Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Taichung Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Taichung

🙂 Solo nomad: Phuket is 18.7% cheaper than Taichung without rent, and 6.1% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Phuket is 10.6% cheaper than Taichung without rent, and 20.7% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.65 ฿147
$5.03 NT$160
-7.55%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$46.11 ฿1,460
$30.17 NT$957
52.83%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.74 ฿277
$5.27 NT$167
65.84%
Cappuccino
$3.04 ฿96.2
$2.96 NT$93.9
2.70%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.72 ฿22.80
$1.16 NT$36.63
-37.93%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.39 ฿12.38
$0.79 NT$24.94
-50.63%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.44 ฿77.2
$2.09 NT$66.2
16.75%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.79 ฿120
$2.81 NT$89.2
34.88%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.14 ฿67.9
$3.74 NT$119
-42.78%
White Bread (500g)
$1.86 ฿58.9
$1.75 NT$55.4
6.29%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.19 ฿69.2
$2.85 NT$90.4
-23.16%
Eggs
$2.25 ฿71.1
$3.14 NT$99.5
-28.34%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.73 ฿625
$31.61 NT$1,002
-37.58%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.79 ฿120
$8.12 NT$257
-53.33%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.55 ฿429
$15.54 NT$493
-12.81%
Apples (1kg)
$3.25 ฿103
$4.65 NT$148
-30.11%
Banana (1kg)
$1.67 ฿52.9
$1.80 NT$57.0
-7.22%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.39 ฿75.7
$2.17 NT$68.9
10.14%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.09 ฿66.2
$3.01 NT$95.4
-30.56%
Potato (1kg)
$1.53 ฿48.39
$1.32 NT$41.92
15.91%
Onion (1kg)
$1.51 ฿47.79
$1.94 NT$61.4
-22.16%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.99 ฿31.30
$2.39 NT$75.9
-58.58%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.51 ฿16.30
$1.24 NT$39.29
-58.87%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.27 ฿135
$4.02 NT$127
6.22%
Wine (Bottle)
$20.31 ฿643
$15.53 NT$493
30.78%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.79 ฿56.7
$1.70 NT$54.0
5.29%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.77 ฿87.6
$2.57 NT$81.6
7.78%
🚌 Getting Around
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.40 ฿44.44
$0.89 NT$28.08
57.30%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$11.70 ฿370
$29.24 NT$927
-59.99%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.11 ฿98.4
$2.92 NT$92.6
6.51%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.99 ฿31.48
$1.19 NT$37.85
-16.81%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$13.73 ฿435
$10.30 NT$326
33.30%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.32 ฿41.75
$1.06 NT$33.49
24.53%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.2K ฿862.0K
$34.2K NT$1.1M
-20.39%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$34.1K ฿1.1M
$25.7K NT$815.4K
32.66%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$120 ฿3,811
$94.9 NT$3,010
26.83%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.93 ฿441
$24.97 NT$792
-44.21%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$18.31 ฿579
$21.95 NT$696
-16.58%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$60.9 ฿1,928
$36.08 NT$1,144
68.87%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.23 ฿545
$10.11 NT$320
70.43%
Cinema Ticket
$8.71 ฿276
$10.65 NT$338
-18.22%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$698 ฿22.1K
$354 NT$11.2K
97.10%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$15.7K ฿498.0K
$20.8K NT$658.4K
-24.22%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$57.6 ฿1,824
$83.5 NT$2,648
-30.96%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.24 ฿1,084
$34.55 NT$1,096
-0.90%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$113 ฿3,582
$95.9 NT$3,040
18.06%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$84.8 ฿2,684
$127 NT$4,020
-33.10%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$604 ฿19.1K
$374 NT$11.9K
61.36%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$436 ฿13.8K
$286 NT$9,081
52.29%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,057 ฿65.1K
$1,025 NT$32.5K
100.72%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,498 ฿47.4K
$726 NT$23.0K
106.26%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,252 ฿134.6K
$6,928 NT$219.7K
-38.62%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,988 ฿94.6K
$7,922 NT$251.2K
-62.28%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Phuket
Taichung
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$529 ฿16.7K
$1,431 NT$45.4K
-63.01%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.33
2.18
144.50%

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

Last update for Phuket: February 28, 2026

Last update for Taichung: March 1, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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