Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Bellville

For one person, living is cheaper in Bellville: $1,153 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Bellville
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Bellville Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Bellville

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,153

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Bellville

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,153 in Bellville.

Phuket $1,278
Bellville $1,153

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,785 in Bellville.

Phuket $2,216
Bellville $1,785

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,418 in Bellville.

Phuket $3,154
Bellville $2,418

Living in Phuket is roughly 11% more expensive than in Bellville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Bellville 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$12.25 R 204

-63.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$24.27 R 404

33.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$6.08 R 101

44.90%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$1.96 R 32.66

44.39%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$1.36 R 22.63

-36.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$1.03 R 17.13

-52.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$2.23 R 37.10

14.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$3.67 R 61.2

0.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.37 R 22.75

21.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.26 R 21.00

15.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$2.21 R 36.75

-32.13%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$3.11 R 51.9

-32.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$9.11 R 152

109.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$6.96 R 116

-52.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$9.79 R 163

11.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$1.85 R 30.87

58.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.90 R 31.63

-11.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.76 R 29.36

27.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$2.13 R 35.53

-2.35%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.52 R 25.30

-0.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$1.50 R 24.98

-8.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$1.31 R 21.85

-18.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$1.15 R 19.17

-54.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.73 R 62.2

12.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$6.24 R 104

201.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.35 R 22.58

34.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$2.14 R 35.70

32.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$1.49 R 24.85

-2.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$0.58 R 9.67

420.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$1.48 R 24.70

-31.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$5.09 R 84.8

-27.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.54 R 25.71

-4.55%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$35.3K R 588.7K

-24.20%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$34.4K R 573.9K

-22.49%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$119 R 1,988

-19.24%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$28.93 R 482

-61.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$39.84 R 664

-57.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$33.04 R 551

103.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$11.06 R 184

-2.98%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$8.92 R 149

-15.92%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$266 R 4,439

78.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$6,949 R 115.8K

62.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$56.9 R 948

9.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$32.09 R 535

-11.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$120 R 1,992

-21.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$107 R 1,784

-19.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$393 R 6,553

82.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$362 R 6,038

35.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$727 R 12.1K

165.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$746 R 12.4K

91.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$879 R 14.6K

374.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$685 R 11.4K

344.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.97

-49.23%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Bellville: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Bellville

$362 31.4% 26.2% $129

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Bellville

$228 19.7% 14.5% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Bellville

$188 16.3% 51.1% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Bellville

$142 12.3% 16.5% $20

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Bellville

$168 14.6% 37.8% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Bellville

$51 4.4% 38.1% $31

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Bellville

$14 * 1.2% 80.2% $57

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 $716 in Phuket and $393 in Bellville. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $24 in Bellville for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $228 per month, with Bellville cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇿🇦 Bellville

🕒 Local time

01:41 1:41 AM

20:41 8:41 PM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

112,507

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR 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).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Bellville 9,560 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Bellville

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 Bellville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bellville wins on cost – living expenses run 10% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bellville the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,917 in Phuket and $1,729 in Bellville to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $393 in Bellville. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

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

All in, you’ll spend $1,278 per month in Phuket versus $1,153 in Bellville – a 11% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Bellville is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Bellville delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,153 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Bellville hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Bellville are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.