Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Mersa Matruh

For one person, living is cheaper in Mersa Matruh: $457 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Mersa Matruh
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Mersa Matruh Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Mersa Matruh

🇪🇬 Egypt

$457

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Mersa Matruh

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

A single person spends $1,208 per month in Phuket vs $457 in Mersa Matruh, rent included.

Phuket $1,208
Mersa Matruh $457

A couple spends around $2,027 per month in Phuket vs $749 in Mersa Matruh, rent included.

Phuket $2,027
Mersa Matruh $749

A family of three spends $2,845 per month in Phuket vs $1,040 in Mersa Matruh, rent included.

Phuket $2,845
Mersa Matruh $1,040

Phuket costs about 164% more than Mersa Matruh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Phuket and Mersa Matruh are more affordable than the global median – Phuket 11% lower, Mersa Matruh 66% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿148

$4.20 E£234

4.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,088

$19.05 E£1,062

69.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿296

$4.72 E£264

85.59%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$1.27 E£70.6

122.83%

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

$0.90 ฿30.42

$0.33 E£18.14

172.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.71

$0.11 E£6.01

327.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿86.0

$1.36 E£75.8

87.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿129

$2.79 E£156

37.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿58.2

$0.87 E£48.65

98.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.56

$0.66 E£37.07

122.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.65 E£36.07

132.31%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.3

$1.19 E£66.1

82.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿664

$3.80 E£212

418.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿113

$4.24 E£237

-21.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿376

$9.23 E£515

20.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿96.0

$1.54 E£86.1

85.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿57.5

$0.75 E£41.82

126.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.9

$0.55 E£30.85

298.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿69.0

$0.35 E£19.76

485.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿49.02

$0.26 E£14.59

457.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.59

$0.30 E£16.70

360.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿36.02

$0.27 E£15.19

296.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.07

$0.22 E£11.99

131.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿144

$1.85 E£103

130.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿627

$5.67 E£316

227.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿60.2

$1.25 E£69.6

42.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿96.0

$2.28 E£127

25.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿76.3

$0.21 E£11.72

976.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿745

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿102

$0.56 E£31.13

437.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.67

$0.17 E£9.23

523.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿130

$1.20 E£67.1

221.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.90

$0.43 E£24.06

237.21%

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

$26.3K ฿888.1K

$32.5K E£1.8M

-18.94%

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

$26.9K ฿908.8K

$27.1K E£1.5M

-0.48%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$14.05 E£784

585.98%

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

$11.04 ฿372

$6.68 E£373

65.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿578

$13.50 E£753

26.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,760

$15.88 E£885

228.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿376

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿263

$2.91 E£162

168.38%

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

$556 ฿18.8K

$85.0 E£4,740

554.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿390.6K

$2,090 E£116.6K

454.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,166

$33.72 E£1,881

90.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿968

$45.91 E£2,560

-37.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,217

$128 E£7,112

-25.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,968

$57.4 E£3,202

53.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.9K

$128 E£7,152

474.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.6K

$76.7 E£4,278

502.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.7K

$256 E£14.3K

719.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.5K

$144 E£8,048

732.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿117.6K

$772 E£43.0K

351.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿85.1K

$354 E£19.7K

613.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.9K

$94.2 E£5,253

431.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

21.33

-73.89%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Mersa Matruh: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Mersa Matruh

$77 16.8% 83.4% $386

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Mersa Matruh

$126 27.6% 53% $142

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Mersa Matruh

$34 7.5% 72.5% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Mersa Matruh

$119 26% 4.2% $5.3

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Mersa Matruh

$77 16.9% 36.4% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Mersa Matruh

$22 4.7% 68% $46

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Mersa Matruh

$2.2 * 0.5% 94.3% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $737 in Phuket versus $128 in Mersa Matruh. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Phuket are about 5.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $19 in Mersa Matruh. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $269 vs $126 – making Mersa Matruh the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇪🇬 Mersa Matruh

🕒 Local time

11:32 11:32 AM

07:32 7:32 AM

4 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

140,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

100 EGP = 1.79 USD

100 EGP = 1.6 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.84 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 55.77 EGP (100 EGP = 1.79 USD). 1 EUR = 62.57 EGP (100 EGP = 1.6 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Mersa Matruh 7,770 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Mersa Matruh

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 Mersa Matruh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket costs about 164% more than Mersa Matruh, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,813 per month in Phuket and $686 in Mersa Matruh. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mersa Matruh, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $128 there versus $737 in Phuket.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket and $19 in Mersa Matruh. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 113% more in Phuket, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Mersa Matruh, where all-in costs run around $457, than in Phuket at $1,208. In Mersa Matruh it covers expenses comfortably, while in Phuket it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Mersa Matruh – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Mersa Matruh. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Phuket makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.