Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Loei

For one person, living is cheaper in Loei: $1,005 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Loei
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Loei Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Loei

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,005

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Loei

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,005 in Loei.

Phuket $1,294
Loei $1,005

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $1,612 in Loei.

Phuket $2,204
Loei $1,612

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $2,220 in Loei.

Phuket $3,115
Loei $2,220

Living in Phuket is roughly 29% more expensive than in Loei, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 4% lower, Loei 26% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿148

$3.28 ฿111

33.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,090

$26.26 ฿886

23.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿294

$8.02 ฿271

8.48%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.9

$2.15 ฿72.4

26.51%

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

$0.93 ฿31.39

$0.72 ฿24.41

29.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.85

$0.32 ฿10.75

56.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.4

$2.11 ฿71.3

19.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$2.91 ฿98.2

24.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.7

$1.93 ฿65.1

-9.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.95

$1.61 ฿54.4

-9.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$1.49 ฿50.4

0.67%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.3

$2.27 ฿76.7

-4.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿644

$18.80 ฿634

1.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿115

$2.28 ฿76.9

49.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿368

$11.98 ฿404

-9.02%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿99.2

$2.99 ฿101

-1.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$0.91 ฿30.83

85.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿74.0

$2.21 ฿74.5

-0.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.7

$1.98 ฿66.7

7.07%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿49.21

$1.52 ฿51.2

-3.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿46.15

$1.27 ฿42.91

7.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.30

$1.00 ฿33.84

8.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.41

$0.45 ฿15.32

22.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$3.80 ฿128

16.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿616

$18.74 ฿632

-2.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.8

$1.65 ฿55.7

7.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿97.2

$2.89 ฿97.5

-0.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.84

$0.81 ฿27.48

79.01%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,852

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.35 ฿45.51

11.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.18

$1.18 ฿39.70

-33.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿130

$4.14 ฿140

-7.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿50.2

$1.27 ฿42.74

17.32%

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

$26.9K ฿907.0K

$29.4K ฿991.5K

-8.53%

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

$26.3K ฿888.9K

$27.1K ฿914.3K

-2.78%

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

$97.8 ฿3,300

$92.4 ฿3,118

5.83%

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

$11.29 ฿381

$9.86 ฿333

14.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿580

$17.50 ฿591

-1.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,305

$49.98 ฿1,686

36.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿368

$13.80 ฿466

-20.87%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿251

$6.29 ฿212

18.12%

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

$530 ฿17.9K

$697 ฿23.5K

-23.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿633.7K

$17.3K ฿583.3K

8.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,081

$56.3 ฿1,900

9.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿953

$31.06 ฿1,048

-9.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,239

$77.2 ฿2,606

24.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,929

$73.7 ฿2,485

17.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.3K

$441 ฿14.9K

63.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.2K

$347 ฿11.7K

46.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.8K

$1,153 ฿38.9K

69.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿47.1K

$784 ฿26.4K

78.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿141.4K

$2,351 ฿79.3K

78.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿111.3K

$1,710 ฿57.7K

92.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Loei: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Loei

$347 34.5% 31.9% $162

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Loei

$261 26% 2.1% $5.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Loei

$120 11.9% 5.2% $6.5

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Loei

$107 10.7% 12.6% $16

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Loei

$97 9.6% 19.2% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Loei

$63 6.2% 24.8% $21

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Loei

$10 * 1% 84.1% $56

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 $441 in Loei. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $26 in Loei for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $261 per month, with Loei cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇹🇭 Loei

🕒 Local time

09:28 9:28 AM

Same time as Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

22,677

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Phuket Loei 1,130 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Loei

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 Loei: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,294 in Phuket and $1,005 in Loei, so Loei is about 22% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,940 in Phuket and $1,507 in Loei 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: $721 in Phuket versus $441 in Loei. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $697 in Loei. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $1,294 per month in Phuket versus $1,005 in Loei – Loei is about 22% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Loei 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 Loei are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.