Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Melissia

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,449 in Melissia, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. The total is higher in Melissia despite lower rent and utilities.

Phuket, Thailand
Melissia, Greece
Phuket
🇹🇭 Thailand
$1,278
/mo nomad
Melissia
🇬🇷 Greece
$1,449
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Melissia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,449 in Melissia.

  • Phuket $1,278
  • Melissia $1,449

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

  • Phuket $2,216
  • Melissia $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,983 in Melissia.

  • Phuket $3,154
  • Melissia $2,983

Living in Phuket costs roughly 12% less than in Melissia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Melissia is 6% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.47 ฿151
$11.12 €9.96
-59.80%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$32.41 ฿1,093
$57.8 €51.8
-43.93%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.81 ฿297
$8.82 €7.90
-0.11%
Cappuccino
$2.83 ฿95.4
$4.19 €3.75
-32.46%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 ฿29.41
$2.34 €2.09
-62.82%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.49 ฿16.65
$0.59 €0.53
-16.95%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.56 ฿86.3
$4.43 €3.97
-42.21%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.68 ฿124
$4.89 €4.38
-24.74%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.66 ฿55.9
$1.81 €1.62
-8.29%
White Bread (500g)
$1.46 ฿49.31
$1.45 €1.30
0.69%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.50 ฿50.5
$2.67 €2.39
-43.82%
Eggs
$2.09 ฿70.5
$5.27 €4.72
-60.34%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.07 ฿643
$12.08 €10.82
57.86%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.30 ฿111
$10.06 €9.01
-67.20%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.91 ฿368
$19.36 €17.34
-43.65%
Apples (1kg)
$2.93 ฿98.9
$2.22 €1.99
31.98%
Banana (1kg)
$1.69 ฿57.0
$1.90 €1.70
-11.05%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.25 ฿75.8
$1.35 €1.21
66.67%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.08 ฿70.0
$2.13 €1.91
-2.35%
Potato (1kg)
$1.51 ฿51.0
$1.16 €1.04
30.17%
Onion (1kg)
$1.38 ฿46.52
$1.09 €0.98
26.61%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 ฿35.96
$0.90 €0.80
18.89%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.52 ฿17.51
$1.16 €1.04
-55.17%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.20 ฿142
$5.64 €5.06
-25.53%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.79 ฿634
$9.93 €8.89
89.22%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.82 ฿61.5
$2.07 €1.86
-12.08%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.84 ฿95.8
$2.39 €2.14
18.83%
🚌 Getting Around
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.45 ฿48.98
$1.37 €1.23
5.84%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$56.7 ฿1,912
$54.8 €49.09
3.38%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.02 ฿102
$4.46 €3.99
-32.29%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.02 ฿34.33
$1.04 €0.93
-1.92%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.69 ฿125
$16.50 €14.78
-77.64%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.47 ฿49.76
$2.21 €1.98
-33.48%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$26.8K ฿903.4K
$27.6K €24.7K
-2.84%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.7K ฿900.5K
$24.4K €21.8K
9.50%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$96.4 ฿3,251
$199 €178
-51.65%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.26 ฿380
$25.51 €22.85
-55.86%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$16.85 ฿568
$28.69 €25.69
-41.27%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$67.2 ฿2,268
$53.0 €47.49
26.78%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$10.73 ฿362
$22.20 €19.88
-51.67%
Cinema Ticket
$7.50 ฿253
$9.56 €8.56
-21.55%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$476 ฿16.1K
$466 €417
2.13%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.3K ฿380.0K
$4,741 €4,246
137.56%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$62.4 ฿2,104
$90.4 €80.9
-30.98%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$28.41 ฿958
$39.22 €35.13
-27.56%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$94.3 ฿3,181
$101 €90.1
-6.31%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$85.8 ฿2,895
$124 €111
-31.00%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$716 ฿24.2K
$461 €413
55.41%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$491 ฿16.6K
$379 €339
29.59%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,927 ฿65.0K
$730 €654
164.02%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,431 ฿48.3K
$617 €552
131.94%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,175 ฿140.9K
$2,471 €2,213
68.97%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,045 ฿102.7K
$1,934 €1,733
57.38%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Phuket
Melissia
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$502 ฿16.9K
$1,368 €1,225
-63.28%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.57
4.48
24.33%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Melissia: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Phuket
$491
Melissia
$379 22.8% $112
Groceries & Markets
Phuket
$266
Melissia
$306 14.8% $39
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
$124
Melissia
$253 104% $129
Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
$122
Melissia
$160 30.9% $38
Eating Out
Phuket
$122
Melissia
$209 72% $88
Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
$82
Melissia
$72 12.2% $10
Getting Around
Phuket
$71
Melissia
$70 0.9% $0.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $461 in Melissia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melissia pays about 2.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $58 in Melissia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $306 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇹🇭 Phuket
🇬🇷 Melissia
🕒 Local time
06:42 6:42 AM
01:42 1:42 AM
5 h behind Phuket
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
79,308
15,588
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Phuket Melissia 8,120 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Phuket
  • Melissia

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 Melissia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Phuket or Melissia?
Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 12% lower than in Melissia. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
Are salaries higher in Phuket or in Melissia?
On paper, salaries run 63% lower in Phuket. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Phuket compared to Melissia?
Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $461 in Melissia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How much does it cost to live in Phuket compared to Melissia?
All in, you’ll spend $1,278 per month in Phuket versus $1,449 in Melissia – Phuket is about 12% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.
How expensive is transport in Phuket compared to Melissia?
A monthly transit pass in Melissia runs roughly 3% less than in Phuket. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Phuket or Melissia?
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.
How safe is Phuket compared to Melissia?
Safety-wise, Phuket and Melissia are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.
Should I move to Phuket or to Melissia?
It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Melissia on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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