Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Jilin

For one person, living is cheaper in Jilin: $722 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Jilin
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Jilin Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Jilin

🇨🇳 China

$722

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Jilin

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $722 in Jilin, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Jilin $722

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $1,195 in Jilin, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Jilin $1,195

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $1,669 in Jilin, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Jilin $1,669

Phuket costs about 77% more than Jilin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Jilin are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 6% lower, Jilin 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$3.05 ¥20.31

46.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$22.62 ¥151

43.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$5.17 ¥34.37

70.41%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$3.43 ¥22.83

-17.49%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$0.44 ¥2.96

97.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$0.27 ¥1.80

81.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$1.09 ¥7.24

134.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.31 ¥15.39

59.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.75 ¥11.64

-5.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.61 ¥10.70

-9.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$0.99 ¥6.59

51.52%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.57 ¥10.46

33.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$15.29 ¥102

24.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$3.12 ¥20.73

5.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$11.08 ¥73.7

-1.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$1.88 ¥12.51

55.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.27 ¥8.44

33.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.47 ¥9.79

53.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$1.29 ¥8.62

61.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.66 ¥4.38

128.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$1.02 ¥6.79

35.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$0.59 ¥3.96

81.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.59 ¥3.91

-11.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.77 ¥25.12

11.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$10.21 ¥68.0

84.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$0.76 ¥5.07

139.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.60 ¥10.65

77.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$0.34 ¥2.28

326.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

$17.48 ¥116

224.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.08 ¥7.17

179.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$0.26 ¥1.73

292.31%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$7.13 ¥47.44

-48.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.27 ¥8.43

15.75%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$19.8K ¥132.1K

34.94%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$17.6K ¥116.9K

51.98%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$61.3 ¥408

57.25%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$8.26 ¥55.0

36.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$10.67 ¥71.0

57.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$39.37 ¥262

70.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$16.99 ¥113

-36.85%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$6.41 ¥42.67

17.00%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$440 ¥2,930

8.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$17.7K ¥117.5K

-36.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$42.55 ¥283

46.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$32.53 ¥217

-12.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$76.4 ¥508

23.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$76.0 ¥506

12.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$244 ¥1,623

193.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$163 ¥1,085

201.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$584 ¥3,884

230.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$406 ¥2,704

252.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$3,551 ¥23.6K

17.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$2,139 ¥14.2K

42.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$441 ¥2,935

13.88%

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 Jilin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Jilin

$163 22.6% 66.8% $328

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Jilin

$209 28.9% 21.6% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Jilin

$80 11.1% 35.6% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Jilin

$102 14.2% 16% $20

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Jilin

$94 13% 22.8% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Jilin

$52 7.2% 36.5% $30

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Jilin

$21 2.9% 69.9% $49

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $244 in Jilin. 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 14% 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 $23 in Jilin. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $209 – making Jilin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇳 Jilin

🕒 Local time

05:54 5:54 AM

06:54 6:54 AM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

3,623,713

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 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 October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 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 Jilin 4,840 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Jilin

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 Jilin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket costs about 77% more than Jilin, 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 $1,083 in Jilin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Jilin, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $244 there versus $716 in Phuket.

Kindergarten costs $476 per month in Phuket and $440 in Jilin. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 28% more in Phuket, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Jilin, where all-in costs run around $722, than in Phuket at $1,278. In Jilin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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