Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Kurukshetra

For one person, living is cheaper in Kurukshetra: $365 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 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
17

Cost of Living Index in Kurukshetra
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Kurukshetra Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Kurukshetra

🇮🇳 India

$365

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Kurukshetra

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $365 in Kurukshetra.

Phuket $1,278
Kurukshetra $365

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $595 in Kurukshetra.

Phuket $2,216
Kurukshetra $595

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $825 in Kurukshetra.

Phuket $3,154
Kurukshetra $825

Living in Phuket is roughly 250% more expensive than in Kurukshetra, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Kurukshetra 73% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$1.03 ₹98.1

333.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$15.98 ₹1,517

102.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$3.10 ₹295

184.19%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$1.08 ₹103

162.04%

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

$0.87 ฿29.42

$0.20 ₹18.97

335.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.66

$0.14 ₹13.10

250.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$2.07 ₹197

23.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.65 ₹252

38.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$0.71 ₹67.8

133.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.32

$0.58 ₹55.5

151.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$0.65 ₹62.1

130.77%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.21 ₹115

72.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$5.31 ₹504

259.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$3.19 ₹303

3.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$0.71 ₹67.1

312.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$0.51 ₹48.39

231.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$0.54 ₹51.4

316.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$0.34 ₹31.85

511.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.31 ₹29.32

387.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.54

$0.46 ₹43.62

200.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.97

$0.60 ₹56.7

78.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.33 ₹31.44

57.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$4.90 ₹465

-14.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$7.32 ₹695

156.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.72 ₹163

5.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$2.64 ₹251

7.58%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$5.25 ₹498

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.00

$0.23 ₹21.89

530.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$7.15 ₹679

692.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.07 ₹101

182.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.34

$0.25 ₹23.65

308.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$2.11 ₹200

74.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.78

$1.13 ₹107

30.09%

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

$26.8K ฿903.7K

$11.3K ₹1.1M

136.30%

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

$26.7K ฿900.8K

$24.2K ₹2.3M

10.13%

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

$96.4 ฿3,252

$38.21 ₹3,628

152.16%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$4.10 ₹389

174.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$7.62 ₹723

121.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,269

$16.07 ₹1,526

318.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$6.98 ₹662

53.72%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$4.84 ₹459

54.96%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$46.71 ₹4,434

918.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.1K

$1,704 ₹161.8K

560.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,105

$20.63 ₹1,959

202.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$24.56 ₹2,332

15.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,182

$48.17 ₹4,573

95.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,896

$26.75 ₹2,540

220.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$121 ₹11.5K

489.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$78.3 ₹7,431

527.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$266 ₹25.3K

624.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$190 ₹18.1K

651.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$842 ₹79.9K

396.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$555 ₹52.7K

448.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

9.12

-38.93%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Kurukshetra: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Kurukshetra

$78 21.4% 84.1% $413

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Kurukshetra

$100 27.2% 62.6% $167

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Kurukshetra

$50 13.7% 59.9% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Kurukshetra

$54 14.8% 55.7% $68

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Kurukshetra

$48 13% 60.9% $74

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Kurukshetra

$26 7% 68.7% $56

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Kurukshetra

$10 2.8% 85.3% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $121 in Kurukshetra. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $16 in Kurukshetra for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $100 per month, with Kurukshetra cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇮🇳 Kurukshetra

🕒 Local time

20:44 8:44 PM

19:14 7:14 PM

1 h 30 min behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

1,340,871

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 94.94 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.44 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Kurukshetra 3,330 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Kurukshetra

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 Kurukshetra: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kurukshetra wins on cost – living expenses run 71% lower than in Phuket. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Kurukshetra the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,917 in Phuket and $548 in Kurukshetra 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: $716 in Phuket versus $121 in Kurukshetra. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Kurukshetra runs roughly 87% less than in Phuket. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $47 in Kurukshetra. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $365 in Kurukshetra versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $800 budget is realistic in Kurukshetra but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Kurukshetra 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.

Expats usually find Kurukshetra gentler on the wallet – expenses run 71% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.