Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Shrewsbury, Shropshire

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $2,060 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Phuket
🇹🇭 Thailand
$1,208
/mo nomad
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$2,060
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Shrewsbury, Shropshire

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $2,060 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

  • Phuket $1,208
  • Shrewsbury, Shropshire $2,060

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $2,922 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

  • Phuket $2,027
  • Shrewsbury, Shropshire $2,922

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $3,784 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

  • Phuket $2,845
  • Shrewsbury, Shropshire $3,784

Living in Phuket costs roughly 41% less than in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 11% below, Shrewsbury, Shropshire is 52% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.40 ฿147
$19.87 £14.91
-77.86%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$32.26 ฿1,078
$56.1 £42.08
-42.49%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.76 ฿293
$8.76 £6.57
-
Cappuccino
$2.83 ฿94.5
$4.57 £3.43
-38.07%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.90 ฿30.14
$3.00 £2.25
-70.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.47 ฿15.56
$2.47 £1.86
-80.97%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.55 ฿85.2
$5.30 £3.98
-51.89%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.83 ฿128
$6.79 £5.10
-43.59%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.73 ฿57.7
$1.99 £1.50
-13.07%
White Bread (500g)
$1.47 ฿49.11
$2.39 £1.79
-38.49%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.51 ฿50.6
$2.15 £1.61
-29.77%
Eggs
$2.17 ฿72.7
$4.09 £3.07
-46.94%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.70 ฿658
$7.95 £5.96
147.80%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.34 ฿112
$9.08 £6.81
-63.22%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.16 ฿373
$9.36 £7.02
19.23%
Apples (1kg)
$2.85 ฿95.1
$2.07 £1.56
37.68%
Banana (1kg)
$1.70 ฿56.9
$1.28 £0.96
32.81%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.19 ฿73.3
$2.49 £1.87
-12.05%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.05 ฿68.4
$1.16 £0.87
76.72%
Potato (1kg)
$1.45 ฿48.57
$1.47 £1.10
-1.36%
Onion (1kg)
$1.38 ฿46.16
$1.07 £0.80
28.97%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 ฿35.69
$0.95 £0.71
12.63%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.51 ฿16.91
$1.20 £0.90
-57.50%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.26 ฿142
$23.96 £17.97
-82.22%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.58 ฿621
$9.07 £6.80
104.85%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.78 ฿59.7
$2.62 £1.97
-32.06%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.85 ฿95.2
$4.54 £3.40
-37.22%
🚌 Getting Around
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.26 ฿75.6
$2.86 £2.15
-20.98%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$22.10 ฿738
$91.6 £68.7
-75.86%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.01 ฿101
$6.12 £4.59
-50.82%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.06 ฿35.34
$3.96 £2.97
-73.23%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.86 ฿129
-
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 ฿48.45
$1.90 £1.42
-23.68%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$26.3K ฿879.9K
$39.2K £29.4K
-32.79%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.9K ฿900.4K
$40.3K £30.2K
-33.14%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$96.4 ฿3,221
$203 £152
-52.41%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.04 ฿369
$23.89 £17.93
-53.79%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$17.14 ฿573
$39.81 £29.87
-56.95%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52.2 ฿1,744
$76.8 £57.6
-32.05%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$11.16 ฿373
$13.20 £9.91
-15.45%
Cinema Ticket
$7.81 ฿261
$15.15 £11.37
-48.45%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$556 ฿18.6K
$1,452 £1,090
-61.72%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.6K ฿387.0K
$18.5K £13.9K
-37.46%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$64.2 ฿2,146
$61.0 £45.74
5.30%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$28.69 ฿959
$46.80 £35.11
-38.70%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$95.4 ฿3,187
$83.7 £62.8
13.94%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.0 ฿2,940
$100 £75.3
-12.33%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$737 ฿24.6K
$1,053 £790
-29.96%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$462 ฿15.5K
$859 £645
-46.20%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,095 ฿70.0K
$1,564 £1,174
33.91%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,201 ฿40.1K
$1,213 £910
-0.97%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,488 ฿116.6K
$3,990 £2,993
-12.59%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,523 ฿84.3K
$2,948 £2,212
-14.44%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Phuket
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$501 ฿16.7K
$2,434 £1,826
-79.43%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.57
5.3
5.09%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Shrewsbury, Shropshire: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Phuket
$462
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
$859 85.9% $397
Groceries & Markets
Phuket
$269
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
$265 1.4% $3.7
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
$125
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
$266 114% $142
Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
$124
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
$131 5.6% $7
Eating Out
Phuket
$121
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
$302 149% $181
Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
$68
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
$107 58% $39
Getting Around
Phuket
$39
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
$129 227% $89

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $1,053 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shrewsbury, Shropshire pays 386% 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 $56.0 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $265, with Shrewsbury, Shropshire cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇹🇭 Phuket
🇬🇧 Shrewsbury, Shropshire
🕒 Local time
03:57 3:57 AM
21:57 9:57 PM
6 h behind Phuket
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
79,308
76,782
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Phuket Shrewsbury, Shropshire 10,050 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Phuket
  • Shrewsbury, Shropshire

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 Shrewsbury, Shropshire: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Shrewsbury, Shropshire cheaper than Phuket?
Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 70% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Phuket or Shrewsbury, Shropshire?
On paper, salaries run 386% lower in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
What is the rent difference between Phuket and Shrewsbury, Shropshire?
Rent for a central apartment: $737 in Phuket versus $1,053 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $1,452 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
How do food prices compare in Phuket and in Shrewsbury, Shropshire?
Shoppers in Shrewsbury, Shropshire pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Phuket or in Shrewsbury, Shropshire?
At $1,208 in Phuket versus $2,060 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Phuket or Shrewsbury, Shropshire more family-friendly?
For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Phuket or Shrewsbury, Shropshire?
Safety-wise, Phuket and Shrewsbury, Shropshire are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 70% less than in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Phuket vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?