Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Vilvoorde

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,207 a month against $2,162 in Vilvoorde, rent and utilities included – about $11,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Phuket
🇹🇭 Thailand
$1,207
/mo nomad
Vilvoorde
🇧🇪 Belgium
$2,162
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Vilvoorde

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,162 in Vilvoorde.

  • Phuket $1,207
  • Vilvoorde $2,162

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Phuket versus $3,121 in Vilvoorde.

  • Phuket $2,037
  • Vilvoorde $3,121

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,867 in Phuket versus $4,081 in Vilvoorde.

  • Phuket $2,867
  • Vilvoorde $4,081

Living in Phuket costs roughly 44% less than in Vilvoorde, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 11% below, Vilvoorde is 60% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.58 ฿153
$22.03 €19.59
-79.21%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$32.48 ฿1,086
$76.6 €68.1
-57.60%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.55 ฿286
$11.04 €9.82
-22.55%
Cappuccino
$2.72 ฿91.0
$4.31 €3.83
-36.89%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.94 ฿31.25
$2.96 €2.63
-68.24%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.49 ฿16.39
$2.91 €2.59
-83.16%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.59 ฿86.6
$5.27 €4.69
-50.85%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.83 ฿128
$4.54 €4.04
-15.64%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.74 ฿58.1
$1.15 €1.02
51.30%
White Bread (500g)
$1.43 ฿47.82
$2.81 €2.50
-49.11%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.53 ฿51.0
$2.07 €1.84
-26.09%
Eggs
$2.17 ฿72.7
$3.86 €3.43
-43.78%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$19.15 ฿640
$11.33 €10.08
69.02%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.30 ฿110
$12.43 €11.06
-73.45%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.14 ฿372
$19.28 €17.15
-42.22%
Apples (1kg)
$2.95 ฿98.5
$2.71 €2.41
8.86%
Banana (1kg)
$1.68 ฿56.1
$2.19 €1.95
-23.29%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.30 ฿76.8
$2.13 €1.90
7.98%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.13 ฿71.3
$2.31 €2.05
-7.79%
Potato (1kg)
$1.53 ฿51.1
$2.18 €1.94
-29.82%
Onion (1kg)
$1.36 ฿45.55
$1.71 €1.52
-20.47%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.12 ฿37.44
$1.38 €1.23
-18.84%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.55 ฿18.24
$0.92 €0.82
-40.22%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.26 ฿142
$13.17 €11.71
-67.65%
Wine (Bottle)
$18.19 ฿608
$8.99 €8.00
102.34%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.74 ฿58.2
$1.96 €1.75
-11.22%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.79 ฿93.3
$1.84 €1.63
51.63%
🚌 Getting Around
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.22 ฿74.1
$4.88 €4.34
-54.51%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$22.06 ฿737
$55.2 €49.05
-60.00%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.91 ฿97.3
$10.13 €9.01
-71.27%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.01 ฿33.79
$2.42 €2.15
-58.26%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.83 ฿128
$24.73 €22.00
-84.51%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.49 ฿49.85
$2.05 €1.82
-27.32%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$26.7K ฿891.6K
$35.3K €31.4K
-24.51%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$26.7K ฿892.7K
$33.1K €29.4K
-19.30%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$99.4 ฿3,321
$219 €195
-54.57%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.28 ฿377
$18.08 €16.09
-37.61%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$17.36 ฿580
$53.7 €47.80
-67.70%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$52.3 ฿1,747
$36.17 €32.17
44.57%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$10.85 ฿362
$19.47 €17.32
-44.27%
Cinema Ticket
$7.57 ฿253
$15.52 €13.81
-51.22%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$558 ฿18.7K
$565 €502
-1.09%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.5K ฿383.9K
$16.1K €14.3K
-28.69%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$62.9 ฿2,102
$110 €97.5
-42.62%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$28.58 ฿955
$26.13 €23.25
9.38%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$96.1 ฿3,213
$107 €95.6
-10.55%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$88.1 ฿2,943
$151 €134
-41.49%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$729 ฿24.4K
$949 €844
-23.17%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$460 ฿15.4K
$888 €790
-48.18%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,096 ฿70.0K
$1,347 €1,198
55.61%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,222 ฿40.8K
$1,231 €1,095
-0.74%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,459 ฿115.6K
$4,446 €3,955
-22.20%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,489 ฿83.2K
$3,069 €2,730
-18.91%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Phuket
Vilvoorde
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$493 ฿16.5K
$3,716 €3,305
-86.73%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.57
3.2
74.06%

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

Last update for Phuket: October 13, 2026

Last update for Vilvoorde: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Phuket
$460
Vilvoorde
$888 93% $428
Groceries & Markets
Phuket
$268
Vilvoorde
$322 20.4% $54
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Phuket
$128
Vilvoorde
$291 127% $163
Clothing & Footwear
Phuket
$124
Vilvoorde
$177 42.8% $53
Eating Out
Phuket
$121
Vilvoorde
$320 164% $199
Sport & Entertainment
Phuket
$67
Vilvoorde
$67 0.3% $0.2
Getting Around
Phuket
$39
Vilvoorde
$97 149% $58

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $729 in Phuket and $949 in Vilvoorde. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vilvoorde pays 654% 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 $77.0 in Vilvoorde for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $268 vs $322 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇹🇭 Phuket
🇧🇪 Vilvoorde
🕒 Local time
12:06 12:06 PM
07:06 7:06 AM
5 h behind Phuket
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
79,308
40,558
💱 Currency
Thai Baht THB ฿
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Phuket Vilvoorde 9,600 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Phuket
  • Vilvoorde

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 Vilvoorde: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Vilvoorde cheaper than Phuket?
Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 79% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Phuket or Vilvoorde?
On paper, salaries run 654% lower in Vilvoorde. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
What is the rent difference between Phuket and Vilvoorde?
Rent for a central apartment: $729 in Phuket versus $949 in Vilvoorde. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Childcare runs $558 in Phuket versus $565 in Vilvoorde. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
How do food prices compare in Phuket and in Vilvoorde?
Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in Vilvoorde. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Phuket or in Vilvoorde?
At $1,207 in Phuket versus $2,162 in Vilvoorde, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Vilvoorde. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Phuket or Vilvoorde more family-friendly?
For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Vilvoorde, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Phuket or Vilvoorde?
Safety-wise, Phuket and Vilvoorde are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in Vilvoorde. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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