Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Wonju

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,294 a month against $1,549 in Wonju, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. The total is higher in Wonju despite lower rent and utilities.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Wonju
Learn more

Wonju Living Index

Jump to prices

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,294

/mo nomad

Wonju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,549

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Wonju

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,549 in Wonju.

Phuket $1,294
Wonju $1,549

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,204 in Phuket versus $2,516 in Wonju.

Phuket $2,204
Wonju $2,516

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,115 in Phuket versus $3,483 in Wonju.

Phuket $3,115
Wonju $3,483

Living in Phuket costs roughly 17% less than in Wonju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Phuket is 4% below, Wonju is 15% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.39 ฿147

$7.44 ₩9,980

-40.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.31 ฿1,085

$48.11 ₩64.5K

-32.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.70 ฿292

$6.72 ₩9,004

29.46%

Cappuccino

$2.72 ฿91.5

$3.68 ₩4,938

-26.09%

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

$0.93 ฿31.25

$1.86 ₩2,488

-50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.78

$1.40 ₩1,876

-64.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 ฿85.0

$3.77 ₩5,048

-32.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ฿122

$4.30 ₩5,763

-15.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.4

$2.22 ₩2,980

-21.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 ฿48.73

$3.19 ₩4,272

-54.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$3.05 ₩4,090

-50.82%

Eggs

$2.17 ฿73.0

$2.63 ₩3,530

-17.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 ฿641

$10.97 ₩14.7K

74.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.40 ฿114

$10.34 ₩13.9K

-67.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.90 ฿366

$24.64 ₩33.0K

-55.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 ฿98.8

$11.24 ₩15.1K

-73.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.8

$3.58 ₩4,803

-52.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.19 ฿73.7

$7.84 ₩10.5K

-72.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 ฿71.4

$6.08 ₩8,155

-65.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿48.99

$5.80 ₩7,776

-74.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿45.95

$3.25 ₩4,353

-57.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ฿36.14

$2.75 ₩3,680

-60.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ฿18.32

$1.27 ₩1,700

-56.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ฿149

$3.27 ₩4,383

35.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿613

$18.24 ₩24.5K

0.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ฿59.5

$2.44 ₩3,267

-27.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 ฿96.8

$3.63 ₩4,868

-20.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿48.62

$0.97 ₩1,306

49.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.9 ฿1,844

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.51 ฿50.8

$3.55 ₩4,755

-57.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ฿26.06

$0.64 ₩854

21.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 ฿129

$14.85 ₩19.9K

-74.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ฿49.96

$1.18 ₩1,575

26.27%

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

$26.9K ฿902.9K

$38.6K ₩51.8M

-30.39%

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

$26.3K ฿884.9K

$33.3K ₩44.6M

-20.87%

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

$97.8 ฿3,285

$202 ₩271.0K

-51.63%

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

$11.29 ฿379

$36.46 ₩48.9K

-69.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.19 ฿577

$27.33 ₩36.6K

-37.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.3 ฿2,295

$52.4 ₩70.2K

30.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.92 ฿367

$11.90 ₩16.0K

-8.24%

Cinema Ticket

$7.43 ฿250

$12.10 ₩16.2K

-38.60%

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

$530 ฿17.8K

$477 ₩639.6K

11.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.8K ฿630.9K

$21.8K ₩29.3M

-14.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ฿2,072

$104 ₩139.2K

-40.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.25 ฿949

$64.7 ₩86.7K

-56.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 ฿3,225

$91.5 ₩122.6K

4.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.8 ฿2,916

$128 ₩171.1K

-31.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 ฿24.2K

$507 ₩679.9K

42.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$509 ฿17.1K

$377 ₩504.7K

35.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,950 ฿65.5K

$1,239 ₩1.7M

57.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 ฿46.9K

$916 ₩1.2M

52.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,192 ฿140.8K

$6,883 ₩9.2M

-39.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,298 ฿110.8K

$6,178 ₩8.3M

-46.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$492 ฿16.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

4.22

31.99%

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

Last update for Phuket: November 2, 2026

Last update for Wonju: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$509 39.3%

Wonju

$377 24.3% 26% $132

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$267 20.6%

Wonju

$481 31% 80.2% $214

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$126 9.8%

Wonju

$266 17.2% 111% $140

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$123 9.5%

Wonju

$174 11.3% 42.1% $52

Eating Out

Phuket

$120 9.2%

Wonju

$164 10.6% 37.5% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$83 6.4%

Wonju

$77 4.9% 7.9% $6.6

Getting Around

Phuket

$66 5.1%

Wonju

$11 * 0.7% 83.9% $55

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 $721 in Phuket and $507 in Wonju. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $48 in Wonju for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $481 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇰🇷 Wonju

🕒 Local time

13:19 1:19 PM

15:19 3:19 PM

2 h ahead of Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

340,196

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.98 USD

100 THB = 2.64 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 33.59 THB (100 THB = 2.98 USD). 1 EUR = 37.81 THB (100 THB = 2.64 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1,341 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.46 USD). 1 EUR = 1,509 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.63 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Phuket Wonju 4,420 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Wonju

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 Wonju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 17% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, 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 $2,324 in Wonju 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 $507 in Wonju. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $530 in Phuket versus $477 in Wonju. 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 $48 in Wonju. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,294 in Phuket versus $1,549 in Wonju, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Wonju. 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 Wonju are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.