Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Kaluga

For one person, living is cheaper in Kaluga: $1,021 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Kaluga
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Kaluga Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Kaluga

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,021

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Kaluga

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,021 in Kaluga.

Phuket $1,294
Kaluga $1,021

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $1,594 in Kaluga.

Phuket $2,204
Kaluga $1,594

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $2,168 in Kaluga.

Phuket $3,115
Kaluga $2,168

Living in Phuket is roughly 27% more expensive than in Kaluga, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 4% lower, Kaluga 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿148

$10.25 ₽840

-57.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,086

$37.27 ₽3,055

-13.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿293

$4.96 ₽407

75.40%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.6

$2.62 ₽215

3.82%

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

$0.93 ฿31.28

$0.92 ₽75.3

1.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.79

$0.58 ₽47.85

-13.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.1

$1.44 ₽118

75.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$1.82 ₽149

99.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.5

$1.26 ₽103

38.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.77

$0.99 ₽81.5

46.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$2.42 ₽198

-38.02%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.0

$2.05 ₽168

5.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿642

$13.66 ₽1,120

39.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$6.81 ₽558

-50.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿366

$14.45 ₽1,185

-24.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿98.9

$1.83 ₽150

60.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$1.72 ₽141

-1.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.8

$1.71 ₽140

28.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.4

$2.86 ₽234

-25.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿49.03

$0.54 ₽44.61

170.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿45.99

$0.56 ₽45.61

144.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.17

$1.49 ₽122

-27.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.34

$0.82 ₽67.1

-32.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$3.18 ₽261

39.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿614

$8.61 ₽705

111.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.6

$1.21 ₽99.4

46.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿96.8

$2.73 ₽224

5.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.66

$0.45 ₽36.53

222.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,845

$18.83 ₽1,544

191.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$0.95 ₽77.5

58.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.08

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿129

$6.71 ₽550

-42.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿50.0

$0.86 ₽70.3

73.26%

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

$26.9K ฿903.7K

$53.1K ₽4.4M

-49.39%

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

$26.3K ฿885.7K

$41.8K ₽3.4M

-36.96%

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

$97.8 ฿3,288

$126 ₽10.3K

-22.53%

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

$11.29 ฿380

$6.13 ₽503

84.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿578

$9.38 ₽769

83.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,297

$49.75 ₽4,078

37.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿367

$24.64 ₽2,019

-55.68%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿250

$3.65 ₽299

103.56%

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

$530 ฿17.8K

$341 ₽28.0K

55.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿631.4K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,073

$97.7 ₽8,004

-36.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿950

$37.38 ₽3,064

-24.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,228

$184 ₽15.0K

-47.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,919

$94.5 ₽7,744

-8.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.2K

$302 ₽24.8K

138.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.1K

$223 ₽18.2K

128.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.6K

$627 ₽51.4K

211.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿47.0K

$367 ₽30.1K

280.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿140.9K

$1,541 ₽126.3K

172.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿110.9K

$1,302 ₽106.7K

153.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

$662 ₽54.2K

-25.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

23.12

-75.91%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Kaluga: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Kaluga

$223 21.8% 56.3% $286

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Kaluga

$247 24.2% 7.6% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Kaluga

$142 13.9% 12.3% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Kaluga

$186 18.2% 51.5% $63

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Kaluga

$145 14.2% 21.4% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Kaluga

$57 5.6% 31.4% $26

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Kaluga

$22 * 2.1% 67.4% $45

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 $721 in Phuket and $302 in Kaluga. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kaluga pays 35% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $37 in Kaluga. Groceries flip the comparison at $267 vs $247, with Kaluga cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇷🇺 Kaluga

🕒 Local time

11:04 11:04 AM

07:04 7:04 AM

4 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

331,842

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

100 RUB = 1.22 USD

100 RUB = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 81.97 RUB (100 RUB = 1.22 USD). 1 EUR = 92.27 RUB (100 RUB = 1.08 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Kaluga 7,520 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Kaluga

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 Kaluga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,294 in Phuket and $1,021 in Kaluga, so Kaluga is about 21% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 26% lower in Phuket. 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: $721 in Phuket versus $302 in Kaluga. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Kaluga runs roughly 66% less than in Phuket. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $341 in Kaluga. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Kaluga gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Kaluga are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.