Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Novara

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $1,483 in Novara, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Novara
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Novara Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Novara

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,483

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Novara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,483 in Novara.

Phuket $1,208
Novara $1,483

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $2,293 in Novara.

Phuket $2,027
Novara $2,293

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $3,103 in Novara.

Phuket $2,845
Novara $3,103

Living in Phuket costs roughly 19% less than in Novara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 11% below, Novara is 9% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿147

$16.78 €14.92

-73.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,078

$56.6 €50.3

-42.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿293

$10.25 €9.12

-14.54%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿94.5

$1.74 €1.55

62.64%

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

$0.90 ฿30.14

$3.46 €3.08

-73.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.56

$1.72 €1.53

-72.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

$5.57 €4.96

-54.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$5.09 €4.52

-24.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿57.7

$1.39 €1.24

24.46%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.11

$1.95 €1.74

-24.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.6

$2.88 €2.56

-47.57%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$3.33 €2.96

-34.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿658

$11.40 €10.14

72.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿112

$8.76 €7.79

-61.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿373

$13.22 €11.76

-15.58%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$2.53 €2.25

12.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$1.65 €1.46

3.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

$3.41 €3.04

-35.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$2.16 €1.92

-5.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿48.57

$1.94 €1.73

-25.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.16

$1.14 €1.02

21.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.69

$1.03 €0.91

3.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

$0.75 €0.67

-32.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$6.23 €5.55

-31.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿621

$5.58 €4.96

232.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

$1.84 €1.63

-3.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.2

$2.28 €2.03

25.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

$1.69 €1.51

33.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

$38.24 €34.01

-42.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿101

$4.36 €3.87

-30.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

$1.20 €1.06

-11.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

$34.82 €30.97

-88.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$2.05 €1.82

-29.27%

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

$26.9K €23.9K

-2.06%

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

$26.9K ฿900.4K

$33.4K €29.7K

-19.35%

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

$96.4 ฿3,221

$176 €157

-45.37%

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

$11.04 ฿369

$10.41 €9.26

6.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿573

$30.24 €26.90

-43.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

$78.3 €69.6

-33.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

$18.96 €16.86

-41.14%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿261

$11.39 €10.13

-31.43%

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

$556 ฿18.6K

$517 €460

7.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

$9,907 €8,813

16.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,146

$124 €110

-48.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿959

$34.03 €30.27

-15.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,187

$55.5 €49.40

71.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,940

$139 €123

-36.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

$644 €573

14.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

$438 €389

5.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

$1,048 €932

99.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

$784 €698

53.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

$2,850 €2,535

22.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

$1,873 €1,666

34.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

$2,082 €1,852

-75.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.62

53.87%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Novara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Novara

$438 29.5% 5.3% $25

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Novara

$269 18.1% 0.1% $0.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Novara

$217 14.6% 74.3% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Novara

$158 10.7% 27.4% $34

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Novara

$245 16.5% 102% $123

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Novara

$101 6.8% 49.1% $33

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Novara

$55 3.7% 40.3% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $644 in Novara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Novara pays 316% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $57.0 in Novara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $269 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇮🇹 Novara

🕒 Local time

13:07 1:07 PM

08:07 8:07 AM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

100,910

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 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 23, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Novara 9,370 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Novara

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 Novara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket and Novara differ by about 23% in total monthly costs ($1,208 vs $1,483 including rent). Phuket is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 316% lower in Novara. 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: $737 in Phuket versus $644 in Novara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $517 in Novara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 0% higher in Novara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,483 in Novara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Novara. 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 Novara are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in Novara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.