Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Randburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Randburg: $1,061 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Randburg
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Randburg Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Randburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,061

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Randburg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,061 in Randburg.

Phuket $1,278
Randburg $1,061

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,716 in Randburg.

Phuket $2,216
Randburg $1,716

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,370 in Randburg.

Phuket $3,154
Randburg $2,370

Living in Phuket is roughly 20% more expensive than in Randburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Randburg 22% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$10.36 R 173

-56.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$44.80 R 749

-27.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$5.29 R 88.3

66.54%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.49 R 41.53

13.65%

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

$0.87 ฿29.41

$1.27 R 21.29

-31.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.91 R 15.24

-46.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$2.57 R 43.02

-0.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$3.29 R 54.9

11.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.27 R 21.27

30.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.31

$1.14 R 19.06

28.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.70 R 28.43

-11.76%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.74 R 45.85

-23.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$8.57 R 143

122.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$5.62 R 93.8

-41.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$7.17 R 120

52.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$1.98 R 33.13

47.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.60 R 26.68

5.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.81 R 30.22

24.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$1.61 R 26.92

29.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.69 R 28.27

-10.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.52

$1.66 R 27.81

-16.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.96

$1.15 R 19.29

-6.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$1.29 R 21.56

-59.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.42 R 57.1

22.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$4.96 R 82.8

278.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.51 R 25.28

20.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$2.16 R 36.01

31.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.98

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$0.29 R 4.83

941.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.33

$0.92 R 15.37

10.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$14.52 R 243

-74.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.76

$1.48 R 24.66

-0.68%

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

$26.8K ฿903.4K

$35.6K R 594.2K

-24.71%

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

$26.7K ฿900.5K

$34.7K R 579.2K

-23.01%

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

$96.4 ฿3,251

$152 R 2,535

-36.50%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$38.96 R 651

-71.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$37.21 R 622

-54.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$20.38 R 341

229.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$4.46 R 74.6

140.58%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.35 R 123

2.04%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$262 R 4,377

81.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.0K

$5,433 R 90.8K

107.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,104

$53.8 R 899

15.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$45.23 R 756

-37.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,181

$113 R 1,882

-16.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,895

$82.7 R 1,381

3.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$313 R 5,235

128.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$302 R 5,042

62.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$616 R 10.3K

212.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$713 R 11.9K

100.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$608 R 10.2K

586.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$764 R 12.8K

298.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$1,885 R 31.5K

-73.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.34

-50.88%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Randburg: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Randburg

$302 28.4% 38.5% $189

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Randburg

$202 19.1% 24% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Randburg

$228 21.5% 83.1% $103

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Randburg

$132 12.5% 8.7% $11

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Randburg

$157 14.8% 28.8% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Randburg

$35 3.3% 57.3% $47

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Randburg

$4.9 * 0.5% 93.1% $66

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 $313 in Randburg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Randburg pays about 3.8 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $45 in Randburg. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $202, with Randburg cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇿🇦 Randburg

🕒 Local time

03:18 3:18 AM

22:18 10:18 PM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

335,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100 ZAR = 5.99 USD

100 ZAR = 5.36 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, 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 African Rand exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 16.71 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.99 USD). 1 EUR = 18.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.36 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Randburg 8,470 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Randburg

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 Randburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Randburg is about 17% cheaper overall, especially in transport, groceries, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 73% 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 $313 in Randburg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $262 in Randburg. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $45 in Randburg. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Randburg is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.