Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Baku

For one person, living is cheaper in Baku: $996 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 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
48

Cost of Living Index in Baku
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Baku Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Baku

🇦🇿 Azerbaijan

$996

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Baku

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $996 in Baku.

Phuket $1,208
Baku $996

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $1,551 in Baku.

Phuket $2,027
Baku $1,551

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $2,107 in Baku.

Phuket $2,845
Baku $2,107

Living in Phuket is roughly 21% more expensive than in Baku, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Baku 26% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿147

$8.84 ₼15.02

-50.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,078

$39.43 ₼67.0

-18.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿293

$8.26 ₼14.04

6.05%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿94.5

$3.50 ₼5.95

-19.14%

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

$0.90 ฿30.14

$1.12 ₼1.91

-19.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.56

$0.57 ₼0.97

-17.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

$1.72 ₼2.93

48.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.98 ₼5.06

28.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿57.7

$1.49 ₼2.54

16.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.11

$0.49 ₼0.84

200.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.6

$2.48 ₼4.21

-39.11%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$1.99 ₼3.38

9.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿658

$5.16 ₼8.77

281.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿112

$5.17 ₼8.79

-35.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿373

$11.85 ₼20.15

-5.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$1.34 ₼2.28

112.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$1.90 ₼3.22

-10.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

$1.58 ₼2.68

38.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$1.84 ₼3.13

11.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿48.57

$0.74 ₼1.25

95.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.16

$0.61 ₼1.03

126.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.69

$0.73 ₼1.24

46.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

$0.78 ₼1.32

-34.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$2.97 ₼5.05

43.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿621

$8.59 ₼14.59

116.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

$1.53 ₼2.60

16.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.2

$2.82 ₼4.79

1.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

$0.36 ₼0.62

527.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

$20.86 ₼35.44

5.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿101

$2.12 ₼3.60

41.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

$0.58 ₼0.99

82.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

$3.64 ₼6.18

6.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$0.64 ₼1.09

126.56%

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

$23.3K ₼39.6K

13.03%

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

$26.9K ฿900.4K

$22.1K ₼37.5K

22.06%

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

$96.4 ฿3,221

$67.7 ₼115

42.45%

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

$11.04 ฿369

$11.11 ₼18.88

-0.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿573

$15.09 ₼25.65

13.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

$47.83 ₼81.3

9.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

$16.66 ₼28.32

-33.01%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿261

$5.74 ₼9.76

36.06%

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

$556 ฿18.6K

$334 ₼568

66.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

$6,829 ₼11.6K

69.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,146

$65.7 ₼112

-2.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿959

$55.2 ₼93.7

-47.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,187

$124 ₼211

-23.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,940

$115 ₼195

-23.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

$547 ₼930

34.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

$301 ₼511

53.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

$974 ₼1,655

115.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

$488 ₼830

145.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

$2,177 ₼3,699

60.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

$1,315 ₼2,235

91.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

$548 ₼932

-8.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

9.46

-41.12%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Baku: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Baku

$301 30.2% 35% $162

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Baku

$194 19.5% 27.6% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Baku

$94 9.4% 24.6% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Baku

$162 16.2% 30.1% $37

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Baku

$159 16% 31% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Baku

$59 6% 12.5% $8.5

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Baku

$27 2.7% 30.7% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $547 in Baku. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Baku pays 9% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $39.00 in Baku. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $194, with Baku cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇦🇿 Baku

🕒 Local time

18:42 6:42 PM

15:42 3:42 PM

3 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

2,300,500 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Azerbaijani Manat AZN ₼

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 AZN = 0.588 USD

1 AZN = 0.523 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AZN, 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).

Azerbaijani Manat exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.7 AZN (1 AZN = 0.588 USD). 1 EUR = 1.91 AZN (1 AZN = 0.523 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

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Between locations

Phuket Baku 6,000 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Baku

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 Baku: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket and Baku differ by about 21% in total monthly costs ($1,208 vs $996 including rent). Baku is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 9% lower in Baku. 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 $547 in Baku. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $334 in Baku. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 38% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $996 in Baku versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Baku but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Baku 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 Baku 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 Baku gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.