Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Suwon

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,372 in Suwon, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. The total is higher in Suwon despite lower rent and utilities.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Suwon
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Suwon Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Suwon

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,372

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Suwon

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,372 in Suwon.

Phuket $1,278
Suwon $1,372

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $2,163 in Suwon.

Phuket $2,216
Suwon $2,163

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $2,954 in Suwon.

Phuket $3,154
Suwon $2,954

Living in Phuket costs roughly 7% less than in Suwon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$6.06 ₩8,118

-26.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,092

$29.93 ₩40.1K

8.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$7.65 ₩10.3K

15.16%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.3

$3.41 ₩4,572

-17.01%

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

$0.87 ฿29.37

$1.57 ₩2,100

-44.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.64

$0.59 ₩790

-16.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.2

$3.83 ₩5,136

-33.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$4.77 ₩6,390

-22.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.9

$2.60 ₩3,491

-36.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.25

$2.60 ₩3,482

-43.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.4

$3.36 ₩4,510

-55.36%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.4

$3.17 ₩4,249

-34.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿642

$11.15 ₩14.9K

71.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$11.64 ₩15.6K

-71.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$11.39 ₩15.3K

-4.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.7

$6.22 ₩8,338

-52.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.9

$2.93 ₩3,925

-42.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.7

$5.30 ₩7,100

-57.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.0

$4.40 ₩5,904

-52.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.9

$3.47 ₩4,646

-56.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.47

$2.74 ₩3,669

-49.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.91

$4.94 ₩6,619

-78.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.49

$1.36 ₩1,821

-61.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$3.73 ₩5,000

12.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿633

$13.45 ₩18.0K

39.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.4

$2.53 ₩3,393

-28.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.7

$3.86 ₩5,169

-26.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.24 ₩1,658

16.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,909

$48.67 ₩65.2K

16.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$2.88 ₩3,861

4.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.29

$0.63 ₩842

61.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿124

$8.98 ₩12.0K

-58.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.70

$1.32 ₩1,771

11.36%

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

$26.8K ฿902.4K

$28.7K ₩38.5M

-6.72%

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

$26.7K ฿899.5K

$25.2K ₩33.8M

5.83%

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

$96.4 ฿3,247

$186 ₩248.9K

-48.11%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$18.20 ₩24.4K

-38.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿568

$17.99 ₩24.1K

-6.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,266

$43.73 ₩58.6K

53.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿361

$11.82 ₩15.8K

-9.22%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$11.19 ₩15.0K

-32.98%

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

$476 ฿16.0K

$691 ₩926.5K

-31.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿379.6K

$18.3K ₩24.5M

-38.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,102

$37.03 ₩49.6K

68.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿957

$109 ₩146.5K

-74.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,178

$76.5 ₩102.5K

23.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,892

$60.0 ₩80.4K

43.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.1K

$438 ₩587.3K

63.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.5K

$352 ₩471.8K

39.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿64.9K

$1,185 ₩1.6M

62.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.2K

$819 ₩1.1M

74.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.7K

$12.6K ₩16.9M

-66.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.6K

$7,074 ₩9.5M

-56.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿16.9K

$2,638 ₩3.5M

-80.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.5

-14.31%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Suwon: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Suwon

$352 25.7% 28.3% $139

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Suwon

$395 28.8% 48.4% $129

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Suwon

$222 16.2% 78.3% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Suwon

$127 9.3% 4.4% $5.3

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Suwon

$150 10.9% 23% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Suwon

$66 4.8% 19.6% $16

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Suwon

$60 4.4% 15.5% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $438 in Suwon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Suwon pays about 5.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $30 in Suwon. Groceries flip the comparison at $266 vs $395, with Phuket cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇰🇷 Suwon

🕒 Local time

21:10 9:10 PM

23:10 11:10 PM

2 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

1,203,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.97 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, 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 = 37.61 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1,340 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD). 1 EUR = 1,496 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Suwon 4,360 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Suwon

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 Suwon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 7% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 81% 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 $438 in Suwon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $691 in Suwon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 48% higher in Suwon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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 Suwon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Suwon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.