Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Bhisho

For one person, living is cheaper in Bhisho: $1,142 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 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 Bhisho
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Bhisho Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Bhisho

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,142

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Bhisho

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,142 in Bhisho.

Phuket $1,294
Bhisho $1,142

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $1,802 in Bhisho.

Phuket $2,204
Bhisho $1,802

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $2,462 in Bhisho.

Phuket $3,115
Bhisho $2,462

Living in Phuket is roughly 13% more expensive than in Bhisho, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 4% lower, Bhisho 16% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿148

$10.99 R 183

-60.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,090

$42.60 R 710

-24.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿294

$5.88 R 98.1

47.96%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.9

$2.06 R 34.28

32.04%

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

$0.93 ฿31.39

$1.02 R 16.98

-8.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.85

$0.73 R 12.21

-31.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.4

$2.66 R 44.24

-4.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$3.18 R 53.0

14.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.7

$1.13 R 18.87

53.98%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.95

$1.04 R 17.37

39.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$1.51 R 25.09

-0.66%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.3

$2.71 R 45.09

-19.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿644

$8.81 R 147

116.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿115

$5.20 R 86.7

-34.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿368

$8.53 R 142

27.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿99.2

$2.18 R 36.32

34.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.53 R 25.49

10.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿74.0

$1.68 R 27.92

30.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.7

$1.73 R 28.86

22.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿49.21

$1.67 R 27.81

-12.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿46.15

$1.42 R 23.70

-3.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.30

$1.25 R 20.78

-13.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.41

$0.98 R 16.38

-43.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$3.30 R 55.0

34.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿616

$4.70 R 78.4

288.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.8

$1.22 R 20.25

45.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿97.2

$1.76 R 29.36

63.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.84

$1.78 R 29.64

-18.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,852

$23.99 R 400

128.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.83 R 13.75

81.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.18

$0.50 R 8.33

56.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿130

$8.31 R 139

-53.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿50.2

$1.47 R 24.53

1.36%

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

$26.9K ฿907.0K

$34.4K R 573.1K

-21.84%

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

$26.3K ฿888.9K

$35.4K R 589.9K

-25.58%

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

$97.8 ฿3,300

$124 R 2,073

-21.38%

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

$11.29 ฿381

$34.58 R 576

-67.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿580

$45.53 R 759

-62.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,305

$32.31 R 538

111.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿368

$11.98 R 200

-8.85%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿251

$10.38 R 173

-28.42%

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

$530 ฿17.9K

$177 R 2,955

199.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿633.7K

$6,036 R 100.6K

211.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,081

$70.7 R 1,178

-12.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿953

$38.97 R 649

-27.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,239

$110 R 1,834

-12.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,929

$97.3 R 1,621

-10.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.3K

$398 R 6,625

81.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.2K

$355 R 5,908

43.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.8K

$717 R 12.0K

171.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿47.1K

$724 R 12.1K

92.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿141.4K

$771 R 12.8K

444.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿111.3K

$671 R 11.2K

391.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.6K

$3,243 R 54.0K

-84.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.94

-53.35%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Bhisho: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Bhisho

$355 31.1% 30.3% $154

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Bhisho

$196 17.1% 26.7% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Bhisho

$205 17.9% 61.9% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Bhisho

$143 12.5% 16.2% $20

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Bhisho

$157 13.7% 31.2% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Bhisho

$53 4.7% 36.2% $30

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Bhisho

$34 3% 47.9% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Phuket and $398 in Bhisho. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bhisho pays about 6.6 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 $43 in Bhisho. Groceries flip the comparison at $267 vs $196, with Bhisho cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇿🇦 Bhisho

🕒 Local time

04:35 4:35 AM

23:35 11:35 PM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

137,287

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.37 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 November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.73 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.64 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Bhisho 8,740 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Bhisho

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 Bhisho: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bhisho wins on cost – living expenses run 12% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bhisho the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 85% 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: $721 in Phuket versus $398 in Bhisho. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $177 in Bhisho. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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

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.