Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Benoni

For one person, living is cheaper in Benoni: $1,067 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Benoni
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Benoni Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Benoni

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,067

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Benoni

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,067 in Benoni.

Phuket $1,278
Benoni $1,067

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,318 in Benoni.

Phuket $2,216
Benoni $1,318

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,568 in Benoni.

Phuket $3,154
Benoni $1,568

Living in Phuket is roughly 20% more expensive than in Benoni, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Benoni 22% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$9.86 R 164

-54.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,092

$37.05 R 615

-12.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$5.55 R 92.2

58.74%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$2.17 R 36.00

30.41%

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

$0.87 ฿29.37

$1.14 R 18.91

-23.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.64

$0.84 R 14.00

-41.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.2

$2.37 R 39.31

8.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.75 R 45.65

33.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.21 R 20.09

37.19%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.25

$1.12 R 18.55

30.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.4

$1.79 R 29.65

-16.20%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.4

$2.49 R 41.28

-16.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿642

$8.18 R 136

133.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$4.85 R 80.5

-31.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$7.12 R 118

53.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.7

$1.74 R 28.86

68.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$1.60 R 26.57

5.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$1.77 R 29.47

27.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$1.56 R 25.98

33.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$1.07 R 17.77

41.12%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.47

$1.17 R 19.48

17.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.91

$1.22 R 20.21

-12.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.49

$1.30 R 21.54

-60.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.52 R 58.5

19.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿633

$4.97 R 82.6

278.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$1.51 R 25.12

20.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.7

$1.98 R 32.94

43.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.93

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,909

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$0.29 R 4.77

941.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.29

$0.93 R 15.47

9.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$14.37 R 239

-74.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.70

$1.53 R 25.46

-3.92%

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

$26.8K ฿902.4K

$35.4K R 588.6K

-24.44%

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

$26.7K ฿899.5K

$34.4K R 572.0K

-22.50%

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

$96.4 ฿3,247

$197 R 3,275

-51.13%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$39.26 R 652

-71.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$37.82 R 628

-55.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,266

$17.81 R 296

277.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿361

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.15 R 119

4.90%

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

$476 ฿16.0K

$246 R 4,085

93.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.6K

$5,379 R 89.3K

109.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,102

$52.1 R 865

19.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿957

$31.79 R 528

-10.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,178

$91.2 R 1,515

3.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,892

$82.3 R 1,368

4.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$393 R 6,526

82.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.5K

$302 R 5,020

62.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿64.9K

$489 R 8,131

293.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$2,000 R 33.2K

-74.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.91

-48.95%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Benoni: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Benoni

$302 28.3% 38.4% $189

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Benoni

$191 17.9% 28.2% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Benoni

$274 25.7% 120% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Benoni

$116 10.9% 4.9% $6

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Benoni

$147 13.8% 20.6% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Benoni

$32 3% 61% $50

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Benoni

$4.9 * 0.5% 93% $66

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 Benoni. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Benoni pays about 4 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $37 in Benoni. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $191, with Benoni cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇿🇦 Benoni

🕒 Local time

13:27 1:27 PM

08:27 8:27 AM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

158,777

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.02 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 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 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 16.61 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.02 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Benoni 8,450 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Benoni

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 Benoni: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,278 in Phuket and $1,067 in Benoni, so Benoni is about 16% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 75% 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 $393 in Benoni. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 39% 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 $1,067 in Benoni – Benoni is about 16% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Benoni gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.