Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Strumica

For one person, living is cheaper in Strumica: $866 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Strumica
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Strumica Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Strumica

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$866

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Strumica

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $866 in Strumica.

Phuket $1,278
Strumica $866

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,222 in Strumica.

Phuket $2,216
Strumica $1,222

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,579 in Strumica.

Phuket $3,154
Strumica $1,579

Living in Phuket is roughly 48% more expensive than in Strumica, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Strumica 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$3.57 MKD 197

25.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,092

$22.29 MKD 1,226

45.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$3.73 MKD 205

136.19%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$1.53 MKD 84.0

84.97%

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

$0.87 ฿29.37

$1.40 MKD 77.0

-37.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.64

$1.15 MKD 63.0

-57.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.2

$1.85 MKD 102

38.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$1.98 MKD 109

85.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$1.29 MKD 70.9

28.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.25

$0.74 MKD 40.45

97.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.4

$1.70 MKD 93.8

-11.76%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.4

$2.12 MKD 117

-1.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿642

$7.99 MKD 440

138.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$6.19 MKD 341

-46.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$9.90 MKD 544

10.20%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.7

$0.61 MKD 33.70

380.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$1.38 MKD 76.0

22.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$1.20 MKD 66.3

87.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$1.97 MKD 108

5.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$0.83 MKD 45.55

81.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.47

$0.77 MKD 42.48

79.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.91

$0.64 MKD 35.22

67.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.49

$0.59 MKD 32.28

-11.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$2.72 MKD 149

54.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿633

$5.37 MKD 296

249.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$0.95 MKD 52.4

91.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.7

$1.20 MKD 65.9

136.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$0.70 MKD 38.57

107.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,909

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.07 MKD 59.1

182.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.29

$0.62 MKD 33.86

64.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$7.73 MKD 425

-52.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.70

$1.57 MKD 86.6

-6.37%

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

$26.8K ฿902.4K

$33.6K MKD 1.9M

-20.41%

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

$26.7K ฿899.5K

$26.4K MKD 1.5M

1.22%

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

$96.4 ฿3,247

$150 MKD 8,243

-35.69%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$12.85 MKD 707

-12.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$18.35 MKD 1,010

-8.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,266

$20.22 MKD 1,113

232.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿361

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.10 MKD 391

5.63%

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

$476 ฿16.0K

$365 MKD 20.1K

30.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.6K

$5,764 MKD 317.1K

95.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,102

$85.7 MKD 4,717

-27.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿957

$36.58 MKD 2,012

-22.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,178

$104 MKD 5,709

-9.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,892

$91.8 MKD 5,049

-6.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$308 MKD 17.0K

132.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.5K

$241 MKD 13.3K

103.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿64.9K

$493 MKD 27.1K

291.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.2K

$298 MKD 16.4K

380.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.7K

$1,484 MKD 81.7K

181.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.6K

$979 MKD 53.9K

210.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$640 MKD 35.2K

-21.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

39.25%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Strumica: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Strumica

$241 27.8% 50.9% $250

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Strumica

$178 20.5% 33.2% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Strumica

$181 20.9% 45.4% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Strumica

$143 16.5% 17.3% $21

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Strumica

$81 9.4% 33.1% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Strumica

$34 4% 58.1% $48

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Strumica

$7 * 0.8% 90.1% $64

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 $716 in Phuket and $308 in Strumica. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Strumica pays 27% 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 $22 in Strumica for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $178 per month, with Strumica cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇰 Strumica

🕒 Local time

14:11 2:11 PM

08:11 8:11 AM

6 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

36,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

100 MKD = 1.82 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 33.7 THB (100 THB = 2.97 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 55.02 MKD (100 MKD = 1.82 USD). 1 EUR = 61.25 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Strumica 8,240 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Strumica

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 Strumica: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Strumica is about 32% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 22% 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 $308 in Strumica. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $365 in Strumica. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Strumica – a meal for two runs $22 versus $32 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Strumica is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Strumica are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.