Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Makarska

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $1,613 in Makarska, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Makarska
Learn more

Makarska Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Makarska

🇭🇷 Croatia

$1,613

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Makarska

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,613 in Makarska.

Phuket $1,294
Makarska $1,613

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $2,481 in Makarska.

Phuket $2,204
Makarska $2,481

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $3,349 in Makarska.

Phuket $3,115
Makarska $3,349

Living in Phuket costs roughly 20% less than in Makarska, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 4% below, Makarska is 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿148

$17.40 €15.46

-74.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,086

$77.1 €68.5

-58.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿293

$7.93 €7.04

9.71%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.6

$3.25 €2.88

-16.31%

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

$0.93 ฿31.28

$4.00 €3.55

-76.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.79

$3.06 €2.72

-83.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.1

$5.45 €4.84

-53.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$4.83 €4.29

-24.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.5

$1.18 €1.05

47.46%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.77

$1.66 €1.47

-12.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$3.04 €2.70

-50.66%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.0

$5.03 €4.47

-56.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿642

$14.99 €13.31

27.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$9.57 €8.51

-64.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿366

$12.11 €10.76

-9.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿98.9

$1.92 €1.70

53.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$1.59 €1.41

6.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.8

$2.09 €1.86

4.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.4

$2.67 €2.38

-20.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿49.03

$2.20 €1.95

-33.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿45.99

$2.08 €1.85

-34.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.17

$1.59 €1.41

-32.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.34

$1.55 €1.38

-64.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$5.69 €5.06

-22.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿614

$7.92 €7.04

130.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.6

$1.37 €1.21

29.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿96.8

$1.48 €1.32

94.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.66

$1.69 €1.50

-14.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,845

$43.77 €38.88

25.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$3.30 €2.94

-54.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.08

$1.38 €1.23

-43.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿129

$13.47 €11.97

-71.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿50.0

$1.65 €1.47

-9.70%

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

$26.9K ฿903.7K

$26.2K €23.2K

2.79%

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

$26.3K ฿885.7K

$24.6K €21.9K

6.93%

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

$97.8 ฿3,288

$181 €161

-46.00%

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

$11.29 ฿380

$27.54 €24.47

-59.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿578

$42.92 €38.13

-59.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,297

$51.7 €45.92

32.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿367

$15.42 €13.70

-29.18%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿250

$10.67 €9.48

-30.37%

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

$530 ฿17.8K

$412 €366

28.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿631.4K

$6,854 €6,088

174.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,073

$91.0 €80.8

-32.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿950

$44.42 €39.46

-36.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,228

$104 €92.4

-7.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,919

$79.4 €70.5

9.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.2K

$685 €608

5.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.1K

$525 €467

-3.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.6K

$1,162 €1,032

67.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿47.0K

$862 €766

62.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿140.9K

$3,989 €3,543

5.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿110.9K

$2,885 €2,563

14.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.72

49.73%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Makarska: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Makarska

$525 32.6% 3.2% $16

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Makarska

$292 18.1% 9.5% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Makarska

$252 15.6% 99.2% $125

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Makarska

$143 8.9% 16.9% $21

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Makarska

$267 16.6% 123% $148

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Makarska

$73 4.5% 12.2% $10

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Makarska

$61 3.8% 8.1% $5.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Phuket and $685 in Makarska. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $77 in Makarska for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $292 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇭🇷 Makarska

🕒 Local time

04:08 4:08 AM

22:08 10:08 PM

6 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

12,809

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.62 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.85 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.888 EUR (1 EUR = 1.13 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Makarska 8,710 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Makarska

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 Makarska: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 20% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, utilities, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,940 in Phuket and $2,420 in Makarska 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 $685 in Makarska. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $412 in Makarska. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Makarska. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,613 in Makarska, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Makarska. 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 Makarska are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.