Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Guilin

For one person, living is cheaper in Guilin: $655 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 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
32

Cost of Living Index in Guilin
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Guilin Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Guilin

🇨🇳 China

$655

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Guilin

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $655 in Guilin, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Guilin $655

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $1,046 in Guilin, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Guilin $1,046

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $1,436 in Guilin, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Guilin $1,436

Phuket costs about 95% more than Guilin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Guilin are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 6% lower, Guilin 52% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$2.21 ¥14.67

102.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$15.11 ¥100

114.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$3.02 ¥20.02

191.72%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.07 ¥13.71

36.71%

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

$0.87 ฿29.40

$0.40 ¥2.65

117.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.31 ¥2.08

58.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$0.83 ¥5.53

208.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.14 ¥14.21

71.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.48 ¥9.79

12.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.29

$1.30 ¥8.62

12.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$0.63 ¥4.18

138.10%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.76 ¥11.67

18.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$13.08 ¥86.8

45.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$3.29 ¥21.83

0.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$11.43 ¥75.9

-4.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.8

$1.51 ¥10.04

94.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.21 ¥8.04

39.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$1.06 ¥7.04

112.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$0.92 ¥6.09

126.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.71 ¥4.69

112.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.51

$0.90 ¥5.99

53.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.95

$0.56 ¥3.75

91.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.50

$0.43 ¥2.86

20.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.84 ¥25.50

9.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$10.65 ¥70.7

76.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$0.86 ¥5.71

111.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$1.53 ¥10.14

85.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.97

$0.29 ¥1.92

400.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,911

$17.76 ¥118

219.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.38 ¥9.17

118.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.32

$0.31 ¥2.06

229.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$8.12 ¥53.9

-54.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.75

$1.17 ¥7.76

25.64%

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

$26.8K ฿903.2K

$19.5K ¥129.2K

37.54%

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

$26.7K ฿900.3K

$18.0K ¥119.3K

48.42%

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

$96.4 ฿3,250

$24.16 ¥160

298.80%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$5.06 ¥33.59

122.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$11.06 ¥73.4

52.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$41.98 ¥279

60.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$14.59 ¥96.8

-26.46%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$5.12 ¥34.00

46.48%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$468 ¥3,107

1.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.9K

$18.8K ¥124.6K

-40.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,103

$42.25 ¥280

47.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$32.05 ¥213

-11.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,180

$75.2 ¥499

25.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,894

$75.0 ¥498

14.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$281 ¥1,868

154.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$186 ¥1,234

163.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$597 ¥3,962

222.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$362 ¥2,399

295.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.8K

$1,368 ¥9,079

205.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$1,942 ¥12.9K

56.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$485 ¥3,217

3.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.36

65.77%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Guilin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Guilin

$186 28.4% 62.1% $305

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Guilin

$191 29.1% 28.3% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Guilin

$40 6.2% 67.6% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Guilin

$101 15.4% 17.1% $21

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Guilin

$63 9.6% 48.4% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Guilin

$52 8% 36.5% $30

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Guilin

$22 3.3% 69% $49

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $281 in Guilin. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 4% higher in Phuket, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $15 in Guilin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $191 – making Guilin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇳 Guilin

🕒 Local time

00:32 12:32 AM

01:32 1:32 AM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

4,931,137

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 CNY = 0.151 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 6.64 CNY (1 CNY = 0.151 USD). 1 EUR = 7.41 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Guilin 2,310 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Guilin

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 Guilin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Phuket is pricier by about 95%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,917 per month in Phuket and $983 in Guilin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Guilin, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $281 there versus $716 in Phuket.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,278 in Phuket and $655 in Guilin. That makes Guilin about 49% cheaper.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Guilin, where all-in costs run around $655, than in Phuket at $1,278. In Guilin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $655 in Guilin to $1,278 in Phuket. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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