Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Montreux

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $3,440 in Montreux, rent and utilities included – about $25,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
166

Cost of Living Index in Montreux
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Montreux Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Montreux

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,440

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Montreux

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Phuket vs $3,440 in Montreux, rent included.

Phuket $1,278
Montreux $3,440

A couple spends around $2,216 per month in Phuket vs $5,245 in Montreux, rent included.

Phuket $2,216
Montreux $5,245

A family of three spends $3,154 per month in Phuket vs $7,050 in Montreux, rent included.

Phuket $3,154
Montreux $7,050

Phuket is about 63% cheaper than Montreux, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Phuket sits 6% below the global median, while Montreux is 153% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$30.54 CHF 25.19

-85.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$125 CHF 103

-74.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$18.32 CHF 15.11

-51.91%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$6.07 CHF 5.01

-53.38%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$4.61 CHF 3.80

-81.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$4.05 CHF 3.34

-87.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$9.70 CHF 8.00

-73.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$9.49 CHF 7.83

-61.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$2.23 CHF 1.84

-25.56%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$3.31 CHF 2.73

-55.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$3.32 CHF 2.74

-54.82%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$7.09 CHF 5.85

-70.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$24.79 CHF 20.45

-23.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$28.28 CHF 23.33

-88.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$39.88 CHF 32.90

-72.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$3.65 CHF 3.01

-19.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.66 CHF 1.37

1.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.46 CHF 2.03

-8.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$4.60 CHF 3.80

-54.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.86 CHF 1.53

-18.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$1.92 CHF 1.58

-28.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$1.97 CHF 1.63

-45.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$1.69 CHF 1.39

-69.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$11.00 CHF 9.08

-61.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$12.05 CHF 9.94

55.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$2.73 CHF 2.25

-33.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$3.25 CHF 2.68

-12.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$4.21 CHF 3.47

-65.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$104 CHF 85.4

-45.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$7.47 CHF 6.16

-59.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$3.76 CHF 3.10

-72.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$64.8 CHF 53.5

-94.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$2.42 CHF 2.00

-39.26%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$38.7K CHF 31.9K

-30.75%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$39.6K CHF 32.7K

-32.62%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$288 CHF 238

-66.58%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$37.64 CHF 31.05

-70.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$52.2 CHF 43.03

-67.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$89.6 CHF 73.9

-24.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$45.58 CHF 37.60

-76.46%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$24.18 CHF 19.95

-68.98%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$2,443 CHF 2,015

-80.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$35.9K CHF 29.7K

-68.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$135 CHF 111

-53.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$78.7 CHF 64.9

-63.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$168 CHF 139

-44.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$184 CHF 152

-53.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$1,773 CHF 1,462

-59.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$1,473 CHF 1,215

-66.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$2,960 CHF 2,441

-34.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$2,500 CHF 2,062

-42.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$16.4K CHF 13.5K

-74.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$12.5K CHF 10.3K

-75.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$8,161 CHF 6,732

-93.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

1.95

185.64%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Montreux: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Montreux

$1.5K 42.8% 200% $982

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Montreux

$575 16.7% 116% $309

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Montreux

$378 11% 204% $254

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Montreux

$255 7.4% 109% $133

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Montreux

$474 13.8% 290% $353

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Montreux

$138 4% 67.8% $56

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Montreux

$147 4.3% 108% $76

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $716 in Phuket versus $1,773 in Montreux. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Montreux are about 16 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32 in Phuket versus $125 in Montreux. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $266 vs $575 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇭 Montreux

🕒 Local time

14:37 2:37 PM

08:37 8:37 AM

6 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

26,208

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

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

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.825 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.921 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Montreux 9,490 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Montreux

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 Montreux: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montreux is pricier by about 169%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,917 per month in Phuket and $5,160 in Montreux. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Phuket, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $716 there versus $1,773 in Montreux.

Kindergarten costs $476 per month in Phuket and $2,443 in Montreux. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 116% more in Montreux, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,278, than in Montreux at $3,440. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montreux it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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