Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Contagem

For one person, living is cheaper in Contagem: $788 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Contagem
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Contagem Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Contagem

🇧🇷 Brazil

$788

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Contagem

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

A single person spends $1,207 per month in Phuket vs $788 in Contagem, rent included.

Phuket $1,207
Contagem $788

A couple spends around $2,037 per month in Phuket vs $1,272 in Contagem, rent included.

Phuket $2,037
Contagem $1,272

A family of three spends $2,867 per month in Phuket vs $1,755 in Contagem, rent included.

Phuket $2,867
Contagem $1,755

Phuket costs about 53% more than Contagem, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Contagem are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 11% lower, Contagem 42% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿153

$6.06 R$30.73

-24.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,086

$30.50 R$155

6.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿286

$7.32 R$37.10

16.80%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.0

$1.76 R$8.93

54.55%

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

$0.94 ฿31.25

$1.42 R$7.19

-33.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.39

$0.58 R$2.96

-15.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$1.32 R$6.69

96.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.57 R$13.05

49.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.1

$1.00 R$5.09

74.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿47.82

$1.84 R$9.34

-22.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.0

$1.37 R$6.94

11.68%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$1.98 R$10.06

9.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿640

$10.07 R$51.1

90.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿110

$3.47 R$17.61

-4.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿372

$7.50 R$38.03

48.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿98.5

$1.91 R$9.69

54.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.1

$1.17 R$5.91

43.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿76.8

$0.94 R$4.75

144.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.3

$1.67 R$8.48

27.54%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.1

$1.09 R$5.53

40.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.55

$0.99 R$5.00

37.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$0.85 R$4.33

31.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.24

$0.82 R$4.14

-32.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$1.64 R$8.31

159.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

$6.04 R$30.61

201.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$1.02 R$5.18

70.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

$1.37 R$6.94

103.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.1

$1.50 R$7.61

48.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

$80.1 R$406

-72.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.3

$1.19 R$6.04

144.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

$0.79 R$3.99

27.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

$6.28 R$31.84

-39.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.85

$1.32 R$6.67

12.88%

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

$26.7K ฿891.6K

$23.5K R$119.3K

13.40%

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

$26.7K ฿892.7K

$31.6K R$160.4K

-15.56%

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

$99.4 ฿3,321

$76.2 R$386

30.48%

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

$11.28 ฿377

$10.11 R$51.3

11.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿580

$19.26 R$97.7

-9.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,747

$26.55 R$135

96.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

$23.62 R$120

-54.06%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿253

$7.31 R$37.04

3.56%

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

$558 ฿18.7K

$144 R$732

286.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

$2,630 R$13.3K

336.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,102

$61.6 R$312

2.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿955

$49.74 R$252

-42.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,213

$68.6 R$348

40.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,943

$48.25 R$245

82.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$232 R$1,174

214.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.4K

$158 R$798

192.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$488 R$2,475

329.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿40.8K

$334 R$1,693

266.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

$1,991 R$10.1K

73.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

$1,015 R$5,146

145.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

$261 R$1,324

88.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.67

-47.80%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Contagem: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Contagem

$158 20% 65.8% $302

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Contagem

$179 22.7% 33.1% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Contagem

$106 13.4% 17.6% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Contagem

$103 13% 17.2% $21

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Contagem

$111 14.1% 8.2% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Contagem

$41 5.2% 38.9% $26

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Contagem

$91 11.6% 135% $52

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $729 in Phuket versus $232 in Contagem. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 89% higher in Phuket, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Phuket versus $31.00 in Contagem. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $268 vs $179 – making Contagem the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇧🇷 Contagem

🕒 Local time

20:31 8:31 PM

10:31 10:31 AM

10 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

621,863

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Contagem 15,760 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Contagem

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 Contagem: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Phuket is pricier by about 53%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,811 per month in Phuket and $1,183 in Contagem. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Contagem, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 263% less in Contagem. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $558 per month in Phuket and $144 in Contagem. 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 Contagem, where all-in costs run around $788, than in Phuket at $1,207. In Contagem it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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