Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Grand Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Grand Bay: $1,176 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Grand Bay
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Grand Bay Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Grand Bay

🇲🇺 Mauritius

$1,176

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Grand Bay

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,176 in Grand Bay.

Phuket $1,278
Grand Bay $1,176

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $2,245 in Grand Bay.

Phuket $2,216
Grand Bay $2,245

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $3,314 in Grand Bay.

Phuket $3,154
Grand Bay $3,314

Living in Phuket is roughly 9% more expensive than in Grand Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Grand Bay 14% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$5.90 MUR 278

-24.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$64.7 MUR 3,048

-49.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$7.30 MUR 344

20.68%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.59 MUR 122

9.27%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$1.13 MUR 53.2

-23.01%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.67 MUR 31.36

-26.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$2.73 MUR 129

-6.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$4.77 MUR 225

-22.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.43 MUR 67.2

16.08%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$0.74 MUR 34.98

97.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.16 MUR 54.5

29.31%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.31 MUR 109

-9.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$20.96 MUR 988

-9.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$6.27 MUR 296

-47.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$21.74 MUR 1,025

-49.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$1.89 MUR 89.2

55.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.97 MUR 92.8

-14.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.40 MUR 66.1

60.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$2.86 MUR 135

-27.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.00 MUR 47.22

51.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$0.96 MUR 45.36

43.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$0.69 MUR 32.51

55.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.53 MUR 24.97

-1.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$6.41 MUR 302

-34.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$8.65 MUR 408

117.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.64 MUR 77.1

10.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$1.98 MUR 93.2

43.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$1.05 MUR 49.38

38.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$4.28 MUR 202

-29.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$2.45 MUR 115

-58.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$21.15 MUR 997

-82.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.36 MUR 63.9

8.09%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$34.9K MUR 1.6M

-23.29%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$37.6K MUR 1.8M

-29.09%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$45.94 MUR 2,165

109.73%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$15.52 MUR 731

-27.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$29.26 MUR 1,379

-42.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$59.3 MUR 2,794

13.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$6.40 MUR 302

17.19%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$126 MUR 5,934

278.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$7,744 MUR 365.0K

45.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$60.8 MUR 2,866

2.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$64.0 MUR 3,016

-55.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$106 MUR 4,992

-10.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$88.7 MUR 4,181

-3.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$596 MUR 28.1K

20.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$439 MUR 20.7K

11.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$2,038 MUR 96.0K

-5.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,459 MUR 68.7K

-1.92%

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

$1,281 MUR 60.4K

-60.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

-7.17%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Grand Bay: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Grand Bay

$439 37.3% 10.6% $52

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Grand Bay

$280 23.8% 5% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Grand Bay

$91 7.7% 27.1% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Grand Bay

$144 12.2% 17.9% $22

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Grand Bay

$131 11.1% 7.2% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Grand Bay

$72 6.1% 12.3% $10

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Grand Bay

$21 * 1.8% 70.7% $50

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 $716 in Phuket and $596 in Grand Bay. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Grand Bay pays about 2.6 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $65 in Grand Bay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $280 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇺 Grand Bay

🕒 Local time

02:20 2:20 AM

23:20 11:20 PM

3 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

11,900

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Mauritian Rupee MUR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100 MUR = 2.12 USD

100 MUR = 1.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MUR, 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).

Mauritian Rupee exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 47.13 MUR (100 MUR = 2.12 USD). 1 EUR = 52.62 MUR (100 MUR = 1.9 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Grand Bay 5,440 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Grand Bay

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 Grand Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Grand Bay is about 8% cheaper overall, especially in transport and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 61% lower in Phuket. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $596 in Grand Bay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $126 in Grand Bay. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $65 in Grand Bay. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,500 a month, though Grand Bay gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Grand Bay are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.