Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Malawi

Name: Malawi
Address: MW

For one person, living is cheaper in Malawi: $666 a month against $1,190 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Malawi
Learn more

Malawi Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

🇲🇼 Malawi

$666

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Phuket is 24% more expensive than Malawi without rent, and 78.6% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Phuket is 38% more expensive than Malawi without rent, and 73.9% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.35 ฿146

$5.09 MWK 8,739

-14.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.45 ฿1,087

$26.28 MWK 45.1K

23.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.42 ฿282

$6.55 MWK 11.2K

28.55%

Cappuccino

$2.81 ฿94.0

$3.22 MWK 5,531

-12.73%

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

$0.87 ฿29.29

$0.87 MWK 1,490

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 ฿15.39

$0.46 MWK 792

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$1.46 MWK 2,506

77.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 ฿122

$2.92 MWK 5,017

24.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 ฿57.2

$1.14 MWK 1,961

50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.42

$1.31 MWK 2,253

10.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.3

$1.72 MWK 2,951

-9.30%

Eggs

$2.10 ฿70.3

$2.15 MWK 3,693

-2.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.53 ฿654

$7.61 MWK 13.1K

156.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$3.75 MWK 6,446

-9.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿373

$5.71 MWK 9,806

95.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 ฿94.8

$2.49 MWK 4,280

13.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ฿54.3

$1.79 MWK 3,074

-9.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 ฿74.5

$2.26 MWK 3,875

-1.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.15 ฿71.9

$1.11 MWK 1,913

93.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 ฿49.95

$1.35 MWK 2,321

10.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.40

$1.46 MWK 2,506

-8.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.72

$0.31 MWK 527

245.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.01

$1.29 MWK 2,214

-60.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 ฿147

$2.34 MWK 4,023

87.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.77 ฿629

$14.48 MWK 24.9K

29.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.3

$1.09 MWK 1,865

59.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿92.9

$2.10 MWK 3,614

32.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.17 ฿72.6

$0.83 MWK 1,432

161.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.28 ฿746

$2.17 MWK 3,734

926.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿101

$0.61 MWK 1,055

395.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.43

$2.42 MWK 4,153

-56.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 ฿124

$2.14 MWK 3,675

73.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ฿47.88

$1.52 MWK 2,605

-5.92%

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

$26.3K ฿882.1K

$35.5K MWK 60.9M

-25.73%

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

$26.2K ฿877.3K

$39.7K MWK 68.2M

-34.03%

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

$96.7 ฿3,236

$38.60 MWK 66.3K

150.41%

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

$11.41 ฿382

$10.11 MWK 17.4K

12.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.11 ฿573

$76.9 MWK 132.0K

-77.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ฿1,768

$36.17 MWK 62.1K

45.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.07 ฿371

$15.02 MWK 25.8K

-26.30%

Cinema Ticket

$7.65 ฿256

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

$555 ฿18.6K

$378 MWK 648.6K

46.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿377.7K

$594 MWK 1.0M

1798.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.4 ฿2,123

$43.70 MWK 75.0K

45.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.61 ฿958

$39.41 MWK 67.7K

-27.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.7 ฿3,238

$48.86 MWK 83.9K

97.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 ฿2,967

$69.1 MWK 118.6K

28.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$735 ฿24.6K

$230 MWK 394.6K

219.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$458 ฿15.3K

$79.0 MWK 135.7K

479.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 ฿70.4K

$557 MWK 955.6K

277.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 ฿39.7K

$380 MWK 652.1K

212.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,493 ฿116.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,491 ฿83.4K

$390 MWK 670.2K

538.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.8K

$282 MWK 484.0K

77.70%

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: October 4, 2026

Last update for Malawi: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$458 38.1%

Malawi

$79 11.9% 82.7% $379

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.3%

Malawi

$199 29.9% 25.8% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Malawi

$126 18.9% 0.3% $0.4

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Malawi

$90 13.6% 27.5% $34

Eating Out

Phuket

$119 9.9%

Malawi

$117 17.7% 1.5% $1.8

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.7%

Malawi

$36 * 5.4% 46.9% $32

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Malawi

$18 2.7% 53.6% $21

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇼 Malawi

🕒 Local time

13:19 1:19 PM

08:19 8:19 AM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

18,622,104

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Malawian Kwacha MWK MK

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

10,000 MWK = 5.82 USD

10,000 MWK = 5.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MWK, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Malawian Kwacha exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,717 MWK (10,000 MWK = 5.82 USD). 1 EUR = 1,926 MWK (10,000 MWK = 5.19 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Malawi 7,530 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Malawi

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 other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

Sao Paulo

🇧🇷 Brazil

Kuta, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Cemagi, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

Izmir

🇹🇷 Turkey