Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Sao Luis

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Luis: $832 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Sao Luis
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Sao Luis Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Sao Luis

🇧🇷 Brazil

$832

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Sao Luis

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $832 in Sao Luis.

Phuket $1,208
Sao Luis $832

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $1,317 in Sao Luis.

Phuket $2,027
Sao Luis $1,317

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $1,802 in Sao Luis.

Phuket $2,845
Sao Luis $1,802

Living in Phuket is roughly 45% more expensive than in Sao Luis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Sao Luis 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿147

$6.64 R$33.64

-33.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,078

$40.14 R$203

-19.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿293

$6.89 R$34.93

27.14%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿94.5

$2.13 R$10.80

32.86%

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

$0.90 ฿30.14

$1.22 R$6.20

-26.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.56

$0.71 R$3.60

-33.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

$1.95 R$9.87

30.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$2.43 R$12.31

57.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿57.7

$1.05 R$5.33

64.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.11

$1.98 R$10.06

-25.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.6

$1.14 R$5.80

32.46%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$2.21 R$11.21

-1.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿658

$9.82 R$49.77

100.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿112

$4.31 R$21.87

-22.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿373

$7.89 R$39.99

41.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$2.17 R$11.02

31.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$1.38 R$7.02

23.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

$1.20 R$6.08

82.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$1.69 R$8.58

21.30%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿48.57

$1.39 R$7.03

4.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.16

$1.27 R$6.45

8.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.69

$0.88 R$4.46

21.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

$0.77 R$3.88

-33.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$2.36 R$11.97

80.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿621

$8.07 R$40.90

130.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

$1.27 R$6.44

40.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.2

$2.25 R$11.42

26.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

$0.85 R$4.30

165.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

$37.93 R$192

-41.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿101

$0.95 R$4.83

216.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

$0.92 R$4.66

15.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$1.24 R$6.29

16.94%

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

$23.8K R$120.7K

10.57%

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

$26.9K ฿900.4K

$30.7K R$155.9K

-12.37%

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

$96.4 ฿3,221

$95.3 R$483

1.19%

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

$11.04 ฿369

$17.60 R$89.2

-37.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿573

$21.13 R$107

-18.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

$20.40 R$103

155.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

$15.06 R$76.4

-25.90%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿261

$6.76 R$34.25

15.53%

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

$556 ฿18.6K

$184 R$935

201.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

$2,903 R$14.7K

298.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,146

$64.5 R$327

-0.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿959

$54.2 R$275

-47.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,187

$76.1 R$386

25.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,940

$59.2 R$300

48.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

$360 R$1,824

104.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

$184 R$930

151.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

$577 R$2,923

263.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

$322 R$1,635

272.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

$1,529 R$7,749

128.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

$717 R$3,633

251.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

$394 R$1,998

27.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Sao Luis: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Sao Luis

$184 22.1% 60.3% $279

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Sao Luis

$197 23.7% 26.6% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Sao Luis

$134 16.1% 7.6% $9.4

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Sao Luis

$114 13.8% 8.1% $10

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Sao Luis

$122 14.6% 0.3% $0.4

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Sao Luis

$34 4.1% 50% $34

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Sao Luis

$47 5.6% 18.9% $7.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $360 in Sao Luis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 27% 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 $40.00 in Sao Luis. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $197, with Sao Luis cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇧🇷 Sao Luis

🕒 Local time

21:17 9:17 PM

11:17 11:17 AM

10 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

1,037,775

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Sao Luis 15,840 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Sao Luis

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 Sao Luis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sao Luis is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and leisure. The 45% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 27% higher in Phuket, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $737 in Phuket versus $360 in Sao Luis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $184 in Sao Luis. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $832 in Sao Luis versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sao Luis but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Sao Luis the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Phuket and Sao Luis 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 Sao Luis gentler on the wallet – expenses run 45% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.