Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Suva

For one person, living is cheaper in Suva: $941 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Suva
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Suva Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Suva

🇫🇯 Fiji

$941

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Suva

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $941 in Suva.

Phuket $1,278
Suva $941

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,702 in Suva.

Phuket $2,216
Suva $1,702

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,463 in Suva.

Phuket $3,154
Suva $2,463

Living in Phuket is roughly 36% more expensive than in Suva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Suva 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$5.93 FJD 13.24

-24.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$43.61 FJD 97.4

-25.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$7.67 FJD 17.13

14.86%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.90 FJD 6.47

-2.41%

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

$0.87 ฿29.42

$1.52 FJD 3.40

-42.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.66

$0.74 FJD 1.65

-33.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$3.47 FJD 7.75

-26.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$4.56 FJD 10.19

-19.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.31 FJD 2.93

26.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.32

$0.52 FJD 1.17

180.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.11 FJD 2.49

35.14%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$3.22 FJD 7.19

-35.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$10.40 FJD 23.20

83.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$6.32 FJD 14.10

-47.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$7.68 FJD 17.15

42.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$2.46 FJD 5.50

19.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$2.50 FJD 5.59

-32.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$3.43 FJD 7.65

-34.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$3.21 FJD 7.16

-35.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.24 FJD 2.76

21.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.54

$1.10 FJD 2.45

25.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.97

$1.20 FJD 2.67

-10.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.69 FJD 1.53

-24.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$10.02 FJD 22.37

-58.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$7.22 FJD 16.11

160.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$2.12 FJD 4.73

-14.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$3.37 FJD 7.53

-15.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.00

$0.71 FJD 1.58

104.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$24.49 FJD 54.7

131.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$0.87 FJD 1.93

247.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.34

$0.43 FJD 0.96

137.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$9.04 FJD 20.17

-59.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.78

$1.44 FJD 3.21

2.08%

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

$26.8K ฿903.7K

$24.4K FJD 54.4K

9.91%

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

$26.7K ฿900.8K

$25.4K FJD 56.7K

5.01%

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

$96.4 ฿3,252

$45.96 FJD 103

109.64%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$12.73 FJD 28.41

-11.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$23.66 FJD 52.8

-28.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,269

$36.73 FJD 82.0

83.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$10.99 FJD 24.52

-2.37%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$3.38 FJD 7.54

121.89%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$224 FJD 499

112.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.1K

$13.2K FJD 29.5K

-14.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,105

$33.66 FJD 75.1

85.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$39.60 FJD 88.4

-28.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,182

$69.9 FJD 156

34.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,896

$61.5 FJD 137

39.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$891 FJD 1,989

-19.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$322 FJD 720

52.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$2,636 FJD 5,882

-26.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$978 FJD 2,182

46.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$1,327 FJD 2,962

214.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$827 FJD 1,847

268.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$946 FJD 2,112

-46.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

7.7

-27.66%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Suva: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Suva

$322 34.3% 34.3% $168

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Suva

$229 24.4% 13.8% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Suva

$82 8.8% 33.8% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Suva

$92 9.8% 24.4% $30

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Suva

$141 15% 15.7% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Suva

$43 4.6% 47.1% $39

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Suva

$30 3.2% 57% $40

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $891 in Suva. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Suva pays 88% 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 $44 in Suva. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $229, with Suva cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇫🇯 Suva

🕒 Local time

17:43 5:43 PM

22:43 10:43 PM

5 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

100,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Fijian Dollar FJD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 FJD = 0.448 USD

1 FJD = 0.401 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

FJD, 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).

Fijian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 2.23 FJD (1 FJD = 0.448 USD). 1 EUR = 2.49 FJD (1 FJD = 0.401 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Suva 9,240 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Suva

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 Suva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Suva is about 26% cheaper overall, especially in transport, leisure, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 47% 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 $891 in Suva. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $224 in Suva. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 16% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Suva 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 Suva are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.