Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Cahul

For one person, living is cheaper in Cahul: $627 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 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
30

Cost of Living Index in Cahul
Learn more

Cahul Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Cahul

🇲🇩 Moldova

$627

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Cahul

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $627 in Cahul.

Phuket $1,278
Cahul $627

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $917 in Cahul.

Phuket $2,216
Cahul $917

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,207 in Cahul.

Phuket $3,154
Cahul $1,207

Living in Phuket is roughly 104% more expensive than in Cahul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Cahul 54% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$8.19 MDL 146

-45.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,092

$23.41 MDL 417

38.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$10.36 MDL 185

-14.96%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$1.69 MDL 30.11

67.46%

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

$0.87 ฿29.37

$1.11 MDL 19.82

-21.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.64

$0.53 MDL 9.53

-7.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.2

$2.01 MDL 35.81

27.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$1.76 MDL 31.45

109.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.20 MDL 21.36

38.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.25

$0.49 MDL 8.72

197.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.4

$1.60 MDL 28.45

-6.25%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.4

$2.24 MDL 39.89

-6.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿642

$6.51 MDL 116

192.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$4.54 MDL 80.9

-27.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$6.17 MDL 110

76.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.7

$0.98 MDL 17.39

198.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$2.19 MDL 39.09

-22.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$1.81 MDL 32.25

24.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$2.37 MDL 42.33

-12.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$0.76 MDL 13.54

98.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.47

$0.52 MDL 9.22

165.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.91

$0.43 MDL 7.74

148.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.49

$0.53 MDL 9.50

-1.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.39 MDL 60.5

23.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿633

$4.38 MDL 78.1

329.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$1.41 MDL 25.19

29.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.7

$1.97 MDL 35.06

44.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$0.27 MDL 4.81

437.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,909

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.87 MDL 51.1

5.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.29

$0.24 MDL 4.27

325.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$5.44 MDL 97.0

-32.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.70

$1.56 MDL 27.74

-5.77%

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

$26.8K ฿902.4K

$33.3K MDL 593.4K

-19.55%

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

$26.7K ฿899.5K

$24.4K MDL 435.5K

9.27%

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

$96.4 ฿3,247

$221 MDL 3,948

-56.49%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$7.65 MDL 136

47.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$11.03 MDL 197

52.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,266

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿361

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.62 MDL 136

-1.57%

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

$476 ฿16.0K

$110 MDL 1,964

332.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.6K

$5,249 MDL 93.6K

114.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,102

$45.08 MDL 804

38.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿957

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,178

$56.4 MDL 1,005

67.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,892

$51.0 MDL 909

68.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿64.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.2K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$507 MDL 9,048

-1.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-30.37%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Cahul: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Cahul

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Cahul

$161 25.7% 39.4% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Cahul

$240 38.3% 92.9% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Cahul

$69 * 10.9% 43.7% $53

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Cahul

$137 21.8% 12.6% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Cahul

$15 * 2.4% 81.5% $67

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Cahul

$5.1 * 0.8% 92.7% $65

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $23 in Cahul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $161 per month, with Cahul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇩 Cahul

🕒 Local time

15:17 3:17 PM

10:17 10:17 AM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

39,500

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Moldovan Leu MDL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 MDL = 5.61 USD

100 MDL = 5.03 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MDL, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.61 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 17.83 MDL (100 MDL = 5.61 USD). 1 EUR = 19.9 MDL (100 MDL = 5.03 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Cahul 7,850 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Cahul

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 Cahul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cahul wins on cost – living expenses run 51% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Cahul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,917 in Phuket and $941 in Cahul 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 65% 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 $627 in Cahul – Cahul is about 51% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $627 in Cahul versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $800 budget is realistic in Cahul but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Cahul 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.