Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Sun City Center, FL

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,492 in Sun City Center, FL, rent and utilities included – about $14,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
122

Cost of Living Index in Sun City Center, FL
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Sun City Center, FL Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Sun City Center, FL

🇺🇸 United States

$2,492

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Sun City Center, FL

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 Sun City Center, FL actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,492 in Sun City Center, FL.

Phuket $1,278
Sun City Center, FL $2,492

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $3,720 in Sun City Center, FL.

Phuket $2,216
Sun City Center, FL $3,720

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $4,948 in Sun City Center, FL.

Phuket $3,154
Sun City Center, FL $4,948

Living in Phuket costs roughly 49% less than in Sun City Center, FL, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Sun City Center, FL is 83% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$22.50 $22.50

-80.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$69.4 $69.4

-53.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$11.90 $11.90

-25.97%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$5.55 $5.55

-49.01%

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

$0.87 ฿29.42

$2.43 $2.43

-64.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.66

$1.89 $1.89

-74.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$5.04 $5.04

-49.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$7.38 $7.38

-50.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$0.99 $0.99

67.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.32

$3.39 $3.39

-56.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$3.49 $3.49

-57.02%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$3.02 $3.02

-30.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$12.07 $12.07

58.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$13.39 $13.39

-75.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$19.04 $19.04

-42.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$5.17 $5.17

-43.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.70 $1.70

-0.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$5.68 $5.68

-60.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$3.21 $3.21

-35.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.87 $1.87

-19.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.54

$3.24 $3.24

-57.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.97

$2.64 $2.64

-59.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$1.31 $1.31

-60.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$9.19 $9.19

-54.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$13.15 $13.15

42.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.79 $1.79

1.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$4.89 $4.89

-41.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.00

$2.13 $2.13

-31.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$60.5 $60.5

-6.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$3.59 $3.59

-15.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.34

$1.46 $1.46

-30.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$29.67 $29.67

-87.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.78

$1.02 $1.02

44.12%

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

$26.8K ฿903.7K

$27.5K $27.5K

-2.69%

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

$26.7K ฿900.8K

$22.6K $22.6K

18.28%

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

$96.4 ฿3,252

$119 $119

-19.31%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$37.81 $37.81

-70.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$61.0 $61.0

-72.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,269

$44.79 $44.79

50.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$14.92 $14.92

-49.73%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$1,038 $1,038

-54.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.1K

$18.3K $18.3K

-38.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,105

$37.17 $37.17

67.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$40.66 $40.66

-30.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,182

$87.3 $87.3

7.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,896

$184 $184

-53.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$1,462 $1,462

-51.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$1,234 $1,234

-60.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$2,522 $2,522

-23.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$2,089 $2,089

-31.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$3,247 $3,247

28.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$2,501 $2,501

21.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.6

-15.61%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Sun City Center, FL: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Sun City Center, FL

$1.2K 49.5% 152% $744

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Sun City Center, FL

$388 15.6% 45.9% $122

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Sun City Center, FL

$218 8.8% 75.3% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Sun City Center, FL

$157 6.3% 28.8% $35

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Sun City Center, FL

$339 13.6% 179% $218

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Sun City Center, FL

$75 3% 9.2% $7.6

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Sun City Center, FL

$80 3.2% 13.2% $9.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $1,462 in Sun City Center, FL. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $69 in Sun City Center, FL for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $388 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇺🇸 Sun City Center, FL

🕒 Local time

16:05 4:05 PM

04:05 4:05 AM

12 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

19,258

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Sun City Center, FL 16,060 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Sun City Center, FL

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 Sun City Center, FL: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 49% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,917 in Phuket and $3,738 in Sun City Center, FL 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: $716 in Phuket versus $1,462 in Sun City Center, FL. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $1,038 in Sun City Center, FL. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 46% higher in Sun City Center, FL. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,492 in Sun City Center, FL, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Sun City Center, FL. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket 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 Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in Sun City Center, FL. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.