Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Sandvika

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,692 in Sandvika, rent and utilities included – about $17,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
130

Cost of Living Index in Sandvika
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Sandvika Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Sandvika

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Sandvika

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,692 in Sandvika.

Phuket $1,278
Sandvika $2,692

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $4,138 in Sandvika.

Phuket $2,216
Sandvika $4,138

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $5,584 in Sandvika.

Phuket $3,154
Sandvika $5,584

Living in Phuket costs roughly 53% less than in Sandvika, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Sandvika is 98% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$17.04 NOK 158

-73.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$99.0 NOK 919

-67.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$21.69 NOK 201

-59.38%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$4.21 NOK 39.11

-32.78%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$2.95 NOK 27.44

-70.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$2.40 NOK 22.26

-79.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$8.41 NOK 78.1

-69.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$10.90 NOK 101

-66.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$2.46 NOK 22.85

-32.52%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$3.63 NOK 33.76

-59.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$4.02 NOK 37.31

-62.69%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$4.93 NOK 45.78

-57.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$13.47 NOK 125

41.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$27.98 NOK 260

-88.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$25.31 NOK 235

-56.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$3.41 NOK 31.69

-14.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$2.65 NOK 24.61

-36.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$3.66 NOK 34.04

-38.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$4.84 NOK 45.01

-57.02%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$2.62 NOK 24.34

-42.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$3.31 NOK 30.76

-58.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$2.47 NOK 22.97

-56.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$1.63 NOK 15.15

-68.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$15.95 NOK 148

-73.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$19.24 NOK 179

-2.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$3.85 NOK 35.74

-52.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$5.51 NOK 51.2

-48.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$4.13 NOK 38.41

-64.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

$87.6 NOK 814

-35.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$8.53 NOK 79.3

-64.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$1.63 NOK 15.18

-37.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$55.3 NOK 514

-93.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$2.44 NOK 22.65

-39.75%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$44.7K NOK 415.7K

-40.16%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$45.0K NOK 417.9K

-40.66%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$273 NOK 2,537

-64.72%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$31.94 NOK 297

-64.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$68.3 NOK 634

-75.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$66.3 NOK 616

1.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$37.40 NOK 348

-71.31%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$21.25 NOK 197

-64.71%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$307 NOK 2,854

54.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$13.1K NOK 121.5K

-13.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$148 NOK 1,372

-57.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$64.8 NOK 602

-56.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$134 NOK 1,242

-29.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$211 NOK 1,956

-59.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$1,244 NOK 11.6K

-42.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$964 NOK 8,957

-49.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$2,119 NOK 19.7K

-9.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,722 NOK 16.0K

-16.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$8,508 NOK 79.0K

-50.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$4,631 NOK 43.0K

-34.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$5,470 NOK 50.8K

-90.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

5.03

10.74%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Sandvika: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Sandvika

$964 35.8% 96.4% $473

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Sandvika

$537 20% 102% $271

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Sandvika

$373 13.9% 200% $249

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Sandvika

$251 9.3% 106% $129

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Sandvika

$337 12.5% 177% $215

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Sandvika

$109 4% 32.2% $27

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Sandvika

$121 4.5% 71.2% $50

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $1,244 in Sandvika. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sandvika pays about 11 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $99 in Sandvika for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $537 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇳🇴 Sandvika

🕒 Local time

05:54 5:54 AM

23:54 11:54 PM

6 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

129,572

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 NOK = 10.76 USD

100 NOK = 9.67 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 9.29 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.34 NOK (100 NOK = 9.67 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Sandvika 9,130 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Sandvika

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 Sandvika: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 53% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 91% 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 $1,244 in Sandvika. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $307 in Sandvika. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 102% higher in Sandvika. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,692 in Sandvika, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Sandvika. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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.

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

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Sandvika. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.