Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Athlone

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,662 in Athlone, rent and utilities included – about $16,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
129

Cost of Living Index in Athlone
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Athlone Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Athlone

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,662

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Athlone

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,662 in Athlone.

Phuket $1,278
Athlone $2,662

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $3,943 in Athlone.

Phuket $2,216
Athlone $3,943

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $5,225 in Athlone.

Phuket $3,154
Athlone $5,225

Living in Phuket costs roughly 52% less than in Athlone, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Athlone is 96% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$22.33 €20.06

-79.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$100 €90.1

-67.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$13.20 €11.86

-33.26%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$3.90 €3.51

-27.44%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$2.09 €1.87

-58.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$1.84 €1.65

-73.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$6.64 €5.97

-61.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$5.46 €4.90

-32.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.39 €1.25

19.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.26 €1.13

15.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$1.68 €1.51

-10.71%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$3.80 €3.41

-45.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$10.82 €9.72

76.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$11.31 €10.16

-70.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$11.95 €10.74

-8.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$2.65 €2.38

10.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.56 €1.40

8.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.32 €2.08

-3.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$2.76 €2.48

-24.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$2.50 €2.24

-39.60%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$2.37 €2.13

-41.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$2.15 €1.93

-50.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$1.97 €1.77

-73.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$17.66 €15.86

-76.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$11.04 €9.92

70.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$3.30 €2.97

-44.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$4.52 €4.06

-37.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$1.76 €1.58

-17.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

$99.9 €89.8

-43.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$5.54 €4.97

-45.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$1.43 €1.29

-28.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$18.59 €16.70

-80.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$2.03 €1.82

-27.59%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$38.8K €34.8K

-30.93%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$37.3K €33.5K

-28.39%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$258 €232

-62.62%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$29.70 €26.68

-62.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$47.63 €42.78

-64.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$49.81 €44.74

34.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$35.43 €31.82

-69.71%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$10.98 €9.87

-31.69%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$989 €888

-51.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$5,076 €4,560

121.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$114 €103

-45.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$41.67 €37.43

-31.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$83.6 €75.1

12.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$77.7 €69.8

10.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$1,488 €1,337

-51.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$1,356 €1,218

-63.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$2,613 €2,347

-26.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$2,254 €2,025

-36.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$3,293 €2,958

26.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$3,418 €3,070

-10.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$3,142 €2,822

-84.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.73

49.33%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Athlone: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Athlone

$1.4K 51% 176% $866

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Athlone

$311 11.7% 16.8% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Athlone

$335 12.6% 169% $211

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Athlone

$143 5.4% 17.1% $21

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Athlone

$325 12.2% 167% $203

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Athlone

$72 2.7% 12.7% $10

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Athlone

$120 4.5% 69.5% $49

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $1,488 in Athlone. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athlone pays about 6.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $100 in Athlone for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $311 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇮🇪 Athlone

🕒 Local time

05:03 5:03 AM

22:03 10:03 PM

7 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

21,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Athlone 10,360 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Athlone

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 Athlone: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 52% lower than in Athlone. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 84% lower in Phuket. 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: $716 in Phuket versus $1,488 in Athlone. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $989 in Athlone. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in Athlone. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,662 in Athlone, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Athlone. 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 Athlone are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 52% less than in Athlone. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.