Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Pyeongtaek

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,452 in Pyeongtaek, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. The total is higher in Pyeongtaek despite lower rent and utilities.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Pyeongtaek
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Pyeongtaek Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Pyeongtaek

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,452

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Pyeongtaek

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,452 in Pyeongtaek.

Phuket $1,278
Pyeongtaek $1,452

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $2,876 in Pyeongtaek.

Phuket $2,216
Pyeongtaek $2,876

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $4,300 in Pyeongtaek.

Phuket $3,154
Pyeongtaek $4,300

Living in Phuket costs roughly 12% less than in Pyeongtaek, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Pyeongtaek is 7% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$7.49 ₩9,993

-40.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$22.56 ₩30.1K

43.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$4.83 ₩6,442

82.40%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$3.62 ₩4,834

-21.82%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$1.28 ₩1,716

-32.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.88 ₩1,175

-44.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$3.68 ₩4,907

-30.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$4.36 ₩5,816

-15.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$2.29 ₩3,061

-27.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$3.29 ₩4,398

-55.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$3.18 ₩4,249

-52.83%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.62 ₩3,500

-20.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$11.32 ₩15.1K

68.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$10.41 ₩13.9K

-68.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$25.15 ₩33.6K

-56.62%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$11.18 ₩14.9K

-73.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$3.72 ₩4,965

-54.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$8.24 ₩11.0K

-72.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$6.09 ₩8,129

-65.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$6.03 ₩8,049

-74.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$3.27 ₩4,370

-57.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$2.75 ₩3,669

-61.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$1.36 ₩1,814

-61.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.47 ₩4,636

21.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$19.22 ₩25.7K

-2.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$2.50 ₩3,342

-27.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$3.41 ₩4,559

-16.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

$1.26 ₩1,683

15.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$46.32 ₩61.8K

22.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$3.64 ₩4,861

-17.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$0.59 ₩793

72.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$9.26 ₩12.4K

-60.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.42 ₩1,891

3.52%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$15.1K ₩20.2M

77.05%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$15.3K ₩20.5M

74.01%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$201 ₩268.8K

-52.14%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$17.22 ₩23.0K

-34.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$27.39 ₩36.6K

-38.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$11.92 ₩15.9K

-37.08%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$634 ₩846.4K

-24.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$21.7K ₩29.0M

-48.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$107 ₩143.1K

-41.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$64.8 ₩86.5K

-56.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$96.1 ₩128.2K

-1.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$130 ₩173.0K

-33.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$524 ₩699.5K

36.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$300 ₩401.1K

63.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$1,905 ₩2.5M

1.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,905 ₩2.5M

-24.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$1,912 ₩2.6M

-73.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

4.22

31.99%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Pyeongtaek: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Pyeongtaek

$300 20.7% 38.8% $190

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Pyeongtaek

$492 33.9% 84.7% $226

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Pyeongtaek

$246 16.9% 97.6% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Pyeongtaek

$179 12.3% 46.8% $57

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Pyeongtaek

$154 10.6% 26.2% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Pyeongtaek

$24 * 1.6% 71% $58

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Pyeongtaek

$58 4% 17.9% $13

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $524 in Pyeongtaek. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Pyeongtaek pays about 3.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $23 in Pyeongtaek. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $492, with Phuket cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇰🇷 Pyeongtaek

🕒 Local time

09:30 9:30 AM

11:30 11:30 AM

2 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

489,081

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.71 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 33.74 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.67 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1,335 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD). 1 EUR = 1,491 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.71 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Pyeongtaek 4,340 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Pyeongtaek

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 Pyeongtaek: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 12% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 74% 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 $524 in Pyeongtaek. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $634 in Pyeongtaek. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 85% higher in Pyeongtaek. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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

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