Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Neu-Ulm

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,896 in Neu-Ulm, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 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
92

Cost of Living Index in Neu-Ulm
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Neu-Ulm Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Neu-Ulm

🇩🇪 Germany

$1,896

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Neu-Ulm

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 Neu-Ulm actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,896 in Neu-Ulm.

Phuket $1,278
Neu-Ulm $1,896

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $2,879 in Neu-Ulm.

Phuket $2,216
Neu-Ulm $2,879

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $3,862 in Neu-Ulm.

Phuket $3,154
Neu-Ulm $3,862

Living in Phuket costs roughly 33% less than in Neu-Ulm, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Neu-Ulm is 39% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$16.97 €15.24

-73.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$66.1 €59.3

-50.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$12.42 €11.16

-29.07%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$3.88 €3.48

-27.06%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$2.68 €2.41

-67.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$1.93 €1.73

-74.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$4.52 €4.06

-43.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$4.62 €4.15

-20.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.40 €1.26

18.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.99 €1.79

-26.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$4.12 €3.70

-63.59%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$4.03 €3.62

-48.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$14.75 €13.25

29.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$10.30 €9.25

-67.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$24.25 €21.79

-55.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$3.23 €2.90

-9.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$2.15 €1.93

-21.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$2.17 €1.95

3.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$4.03 €3.62

-48.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.14 €1.02

32.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$1.09 €0.98

26.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$1.54 €1.39

-30.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$1.19 €1.07

-56.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$9.97 €8.96

-57.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$5.46 €4.90

244.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.09 €0.98

66.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.52 €1.37

86.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$3.55 €3.19

-59.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

$54.0 €48.54

4.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$3.89 €3.50

-22.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$2.21 €1.98

-53.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$27.94 €25.10

-86.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$2.12 €1.90

-30.66%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$33.5K €30.1K

-20.00%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$38.7K €34.7K

-30.99%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$264 €237

-63.47%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$33.18 €29.81

-66.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$51.6 €46.37

-67.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$38.89 €34.93

72.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$25.10 €22.54

-57.25%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$13.62 €12.23

-44.93%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$354 €318

34.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$9,561 €8,589

17.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$45.00 €40.43

38.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$55.2 €49.57

-48.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$78.5 €70.5

20.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$149 €134

-42.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$795 €714

-9.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$642 €577

-23.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$1,125 €1,010

71.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,144 €1,027

25.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$4,906 €4,407

-14.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$3,404 €3,057

-10.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$3,650 €3,279

-86.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.95

41.01%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Neu-Ulm: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Neu-Ulm

$642 33.9% 30.9% $152

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Neu-Ulm

$338 17.8% 27.1% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Neu-Ulm

$349 18.4% 180% $224

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Neu-Ulm

$148 7.8% 21% $26

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Neu-Ulm

$270 14.2% 122% $148

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Neu-Ulm

$66 3.5% 19.6% $16

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Neu-Ulm

$83 4.4% 17.8% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $795 in Neu-Ulm. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Neu-Ulm pays about 7.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $66 in Neu-Ulm for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $338 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇩🇪 Neu-Ulm

🕒 Local time

23:51 11:51 PM

17:51 5:51 PM

6 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

62,610

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Neu-Ulm 9,230 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Neu-Ulm

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 Neu-Ulm: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket wins on cost – living expenses run 33% lower than in Neu-Ulm. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Phuket the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 86% 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 $795 in Neu-Ulm. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $354 in Neu-Ulm. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Neu-Ulm. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,896 in Neu-Ulm, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Neu-Ulm. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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 Neu-Ulm 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, Neu-Ulm on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.