Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Sutomore

For one person, living is cheaper in Sutomore: $1,095 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Phuket outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Sutomore
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Sutomore Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Sutomore

🇲🇪 Montenegro

$1,095

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Sutomore

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $1,095 in Sutomore.

Phuket $1,208
Sutomore $1,095

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $1,682 in Sutomore.

Phuket $2,027
Sutomore $1,682

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $2,269 in Sutomore.

Phuket $2,845
Sutomore $2,269

Living in Phuket is roughly 10% more expensive than in Sutomore, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 11% lower, Sutomore 19% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿147

$11.24 €10.00

-60.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,078

$35.96 €31.99

-10.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿293

$9.16 €8.14

-4.37%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿94.5

$2.59 €2.30

9.27%

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

$0.90 ฿30.14

$2.20 €1.96

-59.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.56

$1.47 €1.31

-68.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

$2.85 €2.53

-10.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$3.44 €3.06

11.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿57.7

$1.19 €1.06

45.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.11

$1.01 €0.90

45.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.6

$2.25 €2.00

-32.89%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$3.08 €2.74

-29.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿658

$8.77 €7.80

124.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿112

$7.55 €6.71

-55.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿373

$12.24 €10.89

-8.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$1.26 €1.12

126.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$1.49 €1.32

14.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

$1.47 €1.31

48.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$2.87 €2.56

-28.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿48.57

$0.85 €0.75

70.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.16

$1.09 €0.97

26.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.69

$1.46 €1.30

-26.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

$0.89 €0.79

-42.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$3.85 €3.42

10.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿621

$4.56 €4.05

307.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

$1.24 €1.10

43.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.2

$1.68 €1.50

69.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

$1.65 €1.47

36.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

$38.44 €34.19

-42.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿101

$1.14 €1.01

164.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

$1.14 €1.01

-7.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

$16.91 €15.04

-77.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$1.77 €1.57

-18.08%

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

$28.7K €25.5K

-8.30%

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

$26.9K ฿900.4K

$21.3K €18.9K

26.58%

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

$96.4 ฿3,221

$133 €118

-27.29%

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

$11.04 ฿369

$13.19 €11.73

-16.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿573

$33.34 €29.65

-48.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

$45.68 €40.63

14.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

$14.42 €12.83

-22.61%

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿261

$5.97 €5.31

30.82%

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

$556 ฿18.6K

$395 €352

40.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

$6,959 €6,190

66.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,146

$84.5 €75.2

-24.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿959

$33.24 €29.56

-13.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,187

$72.2 €64.2

32.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,940

$93.0 €82.8

-5.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

$370 €329

99.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

$275 €245

68.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

$559 €497

275.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

$494 €439

143.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

$3,356 €2,985

3.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

$2,300 €2,046

9.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

$669 €595

-25.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

11.40%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Sutomore: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Sutomore

$275 25.1% 40.5% $187

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Sutomore

$219 20% 18.3% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Sutomore

$179 16.4% 43.8% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Sutomore

$127 11.6% 2.4% $3

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Sutomore

$184 16.8% 52% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Sutomore

$58 5.3% 15% $10

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Sutomore

$52 4.7% 31.6% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Phuket and $370 in Sutomore. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sutomore pays 34% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $36.00 in Sutomore. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $219, with Sutomore cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇪 Sutomore

🕒 Local time

11:31 11:31 AM

05:31 5:31 AM

6 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

2,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Sutomore 8,540 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Sutomore

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 Sutomore: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sutomore is cheaper overall, especially in groceries and leisure. The 10% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 34% lower in Sutomore. 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: $737 in Phuket versus $370 in Sutomore. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $395 in Sutomore. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,095 in Sutomore versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Sutomore but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Sutomore the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Sutomore 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 Sutomore 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 Sutomore gentler on the wallet – expenses run 10% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.