Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Coffs Harbour

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,468 in Coffs Harbour, rent and utilities included – about $14,300 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
118

Cost of Living Index in Coffs Harbour
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Coffs Harbour Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Coffs Harbour

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,468

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Coffs Harbour

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,468 in Coffs Harbour.

Phuket $1,278
Coffs Harbour $2,468

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $3,579 in Coffs Harbour.

Phuket $2,216
Coffs Harbour $3,579

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $4,690 in Coffs Harbour.

Phuket $3,154
Coffs Harbour $4,690

Living in Phuket costs roughly 48% less than in Coffs Harbour, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Coffs Harbour is 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$14.25 A$20.27

-68.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$104 A$148

-68.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$8.87 A$12.62

-0.68%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$3.77 A$5.37

-24.93%

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

$0.87 ฿29.42

$2.86 A$4.07

-69.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.66

$1.95 A$2.77

-74.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$5.37 A$7.64

-52.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$5.48 A$7.80

-32.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.52 A$2.17

9.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.32

$2.64 A$3.75

-44.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$2.40 A$3.41

-37.50%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$3.36 A$4.78

-37.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$8.69 A$12.36

119.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$7.11 A$10.12

-53.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$13.76 A$19.58

-20.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$3.98 A$5.66

-26.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$3.09 A$4.40

-45.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$3.47 A$4.94

-35.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$4.16 A$5.91

-50.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.43 A$2.03

5.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.54

$2.44 A$3.47

-43.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.97

$2.52 A$3.59

-57.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$2.37 A$3.37

-78.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$32.01 A$45.52

-86.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$14.22 A$20.22

32.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$6.05 A$8.60

-69.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$6.63 A$9.42

-57.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.00

$4.72 A$6.71

-69.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.11 A$3.00

43.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.34

$1.59 A$2.26

-35.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$35.69 A$50.8

-89.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.78

$1.32 A$1.87

11.36%

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

$26.8K ฿903.7K

$28.9K A$41.2K

-7.49%

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

$26.7K ฿900.8K

$26.7K A$38.0K

-0.01%

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

$96.4 ฿3,252

$175 A$249

-44.86%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$10.59 A$15.06

6.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$53.9 A$76.6

-68.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,269

$108 A$153

-37.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$13.45 A$19.13

-44.24%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$2,183 A$3,105

-78.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.1K

$11.8K A$16.7K

-4.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,105

$77.2 A$110

-19.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$53.5 A$76.2

-46.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,182

$103 A$146

-8.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,896

$124 A$176

-30.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$1,399 A$1,990

-48.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$1,302 A$1,851

-62.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$2,111 A$3,002

-8.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,945 A$2,766

-26.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$3,566 A$5,071

17.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$3,623 A$5,154

-15.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$3,275 A$4,658

-84.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

5.69

-2.11%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Coffs Harbour: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Coffs Harbour

$1.3K 52.7% 165% $811

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Coffs Harbour

$360 14.6% 35.3% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Coffs Harbour

$239 9.7% 92.2% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Coffs Harbour

$161 6.5% 31.7% $39

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Coffs Harbour

$243 9.8% 99.7% $121

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Coffs Harbour

$135 5.5% 63.7% $52

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Coffs Harbour

$29 * 1.2% 59% $42

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $1,399 in Coffs Harbour. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Coffs Harbour pays about 6.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $104 in Coffs Harbour for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $360 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇦🇺 Coffs Harbour

🕒 Local time

12:20 12:20 PM

16:20 4:20 PM

4 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

78,759

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 AUD = 0.703 USD

1 AUD = 0.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.68 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 AUD (1 AUD = 0.63 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Coffs Harbour 7,210 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Coffs Harbour

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 Coffs Harbour: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 48% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 85% 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 $1,399 in Coffs Harbour. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 35% higher in Coffs Harbour. 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 $2,468 in Coffs Harbour – Phuket is about 48% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,468 in Coffs Harbour, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Coffs Harbour. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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 Coffs Harbour are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Coffs Harbour on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.