Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Kalgoorlie

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $1,929 in Kalgoorlie, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
94

Cost of Living Index in Kalgoorlie
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Kalgoorlie Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Kalgoorlie

🇦🇺 Australia

$1,929

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Kalgoorlie

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,929 in Kalgoorlie.

Phuket $1,207
Kalgoorlie $1,929

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Phuket versus $3,287 in Kalgoorlie.

Phuket $2,037
Kalgoorlie $3,287

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,867 in Phuket versus $4,645 in Kalgoorlie.

Phuket $2,867
Kalgoorlie $4,645

Living in Phuket costs roughly 37% less than in Kalgoorlie, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 11% below, Kalgoorlie is 43% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿153

$17.55 A$25.25

-73.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,086

$84.3 A$121

-61.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿286

$10.63 A$15.29

-19.57%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.0

$4.42 A$6.36

-38.46%

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

$0.94 ฿31.25

$3.72 A$5.35

-74.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.39

$3.58 A$5.15

-86.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$6.37 A$9.16

-59.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$7.24 A$10.42

-47.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.1

$1.53 A$2.20

13.73%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿47.82

$3.46 A$4.99

-58.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.0

$2.28 A$3.28

-32.89%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$4.52 A$6.50

-51.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿640

$9.34 A$13.44

105.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿110

$9.09 A$13.08

-63.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿372

$14.84 A$21.35

-24.93%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿98.5

$3.80 A$5.46

-22.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.1

$2.99 A$4.30

-43.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿76.8

$3.34 A$4.80

-31.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.3

$4.72 A$6.78

-54.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.1

$2.68 A$3.86

-42.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.55

$2.33 A$3.36

-41.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$2.14 A$3.08

-47.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.24

$1.49 A$2.15

-63.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$40.93 A$58.9

-89.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

$13.69 A$19.70

32.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$4.82 A$6.94

-63.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

$5.16 A$7.43

-45.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.1

$2.94 A$4.23

-24.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

$81.8 A$118

-73.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.3

$3.51 A$5.05

-17.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

$1.47 A$2.12

-31.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

$43.13 A$62.1

-91.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.85

$1.36 A$1.95

9.56%

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

$26.7K ฿891.6K

$23.0K A$33.2K

15.76%

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

$26.7K ฿892.7K

$33.7K A$48.5K

-20.76%

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

$99.4 ฿3,321

$310 A$446

-67.92%

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

$11.28 ฿377

$55.8 A$80.3

-79.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿580

$68.5 A$98.6

-74.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,747

$37.87 A$54.5

38.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

$20.04 A$28.83

-45.86%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿253

$17.75 A$25.54

-57.35%

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

$558 ฿18.7K

$1,839 A$2,646

-69.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

$18.3K A$26.3K

-37.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,102

$78.2 A$113

-19.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿955

$55.3 A$79.5

-48.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,213

$107 A$155

-10.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,943

$132 A$189

-33.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$1,387 A$1,996

-47.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.4K

$479 A$689

-3.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$1,659 A$2,387

26.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿40.8K

$1,543 A$2,221

-20.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

$5,435 A$7,821

-36.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

$5,339 A$7,683

-53.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

$6,038 A$8,688

-91.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.25

-10.88%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Kalgoorlie: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Kalgoorlie

$479 24.8% 4.1% $19

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Kalgoorlie

$370 19.2% 38.3% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Kalgoorlie

$434 22.5% 239% $306

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Kalgoorlie

$168 8.7% 35.1% $44

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Kalgoorlie

$301 15.6% 148% $179

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Kalgoorlie

$73 3.8% 8.8% $5.9

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Kalgoorlie

$104 5.4% 169% $66

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $729 in Phuket and $1,387 in Kalgoorlie. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kalgoorlie pays 1125% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $84.0 in Kalgoorlie for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $370 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇦🇺 Kalgoorlie

🕒 Local time

18:36 6:36 PM

19:36 7:36 PM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

29,068

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Kalgoorlie 4,950 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Kalgoorlie

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 Kalgoorlie: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 60% lower than in Kalgoorlie. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 1125% lower in Kalgoorlie. 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: $729 in Phuket versus $1,387 in Kalgoorlie. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 271% less than in Kalgoorlie. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $558 in Phuket versus $1,839 in Kalgoorlie. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $1,929 in Kalgoorlie, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Kalgoorlie. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Phuket delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,207 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Phuket hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Kalgoorlie 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 Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 60% less than in Kalgoorlie. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.