Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Miaoli

For one person, living is cheaper in Miaoli: $768 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Miaoli
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Miaoli Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Miaoli

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$768

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Miaoli

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $768 in Miaoli.

Phuket $1,278
Miaoli $768

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,069 in Miaoli.

Phuket $2,216
Miaoli $1,069

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,370 in Miaoli.

Phuket $3,154
Miaoli $1,370

Living in Phuket is roughly 66% more expensive than in Miaoli, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Miaoli 44% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$2.53 NT$82.1

76.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$23.04 NT$747

40.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$4.69 NT$152

87.85%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$2.94 NT$95.3

-3.74%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$0.83 NT$26.74

4.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$0.55 NT$17.89

-10.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$1.20 NT$38.78

113.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$1.28 NT$41.53

187.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$2.64 NT$85.5

-37.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.22 NT$39.59

19.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$2.64 NT$85.7

-43.18%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.05 NT$66.6

1.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$8.96 NT$290

112.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$7.43 NT$241

-55.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$21.11 NT$684

-48.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$3.77 NT$122

-22.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.96 NT$63.5

-13.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.91 NT$94.3

-22.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$3.10 NT$100

-32.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$2.53 NT$81.9

-40.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$1.91 NT$61.7

-27.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$2.20 NT$71.2

-51.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.89 NT$28.98

-41.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.86 NT$125

8.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$10.90 NT$353

72.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.40 NT$45.41

30.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$2.10 NT$68.2

35.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.81 NT$91.1

7.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$0.74 NT$23.95

37.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$7.07 NT$229

-47.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.01 NT$32.79

45.54%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$36.7K NT$1.2M

-26.99%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$22.8K NT$738.3K

17.12%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$68.0 NT$2,203

41.71%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$17.30 NT$560

-34.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$21.61 NT$700

-22.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$10.84 NT$351

-30.81%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$508 NT$16.5K

-6.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$30.8K NT$999.4K

-63.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$12.19 NT$395

411.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$23.87 NT$773

19.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$62.2 NT$2,014

51.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$94.1 NT$3,049

-8.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$211 NT$6,834

239.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$156 NT$5,060

214.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$2,374 NT$76.9K

-78.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.38

134.03%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Miaoli: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Miaoli

$156 20.3% 68.2% $335

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Miaoli

$306 39.9% 15.1% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Miaoli

$107 13.9% 14.1% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Miaoli

$87 11.3% 29% $35

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Miaoli

$84 10.9% 31.2% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Miaoli

$22 * 2.8% 73.6% $61

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Miaoli

$6.5 * 0.9% 90.8% $64

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 $716 in Phuket and $211 in Miaoli. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Miaoli pays about 4.7 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $23 in Miaoli. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $306, with Phuket cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇹🇼 Miaoli

🕒 Local time

04:14 4:14 AM

05:14 5:14 AM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

89,892

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 TWD = 3.09 USD

100 TWD = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 32.4 TWD (100 TWD = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 36.07 TWD (100 TWD = 2.77 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Miaoli 3,020 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Miaoli

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 Miaoli: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,278 in Phuket and $768 in Miaoli, so Miaoli is about 40% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 79% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $211 in Miaoli. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Phuket pay roughly 13% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,278 per month in Phuket versus $768 in Miaoli – Miaoli is about 40% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $768 in Miaoli versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Miaoli but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Miaoli 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 Miaoli are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.