Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Uluwatu, Bali

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,190 a month against $1,675 in Uluwatu, Bali, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Uluwatu, Bali
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Uluwatu, Bali Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,190

/mo nomad

Uluwatu, Bali

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$1,675

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Uluwatu, Bali

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,190 in Phuket versus $1,675 in Uluwatu, Bali.

Phuket $1,190
Uluwatu, Bali $1,675

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,006 in Phuket versus $2,848 in Uluwatu, Bali.

Phuket $2,006
Uluwatu, Bali $2,848

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,822 in Phuket versus $4,020 in Uluwatu, Bali.

Phuket $2,822
Uluwatu, Bali $4,020

Living in Phuket costs roughly 29% less than in Uluwatu, Bali, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 11% below, Uluwatu, Bali is 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.35 ฿146

$3.95 Rp 70.7K

10.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.45 ฿1,087

$42.45 Rp 758.8K

-23.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.42 ฿282

$6.92 Rp 123.6K

21.68%

Cappuccino

$2.81 ฿94.0

$3.22 Rp 57.5K

-12.73%

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

$0.87 ฿29.29

$2.00 Rp 35.8K

-56.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 ฿15.39

$0.99 Rp 17.8K

-53.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.59 ฿86.6

$3.21 Rp 57.3K

-19.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 ฿122

$5.34 Rp 95.4K

-31.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 ฿57.2

$1.61 Rp 28.8K

6.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.42

$2.30 Rp 41.1K

-36.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.3

$1.27 Rp 22.7K

22.83%

Eggs

$2.10 ฿70.3

$2.26 Rp 40.4K

-7.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.53 ฿654

$18.24 Rp 326.1K

7.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$4.07 Rp 72.7K

-16.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.14 ฿373

$12.90 Rp 230.5K

-13.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.83 ฿94.8

$3.66 Rp 65.4K

-22.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ฿54.3

$1.62 Rp 28.9K

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 ฿74.5

$2.34 Rp 41.8K

-5.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.15 ฿71.9

$2.04 Rp 36.4K

5.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 ฿49.95

$1.97 Rp 35.1K

-24.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.40

$2.44 Rp 43.6K

-45.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.72

$1.07 Rp 19.2K

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.01

$0.52 Rp 9,311

-1.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 ฿147

$2.29 Rp 41.0K

91.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.77 ฿629

$23.34 Rp 417.3K

-19.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.3

$2.37 Rp 42.4K

-26.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿92.9

$3.12 Rp 55.8K

-10.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.17 ฿72.6

$0.32 Rp 5,786

578.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.28 ฿746

$10.24 Rp 183.0K

117.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿101

$0.57 Rp 10.1K

429.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.43

$0.57 Rp 10.2K

85.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 ฿124

$2.71 Rp 48.5K

36.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ฿47.88

$1.10 Rp 19.7K

30.00%

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

$26.3K ฿882.1K

$30.7K Rp 548.6M

-14.16%

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

$26.2K ฿877.3K

$38.3K Rp 684.8M

-31.60%

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

$96.7 ฿3,236

$90.2 Rp 1.6M

7.14%

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

$11.41 ฿382

$7.15 Rp 127.8K

59.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.11 ฿573

$20.44 Rp 365.4K

-16.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 ฿1,768

$64.8 Rp 1.2M

-18.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.07 ฿371

$20.82 Rp 372.1K

-46.83%

Cinema Ticket

$7.65 ฿256

$5.10 Rp 91.1K

50.00%

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

$555 ฿18.6K

$556 Rp 9.9M

-0.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿377.7K

$6,498 Rp 116.2M

73.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.4 ฿2,123

$50.8 Rp 907.5K

24.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.61 ฿958

$39.30 Rp 702.5K

-27.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.7 ฿3,238

$88.4 Rp 1.6M

9.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.6 ฿2,967

$84.7 Rp 1.5M

4.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$735 ฿24.6K

$1,523 Rp 27.2M

-51.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$458 ฿15.3K

$929 Rp 16.6M

-50.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 ฿70.4K

$4,862 Rp 86.9M

-56.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 ฿39.7K

$2,353 Rp 42.1M

-49.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,493 ฿116.9K

$3,679 Rp 65.8M

-5.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,491 ฿83.4K

$3,038 Rp 54.3M

-18.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

13.78

-59.58%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 4, 2026

Last update for Uluwatu, Bali: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$458 38.1%

Uluwatu, Bali

$929 55.1% 103% $471

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$268 22.3%

Uluwatu, Bali

$301 17.8% 12.2% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Uluwatu, Bali

$118 7% 5.9% $7.4

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$125 10.4%

Uluwatu, Bali

$118 7% 5.1% $6.4

Eating Out

Phuket

$119 9.9%

Uluwatu, Bali

$130 7.7% 8.7% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.7%

Uluwatu, Bali

$75 4.5% 10.1% $6.9

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Uluwatu, Bali

$15 0.9% 61.9% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $735 in Phuket and $1,523 in Uluwatu, Bali. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $42.00 in Uluwatu, Bali for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $301 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇮🇩 Uluwatu, Bali

🕒 Local time

20:06 8:06 PM

21:06 9:06 PM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

5,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.67 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,875 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,030 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Uluwatu, Bali 2,620 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Uluwatu, Bali

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 Uluwatu, Bali: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 41% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,785 in Phuket and $2,513 in Uluwatu, Bali 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: $735 in Phuket versus $1,523 in Uluwatu, Bali. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $555 in Phuket versus $556 in Uluwatu, Bali. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 12% higher in Uluwatu, Bali. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,190 in Phuket versus $1,675 in Uluwatu, Bali, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Uluwatu, Bali. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Uluwatu, Bali, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Uluwatu, Bali 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 Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Uluwatu, Bali. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.