Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Invercargill

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,425 in Invercargill, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 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
69

Cost of Living Index in Invercargill
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Invercargill Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Invercargill

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,425

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Invercargill

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $1,425 in Invercargill, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Invercargill $1,425

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $2,122 in Invercargill, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Invercargill $2,122

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $2,819 in Invercargill, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Invercargill $2,819

Phuket is about 10% cheaper than Invercargill, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Phuket sits 6% below the global median, while Invercargill is 5% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$14.31 NZ$25.41

-68.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$62.1 NZ$110

-47.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$8.28 NZ$14.71

6.40%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$3.17 NZ$5.63

-10.73%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$1.67 NZ$2.97

-47.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$2.13 NZ$3.79

-77.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$2.79 NZ$4.96

-8.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.86 NZ$5.08

28.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.73 NZ$3.06

-4.05%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$1.91 NZ$3.39

-23.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.77 NZ$3.15

-15.25%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$5.78 NZ$10.25

-63.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$8.67 NZ$15.40

119.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$8.78 NZ$15.58

-62.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$12.05 NZ$21.39

-9.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$2.70 NZ$4.80

8.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$2.40 NZ$4.26

-29.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.61 NZ$4.63

-13.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$3.44 NZ$6.10

-39.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$3.29 NZ$5.84

-54.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$1.66 NZ$2.95

-16.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$2.30 NZ$4.09

-53.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$1.05 NZ$1.86

-50.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$21.03 NZ$37.34

-80.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$8.42 NZ$14.95

123.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$2.90 NZ$5.14

-37.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$3.29 NZ$5.85

-13.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$1.46 NZ$2.60

-0.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.24 NZ$3.98

34.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$1.89 NZ$3.35

-46.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$28.04 NZ$49.78

-86.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.58 NZ$2.81

-6.96%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$24.1K NZ$42.8K

11.06%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$18.6K NZ$33.0K

43.46%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$113 NZ$201

-14.92%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$32.59 NZ$57.9

-65.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$42.59 NZ$75.6

-60.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$28.26 NZ$50.2

137.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$14.12 NZ$25.07

-24.01%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$8.86 NZ$15.73

-15.35%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$597 NZ$1,059

-20.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$59.1 NZ$105

5.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$35.27 NZ$62.6

-19.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$70.3 NZ$125

34.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$78.2 NZ$139

9.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$611 NZ$1,085

17.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$550 NZ$977

-10.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$835 NZ$1,482

130.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$769 NZ$1,365

86.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$5,776 NZ$10.3K

-27.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$5,013 NZ$8,899

-39.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$2,756 NZ$4,894

-81.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.72

-17.11%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Invercargill: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Invercargill

$550 38.6% 12.1% $60

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Invercargill

$301 21.1% 13.1% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Invercargill

$188 13.2% 51.4% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Invercargill

$109 7.7% 10.3% $13

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Invercargill

$212 14.9% 74.5% $91

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Invercargill

$46 3.2% 44.1% $36

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Invercargill

$18 * 1.2% 75.2% $53

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 $611 in Invercargill. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Invercargill are about 5.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $62 in Invercargill. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $301 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇳🇿 Invercargill

🕒 Local time

23:31 11:31 PM

05:31 5:31 AM

6 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

56,200

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, 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).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Invercargill 9,150 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Invercargill

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 Invercargill: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Invercargill costs about 12% more than Phuket, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. 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 $2,138 in Invercargill. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Invercargill, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $611 there versus $716 in Phuket.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,278 in Phuket and $1,425 in Invercargill. That makes Phuket about 10% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $476 per month in Phuket and $597 in Invercargill. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

It depends on your priorities. Phuket has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,278 in Phuket to $1,425 in Invercargill. 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, Invercargill makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.