Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Newark, NJ

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $2,865 in Newark, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $18,900 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
137

Cost of Living Index in Newark, NJ
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Newark, NJ Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Newark, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$2,865

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Newark, NJ

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $2,865 in Newark, NJ.

Phuket $1,294
Newark, NJ $2,865

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $4,206 in Newark, NJ.

Phuket $2,204
Newark, NJ $4,206

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $5,546 in Newark, NJ.

Phuket $3,115
Newark, NJ $5,546

Living in Phuket costs roughly 55% less than in Newark, NJ, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 4% below, Newark, NJ is 112% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿147

$20.32 $20.32

-78.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,085

$102 $102

-68.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿292

$14.46 $14.46

-39.83%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.5

$6.68 $6.68

-59.28%

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

$0.93 ฿31.25

$3.86 $3.86

-75.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.78

$2.46 $2.46

-79.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.0

$7.87 $7.87

-67.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$9.91 $9.91

-63.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.4

$1.37 $1.37

27.01%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.73

$4.60 $4.60

-68.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$7.73 $7.73

-80.60%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.0

$6.00 $6.00

-63.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿641

$7.04 $7.04

171.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$18.01 $18.01

-81.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿366

$20.84 $20.84

-47.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿98.8

$7.08 $7.08

-58.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.8

$2.29 $2.29

-26.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.7

$6.79 $6.79

-67.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.4

$6.74 $6.74

-68.55%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿48.99

$4.61 $4.61

-68.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿45.95

$4.86 $4.86

-71.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.14

$3.00 $3.00

-64.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.32

$2.73 $2.73

-79.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$11.46 $11.46

-61.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿613

$19.68 $19.68

-7.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.5

$1.92 $1.92

-7.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿96.8

$2.79 $2.79

3.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.62

$1.91 $1.91

-24.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,844

$72.0 $72.0

-23.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿50.8

$3.08 $3.08

-50.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.06

$2.21 $2.21

-64.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿129

$38.70 $38.70

-90.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.96

$1.08 $1.08

37.96%

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

$26.9K ฿902.9K

$27.9K $27.9K

-3.72%

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

$26.3K ฿884.9K

$25.7K $25.7K

2.33%

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

$97.8 ฿3,285

$217 $217

-54.94%

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

$11.29 ฿379

$71.6 $71.6

-84.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿577

$70.2 $70.2

-75.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,295

$15.28 $15.28

347.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿367

$17.46 $17.46

-37.46%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿250

$14.59 $14.59

-49.07%

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

$530 ฿17.8K

$2,155 $2,155

-75.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿630.9K

$33.9K $33.9K

-44.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,072

$59.3 $59.3

4.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿949

$27.50 $27.50

2.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,225

$120 $120

-20.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,916

$137 $137

-36.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.2K

$2,489 $2,489

-71.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.1K

$1,321 $1,321

-61.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.5K

$3,273 $3,273

-40.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿46.9K

$2,028 $2,028

-31.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿140.8K

$4,190 $4,190

0.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿110.8K

$3,612 $3,612

-8.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

$3,912 $3,912

-87.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.68

-16.62%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Newark, NJ: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Newark, NJ

$1.3K 46.1% 160% $812

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Newark, NJ

$521 18.2% 95.3% $254

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Newark, NJ

$359 12.5% 184% $233

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Newark, NJ

$155 5.4% 26.1% $32

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Newark, NJ

$371 12.9% 210% $251

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Newark, NJ

$44 1.6% 46.5% $39

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Newark, NJ

$94 3.3% 42% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Phuket and $2,489 in Newark, NJ. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Newark, NJ pays about 8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $102 in Newark, NJ for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $521 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇺🇸 Newark, NJ

🕒 Local time

11:45 11:45 AM

23:45 11:45 PM

12 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

311,549

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

1 USD = 0.888 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.59 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.13 USD (1 USD = 0.888 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

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Between locations

Phuket Newark, NJ 14,560 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Newark, NJ

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 Newark, NJ: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 55% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 87% 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: $721 in Phuket versus $2,489 in Newark, NJ. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 24% less than in Newark, NJ. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $2,155 in Newark, NJ. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $2,865 in Newark, NJ, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Newark, NJ. 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.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 55% less than in Newark, NJ. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.