.9% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Paros

$139 8.2%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 10.9% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Paros

$69 4.1%

Phuket

$67 5.6% 2.3% $1.6

Getting Around

Paros

$64 3.8%

Phuket

$39 3.2% 39.1% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $733 in Paros and $729 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Paros pays 116% 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: $57.0 in Paros vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $287 vs $268 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Paros

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

04:48 4:48 AM

08:48 8:48 AM

4 h ahead of Paros

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,289

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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Paros Phuket 7,990 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Paros
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

Paros vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 41% lower than in Paros. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 116% higher in Paros, 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: $733 in Paros versus $729 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $417 in Paros versus $558 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in Paros. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,704 in Paros, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Paros. 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 – similar infrastructure at $1,207 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Phuket hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Paros 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 41% less than in Paros. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.