Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and College Park, MD

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $3,340 in College Park, MD, rent and utilities included – about $24,700 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
162

Cost of Living Index in College Park, MD
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College Park, MD Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

College Park, MD

🇺🇸 United States

$3,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in College Park, MD

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 College Park, MD actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $3,340 in College Park, MD, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
College Park, MD $3,340

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $4,574 in College Park, MD, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
College Park, MD $4,574

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $5,807 in College Park, MD, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
College Park, MD $5,807

Phuket is about 62% cheaper than College Park, MD, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Phuket sits 6% below the global median, while College Park, MD is 145% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$15.75 $15.75

-71.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,092

$71.4 $71.4

-54.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$9.81 $9.81

-10.19%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$4.41 $4.41

-35.83%

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

$0.87 ฿29.37

$2.69 $2.69

-67.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.64

$1.74 $1.74

-71.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.2

$6.31 $6.31

-59.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$5.97 $5.97

-38.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$0.84 $0.84

97.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.25

$2.50 $2.50

-41.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.4

$5.42 $5.42

-72.32%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.4

$2.08 $2.08

0.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿642

$6.38 $6.38

198.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$6.49 $6.49

-49.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$19.86 $19.86

-45.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.7

$6.40 $6.40

-54.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$1.27 $1.27

33.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$7.43 $7.43

-69.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$5.50 $5.50

-62.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$4.90 $4.90

-69.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.47

$3.37 $3.37

-59.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.91

$0.99 $0.99

8.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.49

$3.12 $3.12

-83.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$9.66 $9.66

-56.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿633

$12.01 $12.01

56.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$1.75 $1.75

4.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.7

$3.67 $3.67

-22.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$3.06 $3.06

-52.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,909

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$4.07 $4.07

-25.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.29

$1.97 $1.97

-48.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$24.59 $24.59

-84.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.70

$0.98 $0.98

50.00%

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

$26.8K ฿902.4K

$29.8K $29.8K

-10.27%

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

$26.7K ฿899.5K

$26.2K $26.2K

1.89%

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

$96.4 ฿3,247

$240 $240

-59.81%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$50.3 $50.3

-77.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$68.6 $68.6

-75.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,266

$39.41 $39.41

70.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿361

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$14.93 $14.93

-49.77%

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

$476 ฿16.0K

$2,016 $2,016

-76.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,102

$47.66 $47.66

30.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿957

$32.48 $32.48

-12.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,178

$117 $117

-19.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,892

$136 $136

-36.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$2,304 $2,304

-68.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.5K

$2,093 $2,093

-76.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿64.9K

$3,930 $3,930

-50.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.2K

$3,113 $3,113

-54.05%

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

$6,262 $6,262

-91.98%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.23

-10.59%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for College Park, MD: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

College Park, MD

$2.1K 62.7% 326% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

College Park, MD

$374 11.2% 40.6% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

College Park, MD

$359 10.7% 188% $234

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

College Park, MD

$150 4.5% 22.9% $28

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

College Park, MD

$270 8.1% 122% $148

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

College Park, MD

$69 2.1% 15.8% $13

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

College Park, MD

$26 * 0.8% 62.9% $44

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $2,304 in College Park, MD. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in College Park, MD are about 12 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $71 in College Park, MD. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $374 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇺🇸 College Park, MD

🕒 Local time

12:26 12:26 PM

01:26 1:26 AM

11 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

34,740

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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 = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket College Park, MD 14,780 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
College Park, MD

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 College Park, MD: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,278 in Phuket, $3,340 in College Park, MD – Phuket comes out roughly 62% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,917 per month in Phuket and $5,011 in College Park, MD. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Phuket, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $716 there versus $2,304 in College Park, MD.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,278 in Phuket and $3,340 in College Park, MD. That makes Phuket about 62% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $476 per month in Phuket and $2,016 in College Park, MD. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,278, than in College Park, MD at $3,340. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in College Park, MD it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Phuket. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, College Park, MD makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.