Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Sorocaba

For one person, living is cheaper in Sorocaba: $831 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Sorocaba
Learn more

Sorocaba Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Sorocaba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$831

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Sorocaba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $831 in Sorocaba.

Phuket $1,278
Sorocaba $831

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,270 in Sorocaba.

Phuket $2,216
Sorocaba $1,270

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,710 in Sorocaba.

Phuket $3,154
Sorocaba $1,710

Living in Phuket is roughly 54% more expensive than in Sorocaba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Sorocaba 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$6.14 R$32.81

-27.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$26.17 R$140

23.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$7.47 R$39.93

17.94%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$2.10 R$11.21

34.76%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$1.29 R$6.87

-32.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$0.73 R$3.91

-32.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$2.21 R$11.84

15.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$3.77 R$20.18

-2.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$0.91 R$4.89

82.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.68 R$8.99

-13.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$0.96 R$5.13

56.25%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$2.37 R$12.66

-11.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$8.32 R$44.50

129.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$3.83 R$20.48

-13.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$7.29 R$38.99

49.66%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$2.35 R$12.55

24.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.68 R$8.99

0.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.03 R$5.53

118.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$1.56 R$8.35

33.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.10 R$5.90

37.27%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$0.94 R$5.05

46.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$0.65 R$3.50

64.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$0.65 R$3.48

-20.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$2.72 R$14.52

54.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$5.48 R$29.30

242.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.47 R$7.84

23.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$1.78 R$9.52

59.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$0.80 R$4.28

81.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

$38.51 R$206

47.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$0.99 R$5.30

205.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$0.34 R$1.82

200.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$6.55 R$35.04

-43.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.18 R$6.33

24.58%

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$22.5K R$120.5K

18.79%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$30.4K R$162.5K

-12.18%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$78.0 R$417

23.59%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$11.67 R$62.4

-3.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$18.62 R$99.5

-9.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$24.12 R$129

178.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$13.70 R$73.2

-21.68%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.45 R$39.85

0.67%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$325 R$1,736

46.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$3,643 R$19.5K

209.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$38.70 R$207

61.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$55.3 R$296

-48.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$82.5 R$441

14.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$69.8 R$373

22.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$218 R$1,166

228.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$229 R$1,224

114.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$431 R$2,307

346.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$378 R$2,020

278.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$1,705 R$9,118

144.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$1,188 R$6,351

156.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$402 R$2,150

24.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.33

-50.84%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Sorocaba: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Sorocaba

$229 27.5% 53.4% $262

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Sorocaba

$177 21.2% 33.7% $90

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Sorocaba

$108 13% 13% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Sorocaba

$111 13.3% 9.1% $11

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Sorocaba

$123 14.8% 1.4% $1.6

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Sorocaba

$39 4.7% 52.5% $43

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Sorocaba

$44 5.3% 37.1% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $218 in Sorocaba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 25% 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 in Phuket vs $26 in Sorocaba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $177 per month, with Sorocaba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇧🇷 Sorocaba

🕒 Local time

03:22 3:22 AM

17:22 5:22 PM

10 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

723,682

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 BRL = 0.187 USD

1 BRL = 0.168 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 5.35 BRL (1 BRL = 0.187 USD). 1 EUR = 5.95 BRL (1 BRL = 0.168 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Sorocaba 15,980 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Sorocaba

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 Sorocaba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sorocaba is about 35% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, leisure, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 25% 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: $716 in Phuket versus $218 in Sorocaba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $325 in Sorocaba. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 51% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $831 in Sorocaba versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Sorocaba but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Sorocaba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Expats usually find Sorocaba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 35% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.