Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Embu

For one person, living is cheaper in Embu: $517 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 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
25

Cost of Living Index in Embu
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Embu Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Embu

🇰🇪 Kenya

$517

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Embu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Phuket versus $517 in Embu.

Phuket $1,207
Embu $517

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Phuket versus $822 in Embu.

Phuket $2,037
Embu $822

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,867 in Phuket versus $1,127 in Embu.

Phuket $2,867
Embu $1,127

Living in Phuket is roughly 134% more expensive than in Embu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Embu 62% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿153

$6.24 KES 809

-26.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,086

$30.87 KES 4,002

5.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿286

$5.42 KES 702

57.75%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.0

$2.35 KES 305

15.74%

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

$0.94 ฿31.25

$0.36 KES 46.68

161.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.39

$0.24 KES 31.13

104.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$2.28 KES 296

13.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.63 KES 341

45.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.1

$0.56 KES 72.9

210.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿47.82

$0.52 KES 66.8

175.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.0

$0.96 KES 124

59.38%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$1.71 KES 222

26.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿640

$3.89 KES 504

392.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿110

$3.21 KES 416

2.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿372

$4.20 KES 544

165.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿98.5

$3.34 KES 433

-11.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.1

$1.05 KES 136

60.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿76.8

$2.06 KES 267

11.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.3

$0.41 KES 53.0

419.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.1

$0.63 KES 81.5

142.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.55

$0.91 KES 118

49.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$0.74 KES 95.8

51.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.24

$0.55 KES 71.9

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$3.65 KES 473

16.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

$11.48 KES 1,489

58.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$2.23 KES 289

-21.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

$2.70 KES 350

3.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.1

$1.14 KES 148

94.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.3

$1.51 KES 196

92.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

$1.58 KES 205

-36.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.94 KES 382

30.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.85

$1.60 KES 207

-6.88%

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

$26.7K ฿891.6K

$21.2K KES 2.7M

25.93%

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

$26.7K ฿892.7K

$12.2K KES 1.6M

119.77%

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

$99.4 ฿3,321

$57.1 KES 7,400

74.09%

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

$11.28 ฿377

$15.06 KES 1,952

-25.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿580

$34.48 KES 4,470

-49.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,747

$17.41 KES 2,257

200.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿253

$4.28 KES 555

76.87%

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

$558 ฿18.7K

$251 KES 32.5K

122.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

$12.6K KES 1.6M

-8.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,102

$9.22 KES 1,196

582.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿955

$29.38 KES 3,809

-2.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,213

$70.3 KES 9,113

36.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,943

$15.37 KES 1,993

472.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$76.2 KES 9,876

857.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.4K

$53.1 KES 6,886

766.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿40.8K

$91.6 KES 11.9K

1234.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

$272 KES 35.3K

81.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

14.71

-62.13%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Embu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Embu

$53 10.3% 88.5% $407

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Embu

$148 28.6% 44.7% $120

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Embu

$107 20.6% 16.7% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Embu

$56 10.8% 54.9% $68

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Embu

$113 22% 6.5% $7.8

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Embu

$26 5% 61.5% $41

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Embu

$14 * 2.7% 64% $25

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 $729 in Phuket and $76.2 in Embu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 81% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $31.00 in Embu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $148 per month, with Embu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇰🇪 Embu

🕒 Local time

00:54 12:54 AM

20:54 8:54 PM

4 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

41,092

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 KES = 7.71 USD

1,000 KES = 6.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KES, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.71 USD). 1 EUR = 146 KES (1,000 KES = 6.86 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Embu 6,820 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Embu

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 Embu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket and Embu differ by about 134% in total monthly costs ($1,207 vs $517 including rent). Embu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 81% higher in Phuket, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $729 in Phuket versus $76.2 in Embu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $558 in Phuket versus $251 in Embu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Embu – a meal for two runs $31.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $517 in Embu versus $1,207 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Embu but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Embu 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 Embu are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Embu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 134% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.