Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Al Mahwit

For one person, living is cheaper in Al Mahwit: $761 a month against $1,190 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Al Mahwit
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Al Mahwit Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

Al Mahwit

🇾🇪 Yemen

$761

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Al Mahwit

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Phuket and in Al Mahwit actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,190 per month in Phuket vs $761 in Al Mahwit, rent included.

Phuket $1,190
Al Mahwit $761

A couple spends around $2,006 per month in Phuket vs $1,197 in Al Mahwit, rent included.

Phuket $2,006
Al Mahwit $1,197

A family of three spends $2,822 per month in Phuket vs $1,634 in Al Mahwit, rent included.

Phuket $2,822
Al Mahwit $1,634

Phuket costs about 56% more than Al Mahwit, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Phuket and Al Mahwit are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 11% lower, Al Mahwit 43% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.35 ฿146

$6.23 YER 1,469

-30.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.45 ฿1,087

$25.53 YER 6,022

27.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.42 ฿282

$9.47 YER 2,233

-11.09%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.94 YER 459

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 YER 609

Cappuccino

$2.81 ฿94.0

$3.64 YER 859

-22.80%

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

$0.87 ฿29.31

$1.17 YER 275

-25.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 ฿15.40

$0.55 YER 130

-16.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 ฿122

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 ฿57.2

$2.07 YER 488

-17.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$1.63 YER 384

-11.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.3

$1.98 YER 466

-21.21%

Eggs

$2.10 ฿70.3

$3.58 YER 845

-41.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.53 ฿654

$16.97 YER 4,003

15.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$8.17 YER 1,927

-58.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿373

$18.64 YER 4,396

-40.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 ฿94.9

$3.31 YER 782

-14.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ฿54.4

$1.05 YER 248

54.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 ฿74.5

$2.17 YER 512

2.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.15 ฿71.9

$1.67 YER 394

28.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 ฿49.98

$1.47 YER 346

1.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.43

$1.37 YER 323

-2.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.74

$1.26 YER 298

-15.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.02

$0.68 YER 162

-25.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.48 YER 585

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.86 YER 440

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 YER 590

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 ฿147

$5.58 YER 1,316

-21.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.77 ฿629

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.3

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿93.0

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.17 ฿72.6

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.28 ฿746

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿101

$4.19 YER 989

-27.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.45

$2.15 YER 508

-50.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 ฿124

$7.19 YER 1,696

-48.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ฿47.91

$2.14 YER 505

-33.18%

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

$26.3K ฿882.6K

$17.2K YER 4.1M

53.18%

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

$26.2K ฿877.8K

$34.5K YER 8.1M

-23.95%

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

$96.7 ฿3,238

$108 YER 25.4K

-10.16%

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

$11.41 ฿382

$23.33 YER 5,503

-51.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.11 ฿573

$103 YER 24.3K

-83.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ฿1,769

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.07 ฿371

Cinema Ticket

$7.65 ฿256

$5.76 YER 1,359

32.81%

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

$555 ฿18.6K

$115 YER 27.1K

382.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿377.9K

$2,173 YER 512.7K

419.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.4 ฿2,124

$42.19 YER 9,951

50.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.61 ฿958

$121 YER 28.6K

-76.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.7 ฿3,240

$48.73 YER 11.5K

98.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 ฿2,968

$40.93 YER 9,656

116.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$735 ฿24.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$458 ฿15.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 ฿70.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 ฿39.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,493 ฿117.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,491 ฿83.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.25

-50.49%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 4, 2026

Last update for Al Mahwit: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$458 38.1%

Al Mahwit

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.3%

Al Mahwit

$267 34.7% 0.3% $0.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Al Mahwit

$234 30.4% 86.8% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Al Mahwit

$114 14.8% 8.8% $11

Eating Out

Phuket

$119 9.9%

Al Mahwit

$129 16.7% 8% $9.5

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.7%

Al Mahwit

$12 * 1.5% 83.1% $57

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Al Mahwit

$15 * 1.9% 61.9% $24

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Phuket versus $26.00 in Al Mahwit. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $268 vs $267 – making Al Mahwit the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇾🇪 Al Mahwit

🕒 Local time

04:06 4:06 AM

00:06 12:06 AM

4 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

12,817

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Yemeni Rial YER ﷼

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 YER = 4.24 USD

1,000 YER = 3.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

YER, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 12, 2026: 1 USD = 33.5 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.54 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Yemeni Rial exchange rates as of October 12, 2026: 1 USD = 236 YER (1,000 YER = 4.24 USD). 1 EUR = 264 YER (1,000 YER = 3.78 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Al Mahwit 6,020 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Al Mahwit

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

Phuket vs Al Mahwit: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Phuket is pricier by about 56%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,785 per month in Phuket and $1,142 in Al Mahwit. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,190 in Phuket and $761 in Al Mahwit. That's a gap of about 56%.

Kindergarten costs $555 per month in Phuket and $115 in Al Mahwit. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Al Mahwit, where all-in costs run around $761, than in Phuket at $1,190. In Al Mahwit it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Al Mahwit – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Al Mahwit. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Phuket makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.