Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Sihanoukville

For one person, living is cheaper in Sihanoukville: $942 a month against $1,190 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Sihanoukville
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Sihanoukville Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

Sihanoukville

🇰🇭 Cambodia

$942

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Sihanoukville

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,190 in Phuket versus $942 in Sihanoukville.

Phuket $1,190
Sihanoukville $942

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,006 in Phuket versus $1,416 in Sihanoukville.

Phuket $2,006
Sihanoukville $1,416

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,822 in Phuket versus $1,889 in Sihanoukville.

Phuket $2,822
Sihanoukville $1,889

Living in Phuket is roughly 26% more expensive than in Sihanoukville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Sihanoukville 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.35 ฿146

$3.95 ៛16.0K

10.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.45 ฿1,087

$29.44 ៛119.4K

10.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.42 ฿282

$7.09 ៛28.7K

18.76%

Cappuccino

$2.81 ฿94.0

$2.27 ៛9,223

23.79%

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

$0.87 ฿29.29

$0.74 ៛2,987

17.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 ฿15.39

$0.42 ៛1,711

9.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$1.03 ៛4,173

151.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 ฿122

$1.97 ៛7,983

84.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 ฿57.2

$2.12 ៛8,611

-19.34%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.42

$1.64 ៛6,661

-11.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.3

$0.92 ៛3,748

69.57%

Eggs

$2.10 ฿70.3

$1.68 ៛6,830

25.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.53 ฿654

$14.08 ៛57.1K

38.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$4.20 ៛17.0K

-19.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿373

$8.89 ៛36.1K

25.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 ฿94.8

$3.42 ៛13.9K

-17.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ฿54.3

$1.42 ៛5,776

14.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 ฿74.5

$4.31 ៛17.5K

-48.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.15 ฿71.9

$1.54 ៛6,264

39.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 ฿49.95

$1.34 ៛5,445

11.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.40

$1.19 ៛4,820

11.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.72

$1.15 ៛4,681

-6.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.01

$0.72 ៛2,912

-29.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 ฿147

$1.54 ៛6,257

184.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.77 ฿629

$10.81 ៛43.9K

73.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.3

$0.92 ៛3,727

89.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿92.9

$1.68 ៛6,831

65.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.17 ฿72.6

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.28 ฿746

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿101

$1.08 ៛4,381

179.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.43

$0.99 ៛4,010

7.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 ฿124

$5.08 ៛20.6K

-26.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ฿47.88

$1.25 ៛5,077

14.40%

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

$26.3K ฿882.1K

$34.9K ៛141.7M

-24.59%

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

$26.2K ฿877.3K

$43.5K ៛176.6M

-39.82%

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

$96.7 ฿3,236

$106 ៛429.0K

-8.61%

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

$11.41 ฿382

$6.43 ៛26.1K

77.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.11 ฿573

$18.57 ៛75.3K

-7.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ฿1,768

$73.4 ៛297.7K

-28.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.07 ฿371

$10.02 ៛40.6K

10.48%

Cinema Ticket

$7.65 ฿256

$4.98 ៛20.2K

53.61%

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

$555 ฿18.6K

$338 ៛1.4M

64.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿377.7K

$5,118 ៛20.8M

120.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.4 ฿2,123

$28.25 ៛114.6K

124.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.61 ฿958

$20.09 ៛81.5K

42.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.7 ฿3,238

$90.0 ៛365.2K

7.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 ฿2,967

$20.25 ៛82.1K

337.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$735 ฿24.6K

$393 ៛1.6M

86.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$458 ฿15.3K

$304 ៛1.2M

50.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 ฿70.4K

$651 ៛2.6M

222.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 ฿39.7K

$505 ៛2.0M

135.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,493 ฿116.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,491 ฿83.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

8.07

-30.98%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 4, 2026

Last update for Sihanoukville: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$458 38.1%

Sihanoukville

$304 32.8% 33.5% $154

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.3%

Sihanoukville

$238 25.6% 11.3% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Sihanoukville

$131 14.1% 4.5% $5.6

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Sihanoukville

$71 7.7% 42.8% $53

Eating Out

Phuket

$119 9.9%

Sihanoukville

$94 10.1% 21.3% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.7%

Sihanoukville

$83 9% 22.4% $15

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Sihanoukville

$6 * 0.7% 84.7% $33

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 $735 in Phuket and $393 in Sihanoukville. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $29.00 in Sihanoukville for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $238 per month, with Sihanoukville cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇰🇭 Sihanoukville

🕒 Local time

08:57 8:57 AM

Same time as Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

73,036

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Cambodian Riel KHR ៛

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

10,000 KHR = 2.47 USD

10,000 KHR = 2.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KHR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Cambodian Riel exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4,056 KHR (10,000 KHR = 2.47 USD). 1 EUR = 4,549 KHR (10,000 KHR = 2.2 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Sihanoukville 640 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Sihanoukville

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 Sihanoukville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sihanoukville is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 26% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,785 in Phuket and $1,413 in Sihanoukville to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $735 in Phuket versus $393 in Sihanoukville. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $555 in Phuket versus $338 in Sihanoukville. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Sihanoukville – a meal for two runs $29.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $942 in Sihanoukville versus $1,190 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sihanoukville but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Sihanoukville the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Sihanoukville 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 Sihanoukville 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 Sihanoukville gentler on the wallet – expenses run 26% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.