Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Aruba

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $2,350 in Aruba, rent and utilities included – about $13,700 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
141

Cost of Living Index in Aruba
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Aruba Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Aruba

🇦🇼 Aruba

$2,350

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Aruba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $2,350 in Aruba.

Phuket $1,208
Aruba $2,350

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $4,243 in Aruba.

Phuket $2,027
Aruba $4,243

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $6,135 in Aruba.

Phuket $2,845
Aruba $6,135

Living in Phuket costs roughly 49% less than in Aruba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 11% below, Aruba is 73% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿147

$14.68 AWG 26.27

-70.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,078

$90.1 AWG 161

-64.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿293

$10.54 AWG 18.87

-16.89%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿94.5

$5.26 AWG 9.42

-46.20%

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

$0.90 ฿30.14

$2.42 AWG 4.34

-62.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.56

$2.19 AWG 3.93

-78.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

$5.24 AWG 9.37

-51.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$7.09 AWG 12.69

-45.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿57.7

$1.64 AWG 2.94

5.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.11

$2.84 AWG 5.09

-48.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.6

$2.96 AWG 5.29

-48.99%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$3.72 AWG 6.66

-41.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿658

$14.23 AWG 25.47

38.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿112

$4.19 AWG 7.50

-20.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿373

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿95.1

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$2.03 AWG 3.63

-16.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿48.57

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.16

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.69

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

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

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

$2.54 AWG 4.54

-11.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿101

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$2.47 AWG 4.42

-41.30%

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

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

$26.9K ฿900.4K

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

$96.4 ฿3,221

$239 AWG 428

-59.67%

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

$11.04 ฿369

$132 AWG 237

-91.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿573

$84.7 AWG 151

-79.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿261

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

$556 ฿18.6K

$298 AWG 533

86.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

$17.8K AWG 31.8K

-34.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,146

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿959

$66.1 AWG 118

-56.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,187

$120 AWG 215

-20.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,940

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

$656 AWG 1,174

12.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

$1,382 AWG 2,472

-66.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

$3,142 AWG 5,623

-33.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

$3,992 AWG 7,145

-69.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

$1,873 AWG 3,352

-73.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Aruba: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Aruba

$1.4K 58.8% 199% $919

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Aruba

$147 * 6.3% 45.1% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Aruba

$456 19.4% 266% $331

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Aruba

$84 * 3.6% 32.5% $40

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Aruba

$271 11.5% 124% $150

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Aruba

- * 0% 100%

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Aruba

$10 * 0.4% 74.3% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $656 in Aruba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aruba pays 274% 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: $32.00 in Phuket vs $90.0 in Aruba. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $147, with Aruba cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇦🇼 Aruba

🕒 Local time

02:14 2:14 AM

15:14 3:14 PM

11 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

15,236

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Aruban Florin AWG ƒ

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 AWG = 0.559 USD

1 AWG = 0.497 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AWG, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

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).

Aruban Florin exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 AWG (1 AWG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 AWG (1 AWG = 0.497 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Aruba 17,410 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Aruba

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 Aruba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket and Aruba differ by about 94% in total monthly costs ($1,208 vs $2,350 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 274% lower in Aruba. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $737 in Phuket versus $656 in Aruba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Aruba pay roughly 82% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,208 per month in Phuket versus $2,350 in Aruba – a 94% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $2,350 in Aruba, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Aruba. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Aruba 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 94% less than in Aruba. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.