Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Binzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Binzhou: $775 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Binzhou
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Binzhou Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Binzhou

🇨🇳 China

$775

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Binzhou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Phuket versus $775 in Binzhou.

Phuket $1,207
Binzhou $775

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Phuket versus $1,224 in Binzhou.

Phuket $2,037
Binzhou $1,224

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,867 in Phuket versus $1,672 in Binzhou.

Phuket $2,867
Binzhou $1,672

Living in Phuket is roughly 56% more expensive than in Binzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Binzhou 43% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿153

$3.02 ¥20.20

51.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,086

$17.67 ¥118

83.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿286

$4.40 ¥29.44

94.32%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.0

$2.69 ¥18.00

1.12%

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

$0.94 ฿31.25

$0.51 ¥3.39

84.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.39

$0.30 ¥2.00

63.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$1.05 ¥7.03

146.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.55 ¥17.08

50.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.1

$1.93 ¥12.91

-9.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿47.82

$1.36 ¥9.09

5.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.0

$1.04 ¥6.94

47.12%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$1.30 ¥8.68

66.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿640

$16.40 ¥110

16.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿110

$4.42 ¥29.55

-25.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿372

$9.53 ¥63.7

16.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿98.5

$1.47 ¥9.80

100.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.1

$1.20 ¥8.00

40.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿76.8

$1.69 ¥11.33

36.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.3

$1.30 ¥8.70

63.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.1

$0.68 ¥4.57

125.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.55

$0.97 ¥6.47

40.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$0.93 ¥6.24

20.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.24

$0.61 ¥4.05

-9.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$3.76 ¥25.15

13.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

$14.72 ¥98.4

23.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$1.03 ¥6.86

68.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

$1.63 ¥10.91

71.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.1

$0.29 ¥1.93

665.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

$17.01 ¥114

29.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.3

$1.04 ¥6.95

179.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

$0.45 ¥2.99

124.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

$8.82 ¥59.0

-56.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.85

$1.27 ¥8.52

17.32%

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

$26.7K ฿891.6K

$19.7K ¥131.7K

35.42%

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

$26.7K ฿892.7K

$16.5K ¥110.4K

61.76%

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

$99.4 ฿3,321

$67.8 ¥453

46.52%

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

$11.28 ฿377

$6.88 ¥46.00

63.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿580

$7.89 ¥52.7

120.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,747

$41.59 ¥278

25.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

$14.50 ¥97.0

-25.17%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿253

$5.67 ¥37.90

33.51%

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

$558 ฿18.7K

$368 ¥2,462

51.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

$17.8K ¥118.7K

-35.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,102

$52.2 ¥349

20.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿955

$47.93 ¥320

-40.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,213

$93.8 ¥627

2.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,943

$89.8 ¥600

-1.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$296 ¥1,980

146.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.4K

$184 ¥1,232

149.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$624 ¥4,173

235.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿40.8K

$378 ¥2,529

223.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

$3,388 ¥22.7K

2.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

$1,677 ¥11.2K

48.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

$567 ¥3,788

-12.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.37

65.28%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Binzhou: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Binzhou

$184 23.8% 59.9% $276

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Binzhou

$223 28.8% 16.7% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Binzhou

$83 10.7% 35.5% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Binzhou

$128 16.5% 2.9% $3.6

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Binzhou

$83 10.7% 31.4% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Binzhou

$53 6.8% 21.5% $14

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Binzhou

$21 2.8% 44.9% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $729 in Phuket and $296 in Binzhou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Binzhou pays 15% 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 $18.00 in Binzhou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $223 per month, with Binzhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇳 Binzhou

🕒 Local time

15:41 3:41 PM

16:41 4:41 PM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

3,748,500

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 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 October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Binzhou 3,830 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Binzhou

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 Binzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Binzhou is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 56% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 15% lower in Binzhou. 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: $729 in Phuket versus $296 in Binzhou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $558 in Phuket versus $368 in Binzhou. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $775 in Binzhou versus $1,207 in Phuket, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Binzhou but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Binzhou the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Binzhou is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Phuket, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Binzhou 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 Binzhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 56% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.