Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Plunge

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,428 in Plunge, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
69

Cost of Living Index in Plunge
Learn more

Plunge Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Plunge

🇱🇹 Lithuania

$1,428

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Plunge

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,428 in Plunge.

Phuket $1,278
Plunge $1,428

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $2,236 in Plunge.

Phuket $2,216
Plunge $2,236

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $3,043 in Plunge.

Phuket $3,154
Plunge $3,043

Living in Phuket costs roughly 11% less than in Plunge, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Plunge is 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$14.34 €12.80

-68.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$76.5 €68.2

-57.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$8.73 €7.79

0.92%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$3.82 €3.41

-25.92%

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

$0.87 ฿29.40

$2.32 €2.07

-62.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$2.21 €1.98

-77.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$5.60 €5.00

-54.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$4.35 €3.88

-15.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.53 €1.36

8.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.29

$1.68 €1.49

-13.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$2.39 €2.13

-37.24%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$3.29 €2.93

-36.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$10.52 €9.39

81.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$8.32 €7.42

-60.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$11.69 €10.43

-6.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.8

$1.87 €1.67

56.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.44 €1.28

17.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$1.67 €1.49

34.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$3.50 €3.12

-40.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.95 €0.85

58.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.51

$0.77 €0.69

79.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.95

$1.57 €1.40

-31.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.50

$0.80 €0.71

-35.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$6.29 €5.61

-33.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$9.02 €8.05

108.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$1.82 €1.62

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$1.90 €1.69

49.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.97

$1.14 €1.02

27.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,911

$27.78 €24.78

103.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$3.00 €2.67

0.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.32

$1.26 €1.13

-19.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$14.15 €12.63

-73.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.75

$1.96 €1.75

-25.00%

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

$26.8K ฿903.2K

$27.8K €24.8K

-3.67%

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

$26.7K ฿900.3K

$28.6K €25.5K

-6.66%

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

$96.4 ฿3,250

$232 €207

-58.47%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$13.84 €12.35

-18.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$20.67 €18.44

-18.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$39.29 €35.06

71.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$21.18 €18.90

-49.34%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$9.91 €8.84

-24.32%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$657 €587

-27.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.9K

$11.3K €10.1K

-0.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,103

$95.1 €84.9

-34.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$40.80 €36.40

-30.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,180

$91.5 €81.6

3.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,894

$131 €117

-34.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$576 €514

24.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$402 €358

22.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$735 €656

162.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$724 €646

97.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.8K

$3,044 €2,716

37.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$1,894 €1,690

60.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$1,294 €1,155

-61.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.99

39.60%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Plunge: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Plunge

$402 28.1% 18.2% $89

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Plunge

$256 18% 3.7% $9.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Plunge

$267 18.7% 114% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Plunge

$161 11.3% 32.3% $39

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Plunge

$242 16.9% 98.5% $120

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Plunge

$59 4.1% 28.1% $23

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Plunge

$42 2.9% 41% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $576 in Plunge. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Plunge pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $76 in Plunge. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $256, with Plunge cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇱🇹 Plunge

🕒 Local time

21:15 9:15 PM

16:15 4:15 PM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

20,041

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.64 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Plunge 8,440 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Plunge

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 Plunge: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 11% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 61% 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 $576 in Plunge. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $657 in Plunge. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Plunge pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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 Plunge are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Plunge on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.