Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Vigan

For one person, living is cheaper in Vigan: $720 a month against $1,294 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Vigan
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Vigan Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Vigan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$720

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Vigan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $720 in Vigan.

Phuket $1,294
Vigan $720

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $1,087 in Vigan.

Phuket $2,204
Vigan $1,087

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $1,455 in Vigan.

Phuket $3,115
Vigan $1,455

Living in Phuket is roughly 80% more expensive than in Vigan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 4% lower, Vigan 47% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿148

$3.88 ₱247

13.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,090

$16.73 ₱1,062

93.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿294

$1.74 ₱111

400.00%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.9

$1.76 ₱112

54.55%

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

$0.93 ฿31.38

$0.58 ₱37.08

60.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.85

$0.31 ₱19.43

61.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.4

$1.00 ₱63.7

153.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$1.58 ₱100

129.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.7

$1.57 ₱99.9

10.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.93

$1.14 ₱72.3

27.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.7

$1.00 ₱63.6

50.00%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.3

$1.99 ₱126

9.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿644

$4.84 ₱308

294.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿115

$3.29 ₱209

3.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿368

$7.53 ₱478

44.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿99.2

$2.24 ₱142

31.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.1

$1.58 ₱100

6.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿74.0

$2.35 ₱149

-6.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.6

$1.01 ₱64.3

109.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿49.19

$1.70 ₱108

-14.12%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿46.14

$1.70 ₱108

-19.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.29

$0.87 ₱55.0

24.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.40

$0.52 ₱32.92

5.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$2.93 ₱186

51.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿616

$8.50 ₱539

114.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.8

$0.94 ₱59.5

88.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿97.2

$2.04 ₱130

41.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.82

$0.24 ₱15.31

504.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,851

$12.42 ₱788

341.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$0.80 ₱50.5

88.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.17

$0.20 ₱12.72

290.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿129

$1.84 ₱117

108.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿50.2

$1.24 ₱78.9

20.16%

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

$26.9K ฿906.7K

$20.7K ₱1.3M

30.15%

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

$26.3K ฿888.6K

$18.6K ₱1.2M

41.82%

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

$97.8 ฿3,299

$137 ₱8,685

-28.50%

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

$11.29 ฿381

$17.37 ₱1,103

-35.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿580

$23.09 ₱1,466

-25.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,305

$31.16 ₱1,978

119.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿368

$5.31 ₱337

105.65%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿251

$5.20 ₱330

42.88%

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

$530 ฿17.9K

$132 ₱8,359

302.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿633.5K

$10.5K ₱669.0K

78.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,080

$28.61 ₱1,816

115.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿953

$19.14 ₱1,215

47.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,238

$70.6 ₱4,484

35.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,928

$54.1 ₱3,433

60.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.3K

$251 ₱16.0K

186.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.2K

$167 ₱10.6K

203.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.8K

$490 ₱31.1K

298.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿47.1K

$345 ₱21.9K

305.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿141.4K

$2,582 ₱163.9K

62.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿111.3K

$1,091 ₱69.3K

202.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.75

-17.48%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Vigan: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Vigan

$167 23.3% 67.1% $341

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Vigan

$172 23.9% 35.6% $95

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Vigan

$177 24.6% 40.4% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Vigan

$78 10.8% 36.8% $45

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Vigan

$69 9.6% 42.1% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Vigan

$42 5.8% 50% $42

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Vigan

$15 2.1% 77% $51

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Phuket and $251 in Vigan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $17 in Vigan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $172 per month, with Vigan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇵🇭 Vigan

🕒 Local time

13:29 1:29 PM

14:29 2:29 PM

1 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

53,879

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.65 EUR

100 PHP = 1.58 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 33.73 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.72 THB (100 THB = 2.65 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 63.49 PHP (100 PHP = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 71 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Vigan 2,610 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Vigan

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 Vigan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Vigan is about 44% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, transport, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $1,940 in Phuket and $1,080 in Vigan 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: $721 in Phuket versus $251 in Vigan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $132 in Vigan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 55% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $720 in Vigan versus $1,294 in Phuket, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Vigan but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Vigan 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 Vigan are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Vigan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 44% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.