Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Sagamihara

For one person, living is cheaper in Sagamihara: $1,228 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Sagamihara
Learn more

Sagamihara Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Sagamihara

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,228

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Sagamihara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,228 in Sagamihara.

Phuket $1,278
Sagamihara $1,228

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $2,005 in Sagamihara.

Phuket $2,216
Sagamihara $2,005

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,783 in Sagamihara.

Phuket $3,154
Sagamihara $2,783

Living in Phuket is roughly 4% more expensive than in Sagamihara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Sagamihara 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$8.50 ¥1,342

-47.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$31.84 ¥5,029

1.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$5.16 ¥815

70.74%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.59 ¥410

9.27%

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

$0.87 ฿29.40

$1.26 ¥199

-30.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.90 ¥143

-45.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$3.13 ¥495

-18.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$3.21 ¥507

14.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$0.94 ¥148

76.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.29

$0.64 ¥101

128.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$4.12 ¥651

-63.59%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.87 ¥295

11.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$15.93 ¥2,516

19.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$6.79 ¥1,072

-51.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$17.23 ¥2,721

-36.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.8

$2.27 ¥359

29.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.56 ¥246

8.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$5.09 ¥803

-55.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$7.87 ¥1,242

-73.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$3.91 ¥618

-61.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.51

$4.76 ¥751

-71.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.95

$1.13 ¥178

-5.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.50

$0.46 ¥72.5

13.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.98 ¥628

5.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$9.74 ¥1,539

92.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$2.62 ¥413

-30.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$2.15 ¥340

32.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.97

$1.41 ¥222

2.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,911

$61.3 ¥9,687

-7.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$3.26 ¥515

-7.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.32

$2.83 ¥448

-63.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$16.00 ¥2,526

-76.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.75

$1.12 ¥176

31.25%

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

$26.8K ฿903.2K

$22.0K ¥3.5M

21.47%

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

$26.7K ฿900.3K

$15.1K ¥2.4M

77.31%

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

$96.4 ฿3,250

$116 ¥18.3K

-17.07%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$23.59 ¥3,726

-52.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$30.85 ¥4,872

-45.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$47.70 ¥7,534

40.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$12.65 ¥1,998

-40.71%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$681 ¥107.6K

-30.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.9K

$14.8K ¥2.3M

-23.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,103

$49.89 ¥7,879

24.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$36.43 ¥5,753

-22.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,180

$61.4 ¥9,703

53.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,894

$97.4 ¥15.4K

-11.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$614 ¥97.0K

16.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$322 ¥50.9K

52.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$1,137 ¥179.5K

69.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$824 ¥130.1K

73.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.8K

$4,239 ¥669.5K

-1.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$2,512 ¥396.7K

21.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

2.02

175.74%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Sagamihara: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Sagamihara

$322 26.2% 34.4% $169

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Sagamihara

$322 26.2% 20.8% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Sagamihara

$171 13.9% 37.1% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Sagamihara

$110 9% 9.5% $12

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Sagamihara

$145 11.8% 19.4% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Sagamihara

$73 6% 11.2% $9.2

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Sagamihara

$84 6.9% 19.6% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $614 in Sagamihara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $32 in Sagamihara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $322 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇯🇵 Sagamihara

🕒 Local time

21:15 9:15 PM

23:15 11:15 PM

2 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

725,493

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR 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).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Sagamihara 5,170 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Sagamihara

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 Sagamihara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sagamihara is about 4% cheaper overall, especially in clothing and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,917 in Phuket and $1,841 in Sagamihara 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: $716 in Phuket versus $614 in Sagamihara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $681 in Sagamihara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Phuket runs roughly 8% less than in Sagamihara. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Sagamihara 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.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Sagamihara are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.