Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Benxi

For one person, living is cheaper in Benxi: $692 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Benxi
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Benxi Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Benxi

🇨🇳 China

$692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Benxi

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $692 in Benxi, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Benxi $692

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $991 in Benxi, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Benxi $991

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $1,291 in Benxi, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Benxi $1,291

Phuket costs about 85% more than Benxi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Benxi are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 6% lower, Benxi 49% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$3.04 ¥20.19

47.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$22.33 ¥148

45.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$5.31 ¥35.25

65.91%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.40 ¥15.98

17.92%

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

$0.87 ฿29.42

$0.51 ¥3.39

70.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.66

$0.29 ¥1.89

68.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$0.73 ¥4.84

250.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$1.76 ¥11.69

109.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.85 ¥12.28

-10.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.32

$1.22 ¥8.08

19.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$0.84 ¥5.60

78.57%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.60 ¥10.65

30.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$10.00 ¥66.4

90.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$2.85 ¥18.92

15.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$8.92 ¥59.3

22.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$1.62 ¥10.74

80.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.38 ¥9.17

22.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.62 ¥10.76

38.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$1.37 ¥9.12

51.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.58 ¥3.88

160.34%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.54

$1.85 ¥12.26

-25.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.97

$0.61 ¥4.09

75.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.69 ¥4.57

-24.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$2.97 ¥19.75

41.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$8.24 ¥54.7

128.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$0.58 ¥3.85

213.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.25 ¥8.30

127.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.00

$0.31 ¥2.09

367.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$12.21 ¥81.1

364.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$0.88 ¥5.84

243.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.34

$0.29 ¥1.91

251.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$2.98 ¥19.82

23.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.78

$1.13 ¥7.53

30.09%

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

$26.8K ฿903.7K

$19.8K ¥131.7K

35.14%

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

$26.7K ฿900.8K

$18.0K ¥119.4K

48.54%

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

$96.4 ฿3,252

$54.4 ¥361

77.24%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$6.70 ¥44.51

68.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$10.41 ¥69.2

61.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,269

$66.3 ¥441

1.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$8.31 ¥55.2

29.12%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$6.03 ¥40.08

24.38%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$449 ¥2,985

5.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.1K

$8,894 ¥59.1K

26.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,105

$29.74 ¥198

109.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$32.77 ¥218

-13.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,182

$60.2 ¥400

56.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,896

$52.4 ¥348

63.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$137 ¥907

424.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$189 ¥1,259

159.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$258 ¥1,711

648.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$153 ¥1,015

836.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$3,371 ¥22.4K

23.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$1,941 ¥12.9K

56.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$447 ¥2,971

12.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

39.25%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Benxi: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Benxi

$189 27.4% 61.4% $302

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Benxi

$179 25.9% 32.7% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Benxi

$71 10.3% 42.6% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Benxi

$79 11.4% 35.4% $43

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Benxi

$79 11.5% 34.7% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Benxi

$78 11.3% 4.7% $3.8

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Benxi

$16 2.3% 77.6% $55

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $137 in Benxi. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 12% higher in Phuket, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $22 in Benxi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $179 – making Benxi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇳 Benxi

🕒 Local time

11:30 11:30 AM

12:30 12:30 PM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

809,655

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 6.64 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.42 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Benxi 4,480 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Benxi

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 Benxi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket costs about 85% more than Benxi, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,917 per month in Phuket and $1,039 in Benxi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Benxi, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $137 there versus $716 in Phuket.

Kindergarten costs $476 per month in Phuket and $449 in Benxi. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 49% more in Phuket, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Benxi, where all-in costs run around $692, than in Phuket at $1,278. In Benxi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Benxi – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Benxi. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Phuket makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.