Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Gisenyi

For one person, living is cheaper in Gisenyi: $452 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Gisenyi
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Gisenyi Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Gisenyi

🇷🇼 Rwanda

$452

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Gisenyi

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $452 in Gisenyi, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Gisenyi $452

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $695 in Gisenyi, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Gisenyi $695

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $937 in Gisenyi, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Gisenyi $937

Phuket costs about 182% more than Gisenyi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Gisenyi are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 6% lower, Gisenyi 67% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$2.66 RWF 3,920

68.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$15.09 RWF 22.2K

114.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$6.04 RWF 8,892

45.86%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.48 RWF 3,643

14.11%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$0.81 RWF 1,194

7.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.54 RWF 797

-9.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$1.03 RWF 1,516

148.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$1.95 RWF 2,869

88.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$0.87 RWF 1,286

90.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$1.08 RWF 1,585

35.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.28 RWF 1,884

17.19%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.59 RWF 2,334

31.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$4.19 RWF 6,165

355.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$4.63 RWF 6,816

-28.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$4.63 RWF 6,805

135.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$2.47 RWF 3,641

18.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$0.77 RWF 1,126

119.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.48 RWF 2,179

52.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$1.02 RWF 1,508

103.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.49 RWF 714

208.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$0.77 RWF 1,139

79.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$0.29 RWF 421

268.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.86 RWF 1,265

-39.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$2.06 RWF 3,029

103.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$10.06 RWF 14.8K

86.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$0.99 RWF 1,457

83.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$1.58 RWF 2,321

79.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$0.10 RWF 143

1350.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.70 RWF 3,968

11.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$1.97 RWF 2,903

-48.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$3.43 RWF 5,048

7.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.84 RWF 2,703

-20.11%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$26.5K RWF 39.0M

0.92%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$29.1K RWF 42.8M

-8.29%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$84.0 RWF 123.5K

14.76%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$3.02 RWF 4,450

272.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$21.19 RWF 31.2K

-20.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$3.29 RWF 4,840

127.96%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$113 RWF 166.4K

320.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$9,547 RWF 14.0M

17.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$17.68 RWF 26.0K

252.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$15.82 RWF 23.3K

79.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$22.10 RWF 32.5K

326.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$33.83 RWF 49.8K

153.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$290 RWF 426.3K

147.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$49.55 RWF 72.9K

890.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$295 RWF 433.3K

554.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$120 RWF 177.0K

1088.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

16.2

-65.62%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Gisenyi: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Gisenyi

$50 11% 89.9% $441

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Gisenyi

$151 33.5% 43.2% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Gisenyi

$108 23.9% 13.1% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Gisenyi

$40 8.9% 67% $82

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Gisenyi

$84 18.5% 31.3% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Gisenyi

$6.6 * 1.5% 92% $76

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Gisenyi

$13 * 2.9% 81.7% $58

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 $290 in Gisenyi. 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 $15 in Gisenyi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $151 – making Gisenyi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇷🇼 Gisenyi

🕒 Local time

03:20 3:20 AM

22:20 10:20 PM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

172,357

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Rwandan Franc RWF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

10,000 RWF = 6.8 USD

10,000 RWF = 6.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RWF, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Rwandan Franc exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1,471 RWF (10,000 RWF = 6.8 USD). 1 EUR = 1,643 RWF (10,000 RWF = 6.09 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Gisenyi 7,740 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Gisenyi

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 Gisenyi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket costs about 182% more than Gisenyi, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,917 per month in Phuket and $679 in Gisenyi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Gisenyi, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $290 there versus $716 in Phuket.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket and $15 in Gisenyi. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 76% more in Phuket, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Gisenyi, where all-in costs run around $452, than in Phuket at $1,278. In Gisenyi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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