Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Chandigarh

For one person, living is cheaper in Chandigarh: $488 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Chandigarh
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Chandigarh Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Chandigarh

🇮🇳 India

$488

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Chandigarh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $488 in Chandigarh.

Phuket $1,278
Chandigarh $488

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $788 in Chandigarh.

Phuket $2,216
Chandigarh $788

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,088 in Chandigarh.

Phuket $3,154
Chandigarh $1,088

Living in Phuket is roughly 162% more expensive than in Chandigarh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Chandigarh 64% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$3.20 ₹304

39.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$13.68 ₹1,299

136.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$4.11 ₹390

114.36%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.69 ₹256

5.20%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$0.44 ₹41.50

97.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.25 ₹23.78

96.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$2.15 ₹204

19.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$3.17 ₹301

16.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$0.73 ₹69.4

127.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$0.52 ₹49.17

180.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$0.81 ₹77.3

85.19%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$0.91 ₹86.3

129.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$4.93 ₹468

286.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$2.84 ₹270

16.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$1.64 ₹156

78.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$0.75 ₹70.9

125.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.06 ₹101

112.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$0.67 ₹63.8

210.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.28 ₹26.54

439.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$0.34 ₹32.38

305.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$0.67 ₹63.4

59.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.30 ₹28.25

73.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$4.97 ₹472

-15.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$11.43 ₹1,086

64.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.67 ₹158

8.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$2.81 ₹266

1.07%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$6.55 ₹622

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$0.25 ₹23.60

480.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$4.58 ₹435

1137.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.08 ₹102

179.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$0.25 ₹23.90

308.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$1.66 ₹158

122.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.09 ₹103

34.86%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$11.2K ₹1.1M

138.90%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$25.0K ₹2.4M

6.82%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$38.21 ₹3,628

152.16%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$4.08 ₹388

175.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$6.52 ₹619

158.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$25.72 ₹2,443

161.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$8.08 ₹767

32.80%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$3.13 ₹298

139.62%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$57.7 ₹5,480

724.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$2,480 ₹235.5K

354.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$26.87 ₹2,551

132.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$25.26 ₹2,398

12.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$57.6 ₹5,469

63.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$44.40 ₹4,216

93.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$171 ₹16.3K

318.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$127 ₹12.1K

286.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$482 ₹45.8K

299.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$309 ₹29.3K

362.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$1,868 ₹177.4K

123.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$1,025 ₹97.4K

196.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$437 ₹41.5K

14.94%

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 Chandigarh: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Chandigarh

$127 26% 74.1% $364

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Chandigarh

$113 23.2% 57.5% $153

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Chandigarh

$49 10% 60.8% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Chandigarh

$69 14.2% 43.1% $53

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Chandigarh

$90 18.5% 25.9% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Chandigarh

$32 6.6% 61.1% $50

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Chandigarh

$7.9 1.6% 88.8% $63

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $171 in Chandigarh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 15% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $14 in Chandigarh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $113 per month, with Chandigarh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇮🇳 Chandigarh

🕒 Local time

05:29 5:29 AM

03:59 3:59 AM

1 h 30 min behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

1,028,667

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, 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).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 94.95 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Chandigarh 3,390 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Chandigarh

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 Chandigarh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chandigarh wins on cost – living expenses run 62% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Chandigarh the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 15% higher in Phuket, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $171 in Chandigarh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Chandigarh runs roughly 92% less than in Phuket. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $58 in Chandigarh. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $488 in Chandigarh versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $800 budget is realistic in Chandigarh but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Chandigarh 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 Chandigarh are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Chandigarh gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.