Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Union, SC

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,208 a month against $2,296 in Union, SC, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 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
113

Cost of Living Index in Union, SC
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Union, SC Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Union, SC

🇺🇸 United States

$2,296

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Union, SC

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,208 in Phuket versus $2,296 in Union, SC.

Phuket $1,208
Union, SC $2,296

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,027 in Phuket versus $3,597 in Union, SC.

Phuket $2,027
Union, SC $3,597

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,845 in Phuket versus $4,897 in Union, SC.

Phuket $2,845
Union, SC $4,897

Living in Phuket costs roughly 47% less than in Union, SC, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 11% below, Union, SC is 69% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 ฿147

$9.15 $9.15

-51.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.26 ฿1,078

$99.0 $99.0

-67.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ฿293

$8.51 $8.51

2.94%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿94.5

$5.98 $5.98

-52.68%

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

$0.90 ฿30.14

$2.33 $2.33

-61.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ฿15.56

$1.94 $1.94

-75.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 ฿85.2

$2.80 $2.80

-8.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 ฿128

$3.42 $3.42

11.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 ฿57.7

$1.07 $1.07

61.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 ฿49.11

$3.26 $3.26

-54.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 ฿50.6

$2.45 $2.45

-38.37%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿72.7

$3.30 $3.30

-34.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.70 ฿658

$8.96 $8.96

119.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.34 ฿112

$13.31 $13.31

-74.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.16 ฿373

$14.71 $14.71

-24.13%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$2.81 $2.81

1.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$1.31 $1.31

29.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.3

$3.24 $3.24

-32.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$4.44 $4.44

-53.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.45 ฿48.57

$2.37 $2.37

-38.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.16

$2.12 $2.12

-34.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.69

$1.75 $1.75

-38.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.91

$1.29 $1.29

-60.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 ฿142

$8.35 $8.35

-48.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.58 ฿621

$8.75 $8.75

112.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 ฿59.7

$1.79 $1.79

-0.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.2

$5.16 $5.16

-44.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 ฿75.6

$2.09 $2.09

8.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.01 ฿101

$4.62 $4.62

-34.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.34

$3.02 $3.02

-64.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 ฿129

$34.96 $34.96

-88.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ฿48.45

$0.91 $0.91

59.34%

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

$26.3K ฿879.9K

$28.0K $28.0K

-5.88%

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

$26.9K ฿900.4K

$25.2K $25.2K

6.75%

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

$96.4 ฿3,221

$177 $177

-45.57%

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

$11.04 ฿369

$64.9 $64.9

-82.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.14 ฿573

$45.72 $45.72

-62.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 ฿1,744

$41.73 $41.73

25.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.16 ฿373

Cinema Ticket

$7.81 ฿261

$13.17 $13.17

-40.70%

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

$556 ฿18.6K

$2,585 $2,585

-78.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿387.0K

$23.0K $23.0K

-49.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.2 ฿2,146

$47.21 $47.21

35.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.69 ฿959

$20.96 $20.96

36.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 ฿3,187

$85.6 $85.6

11.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 ฿2,940

$99.0 $99.0

-11.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 ฿24.6K

$1,390 $1,390

-46.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 ฿15.5K

$1,259 $1,259

-63.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,095 ฿70.0K

$2,203 $2,203

-4.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 ฿40.1K

$2,419 $2,419

-50.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,488 ฿116.6K

$2,700 $2,700

29.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,523 ฿84.3K

$2,125 $2,125

18.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$501 ฿16.7K

$2,496 $2,496

-79.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

39.25%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Last update for Union, SC: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$462 38.3%

Union, SC

$1.3K 54.8% 172% $796

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$269 22.2%

Union, SC

$332 14.4% 23.4% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$125 10.3%

Union, SC

$288 12.5% 131% $163

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$124 10.3%

Union, SC

$114 5% 8.5% $11

Eating Out

Phuket

$121 10%

Union, SC

$208 9.1% 71.9% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$68 5.6%

Union, SC

$68 3% 0.4% $0.3

Getting Around

Phuket

$39 3.3%

Union, SC

$28 * 1.2% 28.8% $11

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 $737 in Phuket and $1,390 in Union, SC. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Union, SC pays 398% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32.00 in Phuket vs $99.0 in Union, SC for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $332 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇺🇸 Union, SC

🕒 Local time

21:53 9:53 PM

10:53 10:53 AM

11 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

8,000

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Union, SC 15,280 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Union, SC

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 Union, SC: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 90% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 398% lower in Union, SC. 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: $737 in Phuket versus $1,390 in Union, SC. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $556 in Phuket versus $2,585 in Union, SC. 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 $32.00 versus $99.0 in Union, SC. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,208 in Phuket versus $2,296 in Union, SC, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Union, SC. 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 Union, SC, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Phuket and Union, SC 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 90% less than in Union, SC. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.