Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Shantou

For one person, living is cheaper in Shantou: $692 a month against $1,207 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Shantou
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Shantou Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,207

/mo nomad

Shantou

🇨🇳 China

$692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Shantou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Phuket versus $692 in Shantou.

Phuket $1,207
Shantou $692

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Phuket versus $1,104 in Shantou.

Phuket $2,037
Shantou $1,104

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,867 in Phuket versus $1,516 in Shantou.

Phuket $2,867
Shantou $1,516

Living in Phuket is roughly 74% more expensive than in Shantou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Shantou 49% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.58 ฿154

$2.29 ¥15.35

100.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.48 ฿1,091

$23.70 ¥158

37.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.55 ฿287

$5.17 ¥34.59

65.38%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.5

$3.38 ¥22.63

-19.53%

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

$0.94 ฿31.41

$0.47 ¥3.12

100.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.48

$0.31 ¥2.05

58.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿87.0

$0.88 ¥5.92

194.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿129

$2.13 ¥14.28

79.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.4

$1.60 ¥10.71

8.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ฿48.07

$1.45 ¥9.73

-1.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.3

$0.77 ¥5.18

98.70%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.1

$1.69 ¥11.33

28.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.15 ฿643

$13.63 ¥91.1

40.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$3.43 ¥22.91

-3.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿374

$13.16 ¥88.0

-15.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 ฿99.0

$1.95 ¥13.03

51.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.4

$1.50 ¥10.05

12.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 ฿77.2

$1.81 ¥12.14

27.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.6

$1.30 ¥8.70

63.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.53 ฿51.4

$0.82 ¥5.49

86.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 ฿45.78

$1.06 ¥7.11

28.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.63

$0.59 ¥3.96

89.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.33

$0.43 ¥2.88

27.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿143

$3.69 ¥24.71

15.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.19 ฿611

$12.00 ¥80.2

51.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.5

$0.83 ¥5.57

109.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 ฿93.8

$1.79 ¥11.98

55.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 ฿74.4

$0.36 ¥2.41

516.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.06 ฿741

$24.27 ¥162

-9.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 ฿97.8

$1.53 ¥10.24

90.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.97

$0.38 ¥2.56

165.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 ฿129

$7.31 ¥48.86

-47.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿50.1

$1.23 ¥8.25

21.14%

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

$26.7K ฿896.2K

$19.8K ¥132.4K

34.78%

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

$26.7K ฿897.2K

$18.0K ¥120.5K

48.24%

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

$99.4 ฿3,338

$56.7 ¥379

75.38%

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

$11.28 ฿379

$8.89 ¥59.5

26.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 ฿583

$13.86 ¥92.7

25.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ฿1,756

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.85 ฿364

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ฿254

$7.54 ¥50.5

0.40%

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

$558 ฿18.8K

$540 ¥3,614

3.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K ฿385.9K

$24.2K ¥162.1K

-52.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.9 ฿2,112

$55.6 ¥372

13.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.58 ฿960

$39.70 ¥265

-28.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 ฿3,229

$73.1 ¥489

31.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.1 ฿2,958

$91.4 ¥611

-3.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 ฿24.5K

$298 ¥1,991

144.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$460 ฿15.5K

$151 ¥1,011

204.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 ฿70.4K

$602 ¥4,027

248.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 ฿41.1K

$294 ¥1,969

315.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,459 ฿116.2K

$2,278 ¥15.2K

51.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,489 ฿83.6K

$4,469 ¥29.9K

-44.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$493 ฿16.6K

$1,062 ¥7,099

-53.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.35

66.27%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Shantou: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$460 38.1%

Shantou

$151 21.8% 67.1% $309

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.2%

Shantou

$214 31% 19.9% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$128 10.6%

Shantou

$79 11.5% 38% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Shantou

$117 16.9% 5.8% $7.1

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10.1%

Shantou

$86 12.5% 28.9% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$67 5.6%

Shantou

$15 * 2.2% 77.6% $52

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.2%

Shantou

$29 4.2% 25% $9.7

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $729 in Phuket and $298 in Shantou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shantou pays 115% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $24.00 in Shantou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $214 per month, with Shantou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇨🇳 Shantou

🕒 Local time

17:24 5:24 PM

18:24 6:24 PM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

5,389,328

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 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 October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 33.59 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.61 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Shantou 2,600 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Shantou

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 Shantou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Shantou is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 74% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 115% lower in Shantou. 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 $298 in Shantou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $558 in Phuket versus $540 in Shantou. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 25% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $692 in Shantou versus $1,207 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shantou but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Shantou the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Shantou 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 Shantou 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 Shantou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 74% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.