Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Al Rayyan

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,510 in Al Rayyan, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Phuket
🇹🇭 Thailand
$1,208
/mo nomad
Al Rayyan
🇶🇦 Qatar
$1,510
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Rayyan actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,208 per month in Phuket vs $1,510 in Al Rayyan, rent included.

  • Phuket $1,208
  • Al Rayyan $1,510

A couple spends around $2,027 per month in Phuket vs $2,567 in Al Rayyan, rent included.

  • Phuket $2,027
  • Al Rayyan $2,567

A family of three spends $2,845 per month in Phuket vs $3,624 in Al Rayyan, rent included.

  • Phuket $2,845
  • Al Rayyan $3,624

Phuket is about 20% cheaper than Al Rayyan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Phuket sits 11% below the global median, while Al Rayyan is 11% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.40 ฿147
$5.79 QAR 21.07
-24.01%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$32.26 ฿1,078
$33.54 QAR 122
-3.82%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.76 ฿293
$7.44 QAR 27.09
17.74%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$9.59 QAR 34.90
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$13.73 QAR 49.99
-
Cappuccino
$2.83 ฿94.5
$3.93 QAR 14.32
-27.99%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 ฿30.14
$0.86 QAR 3.11
4.65%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.47 ฿15.56
$0.36 QAR 1.30
30.56%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.55 ฿85.2
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.83 ฿128
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.73 ฿57.7
$2.14 QAR 7.78
-19.16%
White Bread (500g)
$1.47 ฿49.11
$1.40 QAR 5.11
5.00%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.51 ฿50.6
$1.93 QAR 7.02
-21.76%
Eggs
$2.17 ฿72.7
$3.48 QAR 12.65
-37.64%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.70 ฿658
$7.15 QAR 26.03
175.52%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.34 ฿112
$7.73 QAR 28.14
-56.79%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.16 ฿373
$8.79 QAR 32.00
26.96%
Apples (1kg)
$2.85 ฿95.1
$1.71 QAR 6.22
66.67%
Banana (1kg)
$1.70 ฿56.9
$1.35 QAR 4.91
25.93%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.19 ฿73.3
$1.40 QAR 5.09
56.43%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.05 ฿68.4
$1.11 QAR 4.04
84.68%
Potato (1kg)
$1.45 ฿48.57
$0.80 QAR 2.93
81.25%
Onion (1kg)
$1.38 ฿46.16
$0.78 QAR 2.84
76.92%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 ฿35.69
$0.70 QAR 2.54
52.86%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.51 ฿16.91
$0.56 QAR 2.02
-8.93%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
-
$6.87 QAR 25.01
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.90 QAR 6.93
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$2.22 QAR 8.08
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.26 ฿142
$6.57 QAR 23.92
-35.16%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.58 ฿621
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.78 ฿59.7
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.85 ฿95.2
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.26 ฿75.6
$0.54 QAR 1.95
318.52%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$22.10 ฿738
$19.35 QAR 70.4
14.21%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.01 ฿101
$1.95 QAR 7.10
54.36%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.06 ฿35.34
$1.81 QAR 6.59
-41.44%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.86 ฿129
$6.94 QAR 25.26
-44.38%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 ฿48.45
$0.58 QAR 2.10
150.00%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$26.3K ฿879.9K
$24.3K QAR 88.4K
8.44%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.9K ฿900.4K
$20.9K QAR 76.0K
28.99%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$96.4 ฿3,221
$84.7 QAR 308
13.74%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.04 ฿369
$35.03 QAR 128
-68.48%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$17.14 ฿573
$85.9 QAR 313
-80.04%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52.2 ฿1,744
$97.5 QAR 355
-46.47%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$11.16 ฿373
$34.26 QAR 125
-67.43%
Cinema Ticket
$7.81 ฿261
$12.44 QAR 45.28
-37.22%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$556 ฿18.6K
$669 QAR 2,436
-16.94%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.6K ฿387.0K
$9,531 QAR 34.7K
21.50%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$64.2 ฿2,146
$48.36 QAR 176
32.75%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$28.69 ฿959
$54.0 QAR 197
-46.87%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$95.4 ฿3,187
$95.3 QAR 347
0.10%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.0 ฿2,940
$70.2 QAR 256
25.31%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$737 ฿24.6K
$1,307 QAR 4,758
-43.60%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$462 ฿15.5K
$724 QAR 2,635
-36.12%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,095 ฿70.0K
$2,442 QAR 8,889
-14.22%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,201 ฿40.1K
$1,908 QAR 6,945
-37.06%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,488 ฿116.6K
$4,236 QAR 15.4K
-17.66%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,523 ฿84.3K
$3,067 QAR 11.2K
-17.74%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Phuket
Al Rayyan
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$501 ฿16.7K
$4,448 QAR 16.2K
-88.74%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.57
3
85.67%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Al Rayyan: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Phuket
$462
Al Rayyan
$724 56.5% $261
Groceries & Markets
Phuket
$269
Al Rayyan
$185 31.3% $84
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
$125
Al Rayyan
$206 65.1% $81
Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
$124
Al Rayyan
$121 3% $3.8
Eating Out
Phuket
$121
Al Rayyan
$121 0.5% $0.5
Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
$68
Al Rayyan
$122 80.5% $55
Getting Around
Phuket
$39
Al Rayyan
$32 17.6% $6.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $737 in Phuket versus $1,307 in Al Rayyan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 788% higher in Al Rayyan, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Phuket versus $34.00 in Al Rayyan. Groceries tell a different story – $269 in Phuket vs $185 in Al Rayyan – so Al Rayyan wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know
🇹🇭 Phuket
🇶🇦 Al Rayyan
🕒 Local time
23:56 11:56 PM
19:56 7:56 PM
4 h behind Phuket
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
79,308
272,465
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Qatari Riyal QAR ر.ق
Exchange rates and currency converter

QAR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Qatari Riyal exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 3.64 QAR (1 QAR = 0.275 USD). 1 EUR = 4.09 QAR (1 QAR = 0.244 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Phuket Al Rayyan 5,330 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Phuket
  • Al Rayyan

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 Rayyan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
How do living costs in Phuket and in Al Rayyan compare overall?
Monthly costs with rent: $1,208 in Phuket, $1,510 in Al Rayyan – roughly 25% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in utilities.
What salary covers living expenses in Phuket compared to Al Rayyan?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,813 per month in Phuket and $2,265 in Al Rayyan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
How do rents compare between Phuket and Al Rayyan?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Phuket, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Interestingly, groceries are about 45% cheaper in Al Rayyan – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Phuket and $34.00 in Al Rayyan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Which city is more doable on $1,500 per month?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,208, than in Al Rayyan at $1,510. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Al Rayyan it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
How does quality of life compare between Phuket and Al Rayyan?
It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,208 in Phuket to $1,510 in Al Rayyan. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
Is Phuket or Al Rayyan safer for residents?
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.
How do I decide between Phuket and Al Rayyan?
If budget matters most, go with Phuket. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Al Rayyan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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