Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Fujairah

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,437 in Fujairah, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
69

Cost of Living Index in Fujairah
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Fujairah Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Fujairah

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,437

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Fujairah

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $1,437 in Fujairah, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Fujairah $1,437

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $3,976 in Fujairah, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Fujairah $3,976

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $6,516 in Fujairah, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Fujairah $6,516

Phuket is about 11% cheaper than Fujairah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$7.55 AED 27.73

-40.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$41.26 AED 152

-21.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$7.70 AED 28.28

14.42%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$5.70 AED 20.94

-50.35%

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

$0.87 ฿29.42

$1.09 AED 4.00

-20.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.66

$0.42 AED 1.56

16.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$8.64 AED 31.73

-70.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$9.41 AED 34.58

-60.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.63 AED 6.00

1.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.32

$1.33 AED 4.88

9.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.96 AED 7.19

-23.47%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.29 AED 8.42

-8.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$12.75 AED 46.83

49.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$9.65 AED 35.43

-65.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$8.07 AED 29.65

35.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$1.82 AED 6.69

60.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.60 AED 5.89

5.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.49 AED 5.47

51.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$0.92 AED 3.38

126.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.79 AED 2.91

91.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.54

$0.87 AED 3.20

58.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.97

$0.84 AED 3.09

27.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.43 AED 1.58

20.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$5.53 AED 20.32

-24.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$13.59 AED 49.93

38.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$2.23 AED 8.20

-18.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$2.51 AED 9.22

13.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.00

$3.35 AED 12.32

-56.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$41.02 AED 151

38.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.80 AED 10.27

7.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.34

$0.52 AED 1.90

96.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$8.39 AED 30.81

-56.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.78

$0.87 AED 3.18

68.97%

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

$26.8K ฿903.7K

$25.6K AED 94.2K

4.39%

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

$26.7K ฿900.8K

$19.8K AED 72.8K

34.58%

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

$96.4 ฿3,252

$122 AED 448

-21.01%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$39.31 AED 144

-71.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$79.6 AED 293

-78.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,269

$48.45 AED 178

38.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$13.59 AED 49.90

-21.04%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$10.74 AED 39.43

-30.17%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$252 AED 926

88.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.1K

$4,571 AED 16.8K

146.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,105

$22.13 AED 81.3

181.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$13.48 AED 49.52

110.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,182

$74.6 AED 274

26.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,896

$62.0 AED 228

38.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$588 AED 2,158

21.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$526 AED 1,932

-6.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$5,279 AED 19.4K

-63.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$4,603 AED 16.9K

-68.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$3,727 AED 13.7K

-86.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.5

122.80%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Fujairah: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Fujairah

$526 36.6% 7.2% $35

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Fujairah

$243 16.9% 8.9% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Fujairah

$241 16.8% 93.6% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Fujairah

$77 5.4% 36.5% $44

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Fujairah

$220 15.3% 80.8% $98

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Fujairah

$70 4.9% 15% $12

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Fujairah

$60 4.2% 15.2% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $588 in Fujairah. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Fujairah are about 7.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $41 in Fujairah. Groceries tell a different story – $266 in Phuket vs $243 in Fujairah – so Fujairah wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇦🇪 Fujairah

🕒 Local time

09:34 9:34 AM

06:34 6:34 AM

3 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

93,673

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.244 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, 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).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.1 AED (1 AED = 0.244 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Fujairah 4,850 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Fujairah

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 Fujairah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,278 in Phuket, $1,437 in Fujairah – Phuket comes out roughly 11% 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 $2,155 in Fujairah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Fujairah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $588 there versus $716 in Phuket.

Kindergarten costs $476 per month in Phuket and $252 in Fujairah. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 9% cheaper in Fujairah – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,278 in Phuket to $1,437 in Fujairah. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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