Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Palmerston North Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Palmerston North

🙂 Solo nomad: Phuket is 25.1% cheaper than Palmerston North without rent, and 25.2% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Phuket is 25.9% cheaper than Palmerston North without rent, and 10% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.65 ฿149
$16.61 NZ$28.41
-72.00%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.11 ฿1,474
$73.5 NZ$126
-37.24%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.74 ฿279
$11.90 NZ$20.35
-26.55%
Cappuccino
$3.04 ฿97.1
$3.39 NZ$5.79
-10.32%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.72 ฿23.03
$2.29 NZ$3.92
-68.56%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.39 ฿12.50
$2.13 NZ$3.65
-81.69%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.44 ฿78.0
$7.12 NZ$12.17
-65.73%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.79 ฿121
$6.34 NZ$10.85
-40.22%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.14 ฿68.6
$1.97 NZ$3.37
8.63%
White Bread (500g)
$1.86 ฿59.5
$2.06 NZ$3.52
-9.71%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.19 ฿69.9
$1.74 NZ$2.98
25.86%
Eggs
$2.25 ฿71.8
$5.28 NZ$9.02
-57.39%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.73 ฿631
$8.37 NZ$14.31
135.72%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.79 ฿121
$8.94 NZ$15.28
-57.61%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.55 ฿433
$12.48 NZ$21.35
8.57%
Apples (1kg)
$3.25 ฿104
$2.48 NZ$4.24
31.05%
Banana (1kg)
$1.67 ฿53.4
$1.80 NZ$3.08
-7.22%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.39 ฿76.5
$2.42 NZ$4.14
-1.24%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.09 ฿66.9
$3.34 NZ$5.70
-37.43%
Potato (1kg)
$1.53 ฿48.88
$2.08 NZ$3.56
-26.44%
Onion (1kg)
$1.51 ฿48.27
$2.18 NZ$3.73
-30.73%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.99 ฿31.62
$2.05 NZ$3.51
-51.71%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.51 ฿16.46
$0.92 NZ$1.58
-44.57%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.27 ฿137
$20.08 NZ$34.33
-78.74%
Wine (Bottle)
$20.31 ฿649
$9.02 NZ$15.43
125.17%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.79 ฿57.3
$2.44 NZ$4.17
-26.64%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.77 ฿88.5
$5.20 NZ$8.89
-46.73%
🚌 Getting Around
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.40 ฿44.89
$4.77 NZ$8.15
-70.65%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$11.70 ฿374
$29.65 NZ$50.7
-60.54%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 ฿99.4
$2.45 NZ$4.18
26.94%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.99 ฿31.80
$1.79 NZ$3.06
-44.69%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$13.73 ฿439
$17.01 NZ$29.09
-19.28%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.32 ฿42.17
$1.70 NZ$2.91
-22.35%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.2K ฿870.7K
$18.5K NZ$31.6K
47.57%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$34.1K ฿1.1M
$21.6K NZ$37.0K
57.77%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$120 ฿3,849
$88.8 NZ$152
35.63%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.93 ฿445
$37.31 NZ$63.8
-62.66%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.31 ฿585
$48.09 NZ$82.2
-61.93%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$60.9 ฿1,948
$35.00 NZ$59.9
74.09%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.23 ฿551
$13.25 NZ$22.65
30.04%
Cinema Ticket
$8.71 ฿278
$9.20 NZ$15.73
-5.33%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$698 ฿22.3K
$1,022 NZ$1,748
-31.72%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$15.7K ฿503.0K
$6,103 NZ$10.4K
157.79%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$57.6 ฿1,843
$58.1 NZ$99.3
-0.72%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.24 ฿1,095
$38.06 NZ$65.1
-10.04%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$113 ฿3,618
$90.8 NZ$155
24.58%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$84.8 ฿2,711
$91.8 NZ$157
-7.59%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$604 ฿19.3K
$848 NZ$1,450
-28.78%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$436 ฿13.9K
$701 NZ$1,199
-37.82%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,057 ฿65.8K
$1,562 NZ$2,671
31.70%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,498 ฿47.9K
$1,397 NZ$2,390
7.21%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,252 ฿135.9K
$2,171 NZ$3,712
95.91%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,988 ฿95.5K
$1,938 NZ$3,314
54.16%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Phuket
Palmerston North
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$529 ฿16.9K
$2,623 NZ$4,486
-79.83%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.33
6.69
-20.33%

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

Last update for Phuket: February 28, 2026

Last update for Palmerston North: February 28, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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