Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Sandefjord

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,549 in Sandefjord, rent and utilities included – about $16,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
123

Cost of Living Index in Sandefjord
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Sandefjord Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Sandefjord

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,549

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Sandefjord

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,549 in Sandefjord.

Phuket $1,207
Sandefjord $2,549

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Phuket versus $3,748 in Sandefjord.

Phuket $2,037
Sandefjord $3,748

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,867 in Phuket versus $4,948 in Sandefjord.

Phuket $2,867
Sandefjord $4,948

Living in Phuket costs roughly 53% less than in Sandefjord, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 11% below, Sandefjord is 89% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿153

$20.53 NOK 193

-77.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,086

$125 NOK 1,179

-74.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿286

$15.78 NOK 149

-45.82%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.0

$5.68 NOK 53.4

-52.11%

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

$0.94 ฿31.25

$4.17 NOK 39.30

-77.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.39

$2.15 NOK 20.19

-77.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$10.05 NOK 94.6

-74.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$10.31 NOK 97.1

-62.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.1

$2.12 NOK 19.97

-17.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿47.82

$2.57 NOK 24.18

-44.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.0

$4.14 NOK 38.93

-63.04%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$4.08 NOK 38.44

-46.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿640

$14.78 NOK 139

29.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿110

$15.66 NOK 147

-78.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿372

$30.89 NOK 291

-63.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿98.5

$2.15 NOK 20.27

37.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.1

$2.68 NOK 25.27

-37.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿76.8

$2.18 NOK 20.56

5.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.3

$2.85 NOK 26.80

-25.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.1

$1.12 NOK 10.50

36.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.55

$2.68 NOK 25.26

-49.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$3.09 NOK 29.09

-63.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.24

$2.38 NOK 22.36

-76.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$15.81 NOK 149

-73.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿608

$13.05 NOK 123

39.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$3.53 NOK 33.21

-50.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.3

$4.14 NOK 39.00

-32.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.1

$5.10 NOK 47.96

-56.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿737

$66.5 NOK 626

-66.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.3

$11.71 NOK 110

-75.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.79

$1.78 NOK 16.76

-43.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿128

$48.90 NOK 460

-92.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.85

$2.25 NOK 21.22

-33.78%

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

$26.7K ฿891.6K

$47.4K NOK 446.0K

-43.69%

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

$26.7K ฿892.7K

$41.6K NOK 391.8K

-35.82%

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

$99.4 ฿3,321

$264 NOK 2,487

-62.38%

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

$11.28 ฿377

$33.62 NOK 317

-66.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿580

$54.0 NOK 508

-67.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,747

$50.5 NOK 475

3.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿362

$56.9 NOK 535

-80.92%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿253

$15.54 NOK 146

-51.29%

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

$558 ฿18.7K

$232 NOK 2,186

140.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿383.9K

$4,887 NOK 46.0K

135.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,102

$101 NOK 949

-37.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿955

$44.41 NOK 418

-35.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,213

$80.0 NOK 753

20.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,943

$153 NOK 1,443

-42.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.4K

$1,213 NOK 11.4K

-39.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.4K

$1,015 NOK 9,556

-54.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$1,539 NOK 14.5K

36.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿40.8K

$1,339 NOK 12.6K

-8.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿115.6K

$6,273 NOK 59.1K

-44.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.2K

$3,696 NOK 34.8K

-32.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.5K

$3,976 NOK 37.4K

-87.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

4.38

27.17%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Sandefjord: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Sandefjord

$1K 39.8% 121% $555

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Sandefjord

$447 17.5% 66.9% $179

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Sandefjord

$352 13.8% 175% $224

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Sandefjord

$170 6.7% 37.3% $46

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Sandefjord

$376 14.8% 210% $255

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Sandefjord

$82 3.2% 21% $14

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Sandefjord

$107 4.2% 176% $69

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $729 in Phuket and $1,213 in Sandefjord. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sandefjord pays 706% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $125 in Sandefjord for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $447 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇳🇴 Sandefjord

🕒 Local time

05:40 5:40 AM

00:40 12:40 AM

5 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

66,366

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Sandefjord 9,150 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Sandefjord

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 Sandefjord: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 111% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 706% lower in Sandefjord. 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: $729 in Phuket versus $1,213 in Sandefjord. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $558 in Phuket versus $232 in Sandefjord. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 67% higher in Sandefjord. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,549 in Sandefjord, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Sandefjord. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Sandefjord, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Sandefjord are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 111% less than in Sandefjord. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.