Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Okinawa

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,190 a month against $1,399 in Okinawa, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Okinawa
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Okinawa Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

Okinawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Okinawa

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

A single person spends $1,190 per month in Phuket vs $1,399 in Okinawa, rent included.

Phuket $1,190
Okinawa $1,399

A couple spends around $2,006 per month in Phuket vs $2,189 in Okinawa, rent included.

Phuket $2,006
Okinawa $2,189

A family of three spends $2,822 per month in Phuket vs $2,979 in Okinawa, rent included.

Phuket $2,822
Okinawa $2,979

Phuket is about 15% cheaper than Okinawa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Phuket sits 11% below the global median, while Okinawa is 4% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.35 ฿146

$10.13 ¥1,603

-57.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.45 ฿1,087

$39.78 ¥6,295

-18.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.42 ฿282

$7.04 ¥1,114

19.60%

Cappuccino

$2.81 ฿94.0

$4.26 ¥675

-34.04%

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

$0.87 ฿29.29

$1.47 ¥233

-40.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 ฿15.39

$1.00 ¥158

-54.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$2.01 ¥318

28.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 ฿122

$4.55 ¥720

-20.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 ฿57.2

$1.64 ¥259

4.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.42

$2.15 ¥341

-32.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.3

$3.84 ¥607

-59.38%

Eggs

$2.10 ฿70.3

$1.75 ¥277

20.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.53 ฿654

$17.94 ¥2,839

8.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$4.87 ¥771

-30.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿373

$22.16 ¥3,507

-49.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 ฿94.8

$3.62 ¥573

-21.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ฿54.3

$2.63 ¥417

-38.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 ฿74.5

$2.14 ¥338

3.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.15 ฿71.9

$5.18 ¥820

-58.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 ฿49.95

$2.41 ¥381

-38.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.40

$2.58 ¥408

-48.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.72

$1.31 ¥208

-18.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.01

$0.74 ¥117

-31.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 ฿147

$3.99 ¥631

9.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.77 ฿629

$6.42 ¥1,016

192.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.3

$1.87 ¥295

-6.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿92.9

$3.19 ¥505

-12.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.17 ฿72.6

$1.47 ¥233

47.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.28 ฿746

$67.2 ¥10.6K

-66.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿101

$3.97 ¥628

-23.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.43

$3.56 ¥564

-70.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 ฿124

$11.44 ¥1,810

-67.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ฿47.88

$1.09 ¥173

31.19%

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

$26.3K ฿882.1K

$21.3K ¥3.4M

23.98%

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

$26.2K ฿877.3K

$15.4K ¥2.4M

70.08%

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

$96.7 ฿3,236

$162 ¥25.6K

-40.31%

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

$11.41 ฿382

$24.91 ¥3,943

-54.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.11 ฿573

$53.8 ¥8,513

-68.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ฿1,768

$71.3 ¥11.3K

-25.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.07 ฿371

$54.9 ¥8,689

-79.84%

Cinema Ticket

$7.65 ฿256

$12.17 ¥1,927

-37.14%

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

$555 ฿18.6K

$329 ¥52.1K

68.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿377.7K

$5,538 ¥876.3K

103.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.4 ฿2,123

$50.1 ¥7,923

26.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.61 ฿958

$23.29 ¥3,685

22.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.7 ฿3,238

$78.8 ¥12.5K

22.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 ฿2,967

$94.6 ¥15.0K

-6.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$735 ฿24.6K

$404 ¥63.9K

81.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$458 ฿15.3K

$328 ¥51.9K

39.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 ฿70.4K

$826 ¥130.6K

154.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 ฿39.7K

$663 ¥105.0K

78.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,493 ฿116.9K

$8,594 ¥1.4M

-59.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,491 ฿83.4K

$1,206 ¥190.8K

106.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.8K

$1,849 ¥292.6K

-72.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.23

149.78%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 4, 2026

Last update for Okinawa: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$458 38.1%

Okinawa

$328 23.8% 28.4% $130

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.3%

Okinawa

$328 23.8% 22.5% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Okinawa

$241 17.4% 92.2% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Okinawa

$111 8% 11% $14

Eating Out

Phuket

$119 9.9%

Okinawa

$182 13.2% 52.9% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.7%

Okinawa

$96 6.9% 40.5% $28

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Okinawa

$95 6.9% 142% $56

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $735 in Phuket versus $404 in Okinawa. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 269% higher in Okinawa, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Phuket versus $40.00 in Okinawa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $268 vs $328 – making Phuket the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇯🇵 Okinawa

🕒 Local time

15:26 3:26 PM

17:26 5:26 PM

2 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

142,752

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Okinawa 3,740 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Okinawa

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 Okinawa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Okinawa is pricier by about 18%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,785 per month in Phuket and $2,098 in Okinawa. 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Phuket and $40.00 in Okinawa. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,190 in Phuket and $1,399 in Okinawa. That's a gap of about 18%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Phuket, where all-in costs run around $1,190, than in Okinawa at $1,399. In Phuket it covers expenses comfortably, while in Okinawa 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 have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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