Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and El Mahalla El Kubra

For one person, living is cheaper in El Mahalla El Kubra: $408 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 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
20

Cost of Living Index in El Mahalla El Kubra
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El Mahalla El Kubra Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

El Mahalla El Kubra

🇪🇬 Egypt

$408

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in El Mahalla El Kubra

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 El Mahalla El Kubra actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,208 per month in Phuket vs $408 in El Mahalla El Kubra, rent included.

Phuket $1,208
El Mahalla El Kubra $408

A couple spends around $2,027 per month in Phuket vs $661 in El Mahalla El Kubra, rent included.

Phuket $2,027
El Mahalla El Kubra $661

A family of three spends $2,845 per month in Phuket vs $914 in El Mahalla El Kubra, rent included.

Phuket $2,845
El Mahalla El Kubra $914

Phuket costs about 196% more than El Mahalla El Kubra, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and El Mahalla El Kubra are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 11% lower, El Mahalla El Kubra 70% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿148

$4.15 E£229

6.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,089

$14.14 E£781

128.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿296

$2.99 E£165

192.98%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$1.27 E£70.0

122.83%

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

$0.90 ฿30.43

$0.32 E£17.74

181.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.71

$0.11 E£5.83

327.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿86.0

$1.31 E£72.3

94.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿129

$2.89 E£160

32.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿58.2

$0.85 E£47.06

103.53%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.58

$0.30 E£16.71

390.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.1

$0.52 E£28.47

190.38%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.3

$1.13 E£62.5

92.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿665

$2.89 E£160

581.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿113

$4.01 E£221

-16.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿377

$7.40 E£409

50.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿96.0

$1.54 E£85.3

85.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿57.5

$0.65 E£35.87

161.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿74.0

$0.45 E£24.82

386.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿69.0

$0.33 E£18.03

521.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$0.24 E£13.17

504.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.60

$0.30 E£16.37

360.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿36.04

$0.27 E£15.07

296.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.07

$0.22 E£12.32

131.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿144

$1.86 E£103

129.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿627

$5.79 E£320

220.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿60.2

$1.19 E£65.6

49.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿96.1

$2.26 E£125

26.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿76.3

$0.20 E£11.01

1030.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿746

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿102

$0.32 E£17.53

840.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.68

$0.46 E£25.14

130.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿130

$0.91 E£50.4

324.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.91

$0.43 E£24.00

237.21%

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

$26.3K ฿888.3K

$31.8K E£1.8M

-17.09%

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

$26.9K ฿909.1K

$22.8K E£1.3M

18.34%

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

$96.4 ฿3,252

$14.47 E£799

566.07%

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

$11.04 ฿372

$3.93 E£217

180.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿578

$8.50 E£470

101.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,760

$15.92 E£880

227.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿376

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿263

$2.79 E£154

179.93%

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

$556 ฿18.8K

$32.18 E£1,778

1627.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿390.7K

$2,084 E£115.1K

455.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,166

$16.89 E£933

280.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿968

$43.76 E£2,418

-34.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,217

$101 E£5,578

-5.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,968

$56.4 E£3,117

55.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.9K

$131 E£7,253

461.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.6K

$75.4 E£4,165

513.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.7K

$254 E£14.0K

725.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.5K

$144 E£7,936

735.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿117.7K

$745 E£41.2K

367.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿85.1K

$355 E£19.6K

610.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

21.33

-73.89%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for El Mahalla El Kubra: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

El Mahalla El Kubra

$75 18.5% 83.7% $387

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

El Mahalla El Kubra

$111 27.3% 58.6% $157

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

El Mahalla El Kubra

$27 6.6% 78.4% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

El Mahalla El Kubra

$98 24.1% 21.1% $26

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

El Mahalla El Kubra

$71 17.5% 41.1% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

El Mahalla El Kubra

$22 5.3% 68.3% $46

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

El Mahalla El Kubra

$3.4 * 0.8% 91.4% $36

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $737 in Phuket versus $131 in El Mahalla El Kubra. 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 $14 in El Mahalla El Kubra. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $269 vs $111 – making El Mahalla El Kubra the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇪🇬 El Mahalla El Kubra

🕒 Local time

11:33 11:33 AM

07:33 7:33 AM

4 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

431,052

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

100 EGP = 1.81 USD

100 EGP = 1.61 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 55.25 EGP (100 EGP = 1.81 USD). 1 EUR = 61.99 EGP (100 EGP = 1.61 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket El Mahalla El Kubra 7,390 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
El Mahalla El Kubra

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 El Mahalla El Kubra: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,208 in Phuket, $408 in El Mahalla El Kubra – roughly 196% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,813 per month in Phuket and $612 in El Mahalla El Kubra. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in El Mahalla El Kubra, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $131 there versus $737 in Phuket.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,208 in Phuket and $408 in El Mahalla El Kubra. That’s a gap of about 196%.

Kindergarten costs $556 per month in Phuket and $32 in El Mahalla El Kubra. 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 El Mahalla El Kubra, where all-in costs run around $408, than in Phuket at $1,208. In El Mahalla El Kubra it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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