Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Kumamoto

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,283 in Kumamoto, rent and utilities included – about $900 less a year. The total is higher in Kumamoto despite lower rent and utilities.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Kumamoto
Learn more

Kumamoto Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Kumamoto

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,283

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Kumamoto

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,283 in Kumamoto.

Phuket $1,208
Kumamoto $1,283

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $1,977 in Kumamoto.

Phuket $2,027
Kumamoto $1,977

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $2,670 in Kumamoto.

Phuket $2,845
Kumamoto $2,670

Living in Phuket costs roughly 6% less than in Kumamoto, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Kumamoto 5% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿147

$7.13 ¥1,126

-38.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,078

$31.86 ¥5,034

1.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿293

$5.96 ¥942

46.98%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿94.5

$3.22 ¥508

-12.11%

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

$0.90 ฿30.14

$1.05 ¥166

-14.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.56

$0.70 ¥111

-32.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

$3.74 ¥591

-31.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.26 ¥357

69.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿57.7

$1.36 ¥215

27.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.11

$1.90 ¥299

-22.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.6

$6.64 ¥1,050

-77.26%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$1.86 ¥294

16.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿658

$17.81 ¥2,814

10.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿112

$5.47 ¥865

-38.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿373

$18.87 ¥2,981

-40.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$3.72 ¥587

-23.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$1.86 ¥294

-8.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

$2.78 ¥439

-21.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$3.36 ¥530

-38.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿48.57

$2.16 ¥342

-32.87%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.16

$2.61 ¥413

-47.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.69

$1.04 ¥164

2.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

$0.91 ¥143

-43.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$3.94 ¥623

8.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿621

$5.61 ¥887

231.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

$1.70 ¥268

4.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.2

$1.83 ¥290

55.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

$1.50 ¥236

50.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

$52.5 ¥8,291

-57.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿101

$3.84 ¥606

-21.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

$2.00 ¥317

-47.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

$18.05 ¥2,852

-78.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$1.06 ¥167

36.79%

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

$22.0K ¥3.5M

19.67%

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

$26.9K ฿900.4K

$17.6K ¥2.8M

53.37%

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

$96.4 ฿3,221

$210 ¥33.2K

-54.20%

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

$11.04 ฿369

$24.28 ¥3,835

-54.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿573

$33.30 ¥5,261

-48.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

$52.9 ¥8,359

-1.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿261

$10.95 ¥1,729

-28.68%

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

$556 ฿18.6K

$126 ¥20.0K

339.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

$12.4K ¥2.0M

-6.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,146

$48.56 ¥7,672

32.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿959

$25.99 ¥4,106

10.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,187

$65.3 ¥10.3K

46.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,940

$47.20 ¥7,457

86.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

$541 ¥85.4K

36.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

$328 ¥51.9K

40.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

$1,119 ¥176.8K

87.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

$723 ¥114.2K

66.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

$4,158 ¥656.8K

-16.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

$1,735 ¥274.1K

45.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

1.97

182.74%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Kumamoto: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Kumamoto

$328 25.6% 29% $134

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Kumamoto

$312 24.3% 16% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Kumamoto

$268 20.9% 115% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Kumamoto

$84 6.6% 32.3% $40

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Kumamoto

$144 11.2% 18.6% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Kumamoto

$75 5.8% 10.3% $7

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Kumamoto

$72 5.6% 83.4% $33

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $541 in Kumamoto. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $32.00 in Kumamoto for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $312 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇯🇵 Kumamoto

🕒 Local time

05:38 5:38 AM

07:38 7:38 AM

2 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

738,865

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Kumamoto 4,330 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Kumamoto

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 Kumamoto: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket and Kumamoto differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($1,208 vs $1,283 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,813 in Phuket and $1,924 in Kumamoto 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: $737 in Phuket versus $541 in Kumamoto. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 137% less than in Kumamoto. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $126 in Kumamoto. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,283 in Kumamoto, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Kumamoto. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 Kumamoto 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 6% less than in Kumamoto. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.