Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Chenzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Chenzhou: $721 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Chenzhou
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Chenzhou Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Chenzhou

🇨🇳 China

$721

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Chenzhou

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $721 in Chenzhou, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Chenzhou $721

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $1,197 in Chenzhou, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Chenzhou $1,197

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $1,674 in Chenzhou, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Chenzhou $1,674

Phuket costs about 77% more than Chenzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Chenzhou are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 6% lower, Chenzhou 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$3.03 ¥20.15

47.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$22.13 ¥147

46.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$4.86 ¥32.33

81.28%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$1.54 ¥10.24

83.77%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$0.51 ¥3.41

70.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$0.27 ¥1.80

81.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$1.29 ¥8.58

98.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$1.89 ¥12.59

94.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.97 ¥13.09

-15.74%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$2.38 ¥15.83

-38.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$0.79 ¥5.23

89.87%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.72 ¥11.46

21.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$13.15 ¥87.5

45.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$4.13 ¥27.47

-20.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$11.57 ¥77.0

-5.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$0.59 ¥3.92

396.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.18 ¥7.82

43.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$0.73 ¥4.87

208.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$1.19 ¥7.89

74.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.97 ¥6.49

55.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$1.54 ¥10.24

-10.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$0.61 ¥4.04

75.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.49 ¥3.23

6.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.02 ¥20.08

39.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$12.71 ¥84.6

47.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.04 ¥6.91

75.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.57 ¥10.45

80.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$0.31 ¥2.05

367.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

$15.40 ¥103

267.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.52 ¥10.09

98.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$0.29 ¥1.93

251.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$4.60 ¥30.59

-19.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.29 ¥8.59

13.95%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$19.3K ¥128.3K

38.84%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$17.4K ¥115.6K

53.60%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$56.3 ¥375

71.08%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$8.94 ¥59.5

25.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$11.27 ¥75.0

49.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$42.59 ¥283

57.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$14.67 ¥97.6

-26.86%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$6.48 ¥43.13

15.74%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$329 ¥2,188

44.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$16.9K ¥112.3K

-33.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$84.2 ¥561

-25.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$35.01 ¥233

-18.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$89.1 ¥593

5.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$58.9 ¥392

45.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$310 ¥2,061

131.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$163 ¥1,086

200.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$584 ¥3,885

230.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$414 ¥2,753

245.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$3,531 ¥23.5K

18.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$1,917 ¥12.8K

58.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.46

60.98%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Chenzhou: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Chenzhou

$163 22.6% 66.8% $328

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Chenzhou

$215 29.8% 19.2% $51

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Chenzhou

$77 10.6% 38.5% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Chenzhou

$120 16.7% 1.4% $1.7

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Chenzhou

$71 9.8% 42% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Chenzhou

$56 7.7% 32.4% $27

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Chenzhou

$20 2.7% 72.2% $51

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $310 in Chenzhou. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $22 in Chenzhou. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $215 – making Chenzhou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇳 Chenzhou

🕒 Local time

21:42 9:42 PM

22:42 10:42 PM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

4,667,134

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.41 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

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Between locations

Phuket Chenzhou 2,520 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Chenzhou

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 Chenzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,278 in Phuket, $721 in Chenzhou – roughly 77% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,917 per month in Phuket and $1,081 in Chenzhou. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chenzhou, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $310 there versus $716 in Phuket.

Public transport costs about 73% less in Chenzhou. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $476 per month in Phuket and $329 in Chenzhou. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Chenzhou, where all-in costs run around $721, than in Phuket at $1,278. In Chenzhou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Chenzhou – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Chenzhou is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and the 77% gap matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.