Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Milan

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,555 in Milan, rent and utilities included – about $15,300 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
122

Cost of Living Index in Milan
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Milan Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Milan

🇮🇹 Italy

$2,555

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Milan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,555 in Milan.

Phuket $1,278
Milan $2,555

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $3,859 in Milan.

Phuket $2,216
Milan $3,859

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $5,163 in Milan.

Phuket $3,154
Milan $5,163

Living in Phuket costs roughly 50% less than in Milan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Milan is 88% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$22.10 €19.85

-79.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$89.0 €80.0

-63.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$13.35 €11.99

-34.01%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$2.14 €1.92

32.24%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$3.68 €3.31

-76.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$1.95 €1.75

-74.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$6.96 €6.26

-63.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$6.78 €6.09

-45.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.75 €1.57

-5.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$3.19 €2.86

-54.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$3.69 €3.31

-59.35%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$5.02 €4.51

-58.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$23.30 €20.94

-18.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$14.73 €13.24

-77.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$22.89 €20.57

-52.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$2.96 €2.66

-1.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$2.31 €2.07

-26.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$3.23 €2.90

-30.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$4.30 €3.87

-51.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$2.26 €2.03

-33.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$2.00 €1.79

-31.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$1.78 €1.60

-39.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.61 €0.55

-14.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$7.25 €6.51

-42.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$9.77 €8.78

92.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.93 €1.74

-5.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$2.38 €2.14

19.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$2.45 €2.20

-40.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

$43.45 €39.04

30.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$7.62 €6.85

-60.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$2.29 €2.06

-55.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$65.1 €58.5

-94.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$2.20 €1.98

-33.18%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$36.3K €32.7K

-26.33%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$37.4K €33.6K

-28.69%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$248 €223

-61.11%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$10.29 €9.25

9.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$29.70 €26.69

-43.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$82.9 €74.4

-18.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$33.55 €30.14

-68.02%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$11.38 €10.22

-34.09%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$939 €844

-49.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$18.8K €16.8K

-39.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$101 €91.0

-38.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$49.50 €44.48

-42.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$116 €104

-18.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$164 €147

-47.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$1,764 €1,585

-59.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$1,164 €1,046

-57.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$3,429 €3,081

-43.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,975 €1,774

-27.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$10.6K €9,501

-60.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$5,220 €4,690

-41.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$2,162 €1,942

-76.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.18

75.16%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Milan: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Milan

$1.2K 45.6% 137% $673

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Milan

$419 16.4% 57.3% $152

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Milan

$288 11.3% 131% $163

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Milan

$194 7.6% 58.8% $72

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Milan

$313 12.3% 158% $192

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Milan

$106 4.1% 28.4% $23

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Milan

$72 2.8% 2.5% $1.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $1,764 in Milan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Milan pays about 4.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $89 in Milan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $419 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇮🇹 Milan

🕒 Local time

16:12 4:12 PM

10:12 10:12 AM

6 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

1,394,798

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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 = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Milan 9,320 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Milan

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 Milan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 100% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 77% 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 $1,764 in Milan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $939 in Milan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 57% higher in Milan. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,555 in Milan, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Milan. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Milan, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Milan are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Milan on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.