Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Mui Ne

For one person, living is cheaper in Mui Ne: $736 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Mui Ne
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Mui Ne Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Mui Ne

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$736

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Mui Ne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $736 in Mui Ne.

Phuket $1,278
Mui Ne $736

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,175 in Mui Ne.

Phuket $2,216
Mui Ne $1,175

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,615 in Mui Ne.

Phuket $3,154
Mui Ne $1,615

Living in Phuket is roughly 74% more expensive than in Mui Ne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Mui Ne 46% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$1.93 ₫50.0K

131.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,092

$21.28 ₫550.1K

52.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$4.63 ₫119.7K

90.28%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$1.79 ₫46.2K

58.10%

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

$0.87 ฿29.37

$0.47 ₫12.1K

85.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.64

$0.30 ₫7,862

63.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.2

$0.99 ₫25.7K

158.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$1.57 ₫40.7K

134.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.37 ₫35.3K

21.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.25

$0.94 ₫24.4K

55.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.4

$0.95 ₫24.6K

57.89%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.4

$1.43 ₫36.9K

46.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿642

$11.62 ₫300.3K

64.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$3.67 ₫94.8K

-10.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$10.07 ₫260.3K

8.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.7

$2.65 ₫68.6K

10.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$1.02 ₫26.3K

65.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$1.29 ₫33.4K

74.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$1.08 ₫28.0K

92.59%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$1.08 ₫27.9K

39.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.47

$1.01 ₫26.1K

36.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.91

$0.69 ₫17.8K

55.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.49

$0.52 ₫13.5K

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$1.37 ₫35.5K

206.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿633

$11.31 ₫292.5K

66.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$0.81 ₫20.8K

124.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.7

$1.60 ₫41.4K

77.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$0.34 ₫8,894

326.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,909

$6.63 ₫171.3K

754.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$0.70 ₫18.2K

331.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.29

$0.61 ₫15.8K

67.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$2.74 ₫71.0K

34.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.70

$0.89 ₫23.1K

65.17%

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

$26.8K ฿902.4K

$34.4K ₫890.4M

-22.25%

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

$26.7K ฿899.5K

$32.1K ₫830.5M

-16.92%

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

$96.4 ฿3,247

$74.8 ₫1.9M

28.86%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$5.87 ₫151.7K

91.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$8.82 ₫227.9K

91.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,266

$22.18 ₫573.3K

203.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿361

$7.49 ₫193.6K

43.26%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$3.16 ₫81.7K

137.34%

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

$476 ฿16.0K

$268 ₫6.9M

77.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.6K

$11.8K ₫304.3M

-4.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,102

$41.07 ₫1.1M

51.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿957

$22.78 ₫588.9K

24.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,178

$85.7 ₫2.2M

10.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,892

$75.5 ₫2.0M

13.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$354 ₫9.2M

102.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.5K

$252 ₫6.5M

94.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿64.9K

$727 ₫18.8M

165.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.2K

$543 ₫14.0M

163.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.7K

$2,056 ₫53.1M

103.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.6K

$1,265 ₫32.7M

140.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

9.1

-38.79%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Mui Ne: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Mui Ne

$252 34.3% 48.6% $238

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Mui Ne

$190 25.9% 28.6% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Mui Ne

$89 12.2% 28.1% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Mui Ne

$101 13.8% 16.9% $21

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Mui Ne

$62 8.4% 49% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Mui Ne

$29 3.9% 65.3% $54

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Mui Ne

$12 1.6% 83.3% $59

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $354 in Mui Ne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $21 in Mui Ne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $190 per month, with Mui Ne cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇻🇳 Mui Ne

🕒 Local time

12:04 12:04 PM

Same time as Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

25,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.87 USD

100,000 VND = 3.47 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 25,852 VND (100,000 VND = 3.87 USD). 1 EUR = 28,779 VND (100,000 VND = 3.47 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Mui Ne 1,140 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Mui Ne

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 Mui Ne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,278 in Phuket and $736 in Mui Ne, so Mui Ne is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,917 in Phuket and $1,103 in Mui Ne to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $354 in Mui Ne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $268 in Mui Ne. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 40% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $736 in Mui Ne versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Mui Ne but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Mui Ne 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 Mui Ne are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Mui Ne gentler on the wallet – expenses run 42% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.