Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,222 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $670 less a year. The total is higher in Phuket despite lower rent and utilities.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
Learn more

Shanghai Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,222

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Shanghai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,222 in Shanghai.

Phuket $1,278
Shanghai $1,222

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,971 in Shanghai.

Phuket $2,216
Shanghai $1,971

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,720 in Shanghai.

Phuket $3,154
Shanghai $2,720

Living in Phuket is roughly 5% more expensive than in Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$4.53 ¥30.03

-1.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,093

$30.16 ¥200

7.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$5.11 ¥33.94

72.41%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$3.41 ¥22.64

-17.01%

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

$0.87 ฿29.40

$0.58 ¥3.84

50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.65

$0.35 ¥2.35

40.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$1.23 ¥8.20

108.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.31 ¥15.33

59.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.88 ¥12.48

-11.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.29

$1.94 ¥12.85

-24.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$0.98 ¥6.50

53.06%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.70 ¥11.28

22.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$17.02 ¥113

12.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$3.22 ¥21.36

2.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$12.93 ¥85.8

-15.62%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.8

$2.15 ¥14.27

36.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.73 ¥11.45

-2.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$2.03 ¥13.47

10.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$1.73 ¥11.51

20.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.83 ¥5.49

81.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.51

$0.92 ¥6.12

50.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.95

$0.67 ¥4.47

59.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.50

$0.59 ¥3.91

-11.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.77 ¥25.03

11.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$11.03 ¥73.2

70.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$0.90 ¥5.98

102.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.8

$1.60 ¥10.65

77.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.97

$0.57 ¥3.80

154.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,911

$29.62 ¥197

91.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.14 ¥14.21

41.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.32

$0.47 ¥3.09

117.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$8.74 ¥58.0

-57.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.75

$1.34 ¥8.91

9.70%

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

$26.8K ฿903.2K

$19.3K ¥127.8K

39.09%

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

$26.7K ฿900.3K

$18.3K ¥121.3K

46.01%

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

$96.4 ฿3,250

$58.9 ¥391

63.58%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$7.90 ¥52.4

42.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$10.60 ¥70.3

58.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,268

$64.8 ¥430

3.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$17.47 ¥116

-38.58%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$9.06 ¥60.1

-17.22%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$1,587 ¥10.5K

-70.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.9K

$28.2K ¥187.4K

-60.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,103

$54.6 ¥362

14.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿958

$37.21 ¥247

-23.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,180

$74.6 ¥495

26.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,894

$106 ¥705

-19.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$1,026 ¥6,808

-30.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$559 ¥3,712

-12.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$2,618 ¥17.4K

-26.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,191 ¥7,905

20.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.8K

$13.4K ¥88.7K

-68.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.7K

$6,527 ¥43.3K

-53.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$1,712 ¥11.4K

-70.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.36

65.77%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Shanghai

$559 45.8% 13.9% $68

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Shanghai

$237 19.4% 11.2% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Shanghai

$77 6.3% 37.8% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Shanghai

$123 10% 0.6% $0.8

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Shanghai

$107 8.8% 12.1% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Shanghai

$83 6.8% 0.8% $0.7

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Shanghai

$36 3% 48.5% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $1,026 in Shanghai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shanghai pays about 3.4 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 $30 in Shanghai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $237 per month, with Shanghai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

03:32 3:32 AM

04:32 4:32 AM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

24,870,895

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

1 CNY = 0.151 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, 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 = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 6.64 CNY (1 CNY = 0.151 USD). 1 EUR = 7.44 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Shanghai 3,530 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Shanghai

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 Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Shanghai is about 4% cheaper overall, especially in transport, groceries, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 71% 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 $1,026 in Shanghai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $1,587 in Shanghai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 13% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Shanghai gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.