Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Hermanus

For one person, living is cheaper in Hermanus: $1,118 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 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
54

Cost of Living Index in Hermanus
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Hermanus Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Hermanus

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,118

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Hermanus

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,118 in Hermanus.

Phuket $1,207
Hermanus $1,118

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Phuket versus $1,727 in Hermanus.

Phuket $2,037
Hermanus $1,727

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,867 in Phuket versus $2,336 in Hermanus.

Phuket $2,867
Hermanus $2,336

Living in Phuket is roughly 8% more expensive than in Hermanus, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Hermanus 17% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿153

$13.13 R 216

-65.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,086

$34.89 R 575

-6.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿286

$5.59 R 92.1

52.95%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.0

$2.30 R 37.84

18.26%

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

$0.94 ฿31.25

$1.08 R 17.76

-12.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.39

$0.87 R 14.27

-43.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$2.23 R 36.66

16.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.77 R 45.61

38.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.1

$1.19 R 19.66

46.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿47.82

$1.12 R 18.47

27.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.0

$1.77 R 29.18

-13.56%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$2.44 R 40.15

-11.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿640

$8.34 R 137

129.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿110

$4.98 R 82.0

-33.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿372

$7.04 R 116

58.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿98.5

$1.76 R 29.07

67.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.1

$1.68 R 27.62

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿76.8

$1.79 R 29.42

28.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.3

$1.71 R 28.10

24.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.1

$1.47 R 24.14

4.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.55

$1.43 R 23.63

-4.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$1.20 R 19.78

-6.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.24

$1.17 R 19.28

-52.99%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$3.34 R 55.1

27.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

$7.06 R 116

157.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$1.45 R 23.81

20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

$1.95 R 32.12

43.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.1

$1.48 R 24.34

50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.3

$0.62 R 10.25

369.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

$0.88 R 14.46

14.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

$11.54 R 190

-66.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.85

$1.46 R 24.02

2.05%

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

$26.7K ฿891.6K

$36.0K R 593.0K

-25.88%

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

$26.7K ฿892.7K

$31.8K R 524.6K

-16.11%

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

$99.4 ฿3,321

$145 R 2,395

-31.65%

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

$11.28 ฿377

$35.60 R 587

-68.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿580

$39.60 R 652

-56.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,747

$21.12 R 348

147.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

$13.86 R 228

-21.72%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿253

$6.19 R 102

22.29%

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

$558 ฿18.7K

$245 R 4,032

128.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

$5,463 R 90.0K

110.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,102

$52.2 R 860

20.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿955

$32.45 R 535

-11.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,213

$101 R 1,658

-4.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,943

$86.9 R 1,431

1.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$396 R 6,524

84.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.4K

$359 R 5,923

27.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$716 R 11.8K

192.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿40.8K

$717 R 11.8K

70.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

$888 R 14.6K

289.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

$659 R 10.9K

277.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

10.94

-49.09%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Hermanus: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Hermanus

$359 32.2% 21.8% $100

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Hermanus

$197 17.6% 26.4% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Hermanus

$221 19.7% 72.3% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Hermanus

$122 11% 1.3% $1.6

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Hermanus

$174 15.6% 43.3% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Hermanus

$34 3% 50.3% $34

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Hermanus

$11 * 1% 71.9% $28

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 $396 in Hermanus. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $35.00 in Hermanus. Groceries flip the comparison at $268 vs $197, with Hermanus cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇿🇦 Hermanus

🕒 Local time

18:47 6:47 PM

13:47 1:47 PM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

56,139

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Hermanus 9,520 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Hermanus

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 Hermanus: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hermanus is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and leisure. The 8% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,811 in Phuket and $1,677 in Hermanus to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $729 in Phuket versus $396 in Hermanus. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,207 per month in Phuket versus $1,118 in Hermanus – a 8% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,118 in Hermanus versus $1,207 in Phuket, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Hermanus but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Hermanus the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Hermanus is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Phuket, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Hermanus 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 Hermanus gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.