Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Arar

For one person, living is cheaper in Arar: $1,171 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Arar
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Arar Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Arar

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,171

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Arar

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $1,171 in Arar, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Arar $1,171

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $1,750 in Arar, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Arar $1,750

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $2,329 in Arar, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Arar $2,329

Phuket costs about 9% more than Arar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Arar are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 6% lower, Arar 14% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$5.97 SAR 22.40

-25.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$37.64 SAR 141

-13.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$7.75 SAR 29.09

13.68%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.87 SAR 7.03

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 SAR 8.41

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$3.17 SAR 11.91

-10.73%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$0.89 SAR 3.33

-2.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.26 SAR 0.98

88.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.72 SAR 6.47

-3.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$1.30 SAR 4.87

12.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$2.25 SAR 8.46

-33.33%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.30 SAR 8.64

-9.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$7.64 SAR 28.68

149.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$8.06 SAR 30.25

-59.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$12.82 SAR 48.09

-14.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$2.13 SAR 8.00

37.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.70 SAR 6.38

-0.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.58 SAR 5.95

42.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$1.57 SAR 5.87

32.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.19 SAR 4.46

26.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$1.26 SAR 4.73

9.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$1.26 SAR 4.72

-15.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.56 SAR 2.11

-7.14%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.00 SAR 11.26

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 SAR 6.49

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 SAR 7.54

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$6.51 SAR 24.42

-35.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$1.08 SAR 4.07

34.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$36.77 SAR 138

54.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.69 SAR 10.08

12.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$1.88 SAR 7.07

-45.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$13.05 SAR 48.99

-71.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$0.63 SAR 2.37

133.33%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$28.6K SAR 107.5K

-6.53%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$21.6K SAR 81.1K

23.49%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$104 SAR 392

-7.73%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$32.87 SAR 123

-65.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$66.2 SAR 249

-74.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$81.0 SAR 304

-16.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$13.40 SAR 50.3

-44.03%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$412 SAR 1,546

15.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$7,834 SAR 29.4K

43.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$42.18 SAR 158

47.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$54.2 SAR 203

-47.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$97.9 SAR 368

-3.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$86.5 SAR 325

-0.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$565 SAR 2,119

26.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$364 SAR 1,365

34.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$826 SAR 3,101

133.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$574 SAR 2,156

149.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$2,325 SAR 8,724

79.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$1,354 SAR 5,082

124.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

5.54

0.54%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Arar: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Arar

$364 31.1% 25.9% $127

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Arar

$203 17.3% 23.7% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Arar

$204 17.4% 63.5% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Arar

$126 10.8% 3.7% $4.5

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Arar

$114 9.7% 6.6% $8

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Arar

$108 9.2% 31% $26

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Arar

$53 4.5% 24.6% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $565 in Arar. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $38 in Arar. Groceries tell a different story – $266 in Phuket vs $203 in Arar – so Arar wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇸🇦 Arar

🕒 Local time

10:19 10:19 AM

06:19 6:19 AM

4 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

167,057

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.238 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.78 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.2 SAR (1 SAR = 0.238 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Arar 6,460 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Arar

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 Arar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,278 in Phuket, $1,171 in Arar – Arar comes out roughly 8% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,917 per month in Phuket and $1,757 in Arar. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Arar, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $565 there versus $716 in Phuket.

Public transport costs about 35% less in Arar. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $476 per month in Phuket and $412 in Arar. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,278 in Phuket and $1,171 in Arar, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.