Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Butare

For one person, living is cheaper in Butare: $369 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 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
18

Cost of Living Index in Butare
Learn more

Butare Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Butare

🇷🇼 Rwanda

$369

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Butare

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $369 in Butare.

Phuket $1,278
Butare $369

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $589 in Butare.

Phuket $2,216
Butare $589

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $809 in Butare.

Phuket $3,154
Butare $809

Living in Phuket is roughly 246% more expensive than in Butare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Butare 73% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$2.74 RWF 4,025

63.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$30.44 RWF 44.8K

6.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$6.82 RWF 10.0K

29.18%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$2.39 RWF 3,522

18.41%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$0.81 RWF 1,189

7.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$0.55 RWF 807

-10.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$1.05 RWF 1,544

143.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.35 RWF 3,461

56.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$0.33 RWF 481

403.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$0.83 RWF 1,214

75.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$0.99 RWF 1,460

51.52%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.60 RWF 2,358

30.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$1.64 RWF 2,413

1062.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$2.42 RWF 3,565

36.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$3.02 RWF 4,450

261.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$2.00 RWF 2,943

46.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$0.77 RWF 1,126

119.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.18 RWF 1,739

90.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$0.83 RWF 1,226

150.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.42 RWF 622

259.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$0.26 RWF 380

430.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$0.14 RWF 206

664.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.85 RWF 1,253

-38.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$2.00 RWF 2,936

110.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$10.12 RWF 14.9K

85.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$0.98 RWF 1,445

85.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.56 RWF 2,299

82.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.69 RWF 3,950

12.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$2.01 RWF 2,951

-49.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$3.42 RWF 5,024

7.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.84 RWF 2,700

-20.11%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$25.6K RWF 37.7M

4.58%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$29.2K RWF 42.9M

-8.49%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$82.6 RWF 121.5K

16.62%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$7.03 RWF 10.3K

60.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$21.06 RWF 31.0K

-19.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$3.30 RWF 4,859

127.27%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$112 RWF 165.5K

323.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$9,515 RWF 14.0M

18.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$17.51 RWF 25.8K

256.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$15.43 RWF 22.7K

84.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$22.09 RWF 32.5K

326.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$33.89 RWF 49.9K

153.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

16.2

-65.62%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Butare: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Butare

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Butare

$112 30.5% 57.8% $154

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Butare

$111 30% 11.1% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Butare

$40 10.9% 67.2% $82

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Butare

$86 23.4% 29% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Butare

$6.6 * 1.8% 92% $76

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Butare

$13 * 3.5% 82% $58

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $30 in Butare for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $112 per month, with Butare cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇷🇼 Butare

🕒 Local time

06:45 6:45 AM

01:45 1:45 AM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

62,823

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Rwandan Franc RWF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

10,000 RWF = 6.8 USD

10,000 RWF = 6.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RWF, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Rwandan Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,471 RWF (10,000 RWF = 6.8 USD). 1 EUR = 1,638 RWF (10,000 RWF = 6.11 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Butare 7,700 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Butare

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 Butare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Butare wins on cost – living expenses run 71% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Butare the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,917 in Phuket and $553 in Butare to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Supermarket bills run roughly 137% 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 $369 in Butare – Butare is about 71% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $369 in Butare versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $800 budget is realistic in Butare but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Butare the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Butare are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.