Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Tarxien

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $1,952 in Tarxien, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 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
100

Cost of Living Index in Tarxien
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Tarxien Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Tarxien

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,952

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Tarxien

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,952 in Tarxien.

Phuket $1,278
Tarxien $1,952

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $3,102 in Tarxien.

Phuket $2,216
Tarxien $3,102

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $4,253 in Tarxien.

Phuket $3,154
Tarxien $4,253

Living in Phuket costs roughly 35% less than in Tarxien, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 6% below, Tarxien is 43% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$22.69 €20.38

-80.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$89.9 €80.7

-63.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$13.30 €11.94

-33.76%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.5

$3.26 €2.93

-13.19%

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

$0.87 ฿29.43

$2.36 €2.12

-63.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.67

$1.92 €1.72

-74.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.4

$5.53 €4.96

-53.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$6.54 €5.87

-43.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.30 €1.17

27.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.35

$1.41 €1.27

3.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.6

$3.44 €3.09

-56.40%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$4.42 €3.97

-52.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿644

$10.21 €9.17

86.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$11.95 €10.73

-72.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$18.07 €16.23

-39.62%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿99.0

$3.73 €3.35

-21.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$2.67 €2.39

-36.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$3.98 €3.58

-43.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$3.83 €3.44

-45.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.91 €1.71

-20.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.56

$3.28 €2.95

-57.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.99

$2.23 €2.00

-52.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.52

$1.50 €1.35

-65.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$6.29 €5.65

-33.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$6.10 €5.48

208.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$2.48 €2.22

-26.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$2.27 €2.04

25.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.03

$2.11 €1.89

-31.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,913

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$3.87 €3.48

-21.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.36

$1.77 €1.59

-42.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$32.80 €29.46

-88.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.81

$1.47 €1.32

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

$26.8K ฿904.3K

$28.3K €25.4K

-5.45%

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

$26.7K ฿901.3K

$39.4K €35.4K

-32.30%

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

$96.4 ฿3,254

$155 €139

-37.72%

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

$11.26 ฿380

$30.62 €27.51

-63.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$29.10 €26.14

-42.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,270

$65.3 €58.7

2.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$11.38 €10.22

-34.09%

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

$476 ฿16.1K

$273 €245

74.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

$12.1K €10.8K

-6.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,106

$57.2 €51.4

8.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$67.5 €60.7

-57.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,184

$114 €102

-17.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,898

$128 €115

-32.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$1,136 €1,020

-36.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$804 €722

-38.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.1K

$1,707 €1,534

12.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$1,516 €1,362

-5.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿141.0K

$4,169 €3,745

0.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$3,223 €2,896

-5.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

4.05

37.53%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Tarxien: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Tarxien

$804 41.2% 63.7% $313

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Tarxien

$341 17.5% 28.1% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Tarxien

$214 11% 72.3% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Tarxien

$165 8.5% 35.3% $43

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Tarxien

$318 16.3% 162% $197

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Tarxien

$88 4.5% 7.1% $5.8

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Tarxien

$21 * 1.1% 70% $49

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $1,136 in Tarxien. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $90 in Tarxien for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $341 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇲🇹 Tarxien

🕒 Local time

06:12 6:12 AM

00:12 12:12 AM

6 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

8,600

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Phuket Tarxien 8,950 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Tarxien

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 Tarxien: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 35% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,917 in Phuket and $2,928 in Tarxien 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 $1,136 in Tarxien. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $476 in Phuket versus $273 in Tarxien. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Phuket – a meal for two runs $32 versus $90 in Tarxien. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $1,952 in Tarxien, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Tarxien. 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.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Tarxien are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.