Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Braila

For one person, living is cheaper in Braila: $1,143 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Braila
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Braila Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Braila

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,143

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Braila

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,143 in Braila.

Phuket $1,278
Braila $1,143

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,725 in Braila.

Phuket $2,216
Braila $1,725

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,308 in Braila.

Phuket $3,154
Braila $2,308

Living in Phuket is roughly 12% more expensive than in Braila, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Braila 16% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$18.68 RON 89.3

-76.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$39.07 RON 187

-17.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$8.78 RON 41.93

0.34%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.63 RON 12.57

7.60%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$2.06 RON 9.84

-57.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$1.70 RON 8.13

-71.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$1.63 RON 7.78

57.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.08 RON 9.92

76.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.82 RON 8.69

-8.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$1.42 RON 6.80

2.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.47 RON 7.04

2.04%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$3.36 RON 16.08

-37.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$8.71 RON 41.62

118.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$7.65 RON 36.53

-56.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$9.51 RON 45.45

14.72%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$0.95 RON 4.53

208.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.46 RON 6.96

15.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.30 RON 6.22

73.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$1.15 RON 5.49

80.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.84 RON 4.04

79.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$0.72 RON 3.45

91.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$0.68 RON 3.24

57.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.79 RON 3.75

-34.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$6.16 RON 29.42

-31.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$6.19 RON 29.60

203.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.02 RON 4.86

78.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$1.56 RON 7.44

82.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$0.61 RON 2.91

137.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$15.47 RON 73.9

266.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.03 RON 4.93

193.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$0.72 RON 3.46

41.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$6.77 RON 32.34

-45.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.58 RON 7.57

-6.96%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$26.8K RON 127.9K

0.02%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$29.7K RON 141.8K

-10.08%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$138 RON 660

-30.29%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$8.19 RON 39.12

37.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$12.91 RON 61.7

30.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$32.14 RON 154

109.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$14.83 RON 70.9

-27.65%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.27 RON 34.76

3.16%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$366 RON 1,748

30.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$8,266 RON 39.5K

36.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$100 RON 478

-37.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$60.5 RON 289

-53.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$91.3 RON 436

3.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$123 RON 588

-30.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$376 RON 1,798

90.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$305 RON 1,458

60.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$536 RON 2,562

259.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$446 RON 2,132

220.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$1,880 RON 8,984

122.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$1,304 RON 6,230

133.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$851 RON 4,065

-40.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

8.3

-32.89%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Braila: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Braila

$305 26.7% 37.8% $186

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Braila

$206 18% 22.7% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Braila

$159 13.9% 28% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Braila

$169 14.8% 38.4% $47

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Braila

$235 20.5% 92.8% $113

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Braila

$47 4.1% 43.2% $36

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Braila

$23 2% 68.1% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $376 in Braila. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Braila pays 69% 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 $39 in Braila. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $206, with Braila cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇷🇴 Braila

🕒 Local time

16:51 4:51 PM

11:51 11:51 AM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

180,302

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 4.78 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Braila 7,860 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Braila

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 Braila: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Braila wins on cost – living expenses run 11% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Braila the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 41% 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 $376 in Braila. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Braila runs roughly 73% less than in Phuket. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $366 in Braila. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Braila 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.