Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Qinhuangdao

For one person, living is cheaper in Qinhuangdao: $714 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Qinhuangdao
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Qinhuangdao Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Qinhuangdao

🇨🇳 China

$714

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Qinhuangdao

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $714 in Qinhuangdao.

Phuket $1,208
Qinhuangdao $714

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $1,135 in Qinhuangdao.

Phuket $2,027
Qinhuangdao $1,135

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $1,556 in Qinhuangdao.

Phuket $2,845
Qinhuangdao $1,556

Living in Phuket is roughly 69% more expensive than in Qinhuangdao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Qinhuangdao 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿149

$2.76 ¥18.36

59.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,090

$21.79 ¥145

48.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿296

$4.88 ¥32.50

79.51%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$3.04 ¥20.24

-6.91%

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

$0.90 ฿30.48

$0.47 ¥3.12

91.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.74

$0.27 ¥1.78

74.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿86.1

$0.92 ¥6.15

177.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿129

$2.13 ¥14.18

79.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿58.3

$1.85 ¥12.31

-6.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.65

$1.55 ¥10.33

-5.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.1

$0.89 ¥5.92

69.66%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.5

$1.53 ¥10.20

41.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿666

$13.05 ¥86.9

50.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿113

$3.11 ¥20.71

7.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿377

$10.33 ¥68.8

8.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿96.1

$1.87 ¥12.46

52.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿57.6

$1.25 ¥8.32

36.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿74.1

$1.47 ¥9.77

48.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿69.1

$1.15 ¥7.63

78.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿49.10

$0.73 ¥4.87

98.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.67

$0.95 ¥6.33

45.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿36.09

$0.60 ¥3.99

78.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.10

$0.51 ¥3.41

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿144

$3.05 ¥20.32

39.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿628

$10.69 ¥71.2

73.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿60.3

$0.79 ¥5.25

125.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿96.2

$1.64 ¥10.89

73.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿76.5

$0.27 ¥1.78

737.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿747

$16.97 ¥113

30.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿102

$1.42 ¥9.48

111.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.73

$0.33 ¥2.18

221.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿130

$6.62 ¥44.04

-41.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.99

$1.14 ¥7.58

27.19%

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

$26.3K ฿889.6K

$19.2K ¥127.8K

37.10%

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

$26.9K ฿910.4K

$17.1K ¥113.8K

57.57%

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

$96.4 ฿3,257

$44.64 ¥297

115.91%

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

$11.04 ฿373

$9.87 ¥65.7

11.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿579

$11.90 ¥79.2

44.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,763

$42.14 ¥281

23.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿377

$14.09 ¥93.8

-20.79%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿264

$5.79 ¥38.55

34.89%

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

$556 ฿18.8K

$337 ¥2,244

64.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿391.3K

$17.2K ¥114.2K

-32.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,169

$44.18 ¥294

45.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿969

$30.35 ¥202

-5.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,222

$71.8 ¥478

32.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,973

$70.6 ¥470

24.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.9K

$276 ¥1,835

167.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.6K

$191 ¥1,272

142.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.8K

$601 ¥3,998

248.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.6K

$362 ¥2,413

231.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿117.8K

$3,063 ¥20.4K

13.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿85.2K

$2,068 ¥13.8K

22.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.89

43.19%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Qinhuangdao: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Qinhuangdao

$191 26.8% 58.7% $271

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Qinhuangdao

$199 27.9% 25.9% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Qinhuangdao

$66 9.3% 46.7% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Qinhuangdao

$98 13.7% 21.4% $27

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Qinhuangdao

$85 11.9% 29.9% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Qinhuangdao

$54 7.5% 20.7% $14

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Qinhuangdao

$21 3% 46.5% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $276 in Qinhuangdao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $22 in Qinhuangdao for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $199 per month, with Qinhuangdao cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇳 Qinhuangdao

🕒 Local time

04:36 4:36 AM

05:36 5:36 AM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

2,987,605

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 33.79 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.83 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 6.66 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.45 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Qinhuangdao 4,140 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Qinhuangdao

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 Qinhuangdao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Qinhuangdao is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 69% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,813 in Phuket and $1,071 in Qinhuangdao to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $737 in Phuket versus $276 in Qinhuangdao. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $337 in Qinhuangdao. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 35% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $714 in Qinhuangdao versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Qinhuangdao but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Qinhuangdao 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.

Expats usually find Qinhuangdao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.