Cost of Living Comparison Between Pietermaritzburg and Phuket Cost of Living Comparison Between Pietermaritzburg and Phuket

🙂 Solo nomad: Pietermaritzburg is 18.2% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 15.4% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Pietermaritzburg is 8.8% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 35.1% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8 R 142
$4.68 ฿151
70.94%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.14 R 767
$46.4 ฿1,502
-7.03%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.62 R 100
$8.65 ฿280
-35.03%
Cappuccino
$2.2 R 39.19
$3.09 ฿100
-28.80%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 R 15.49
$0.73 ฿23.53
19.18%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.69 R 12.33
$0.37 ฿11.95
86.49%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.69 R 30.08
$2.39 ฿77.4
-29.29%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.36 R 42.04
$3.62 ฿117
-34.81%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.03 R 18.4
$2.24 ฿72.5
-54.02%
White Bread (500g)
$0.86 R 15.24
$1.8 ฿58.2
-52.22%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.52 R 27.01
$2.24 ฿72.3
-32.14%
Eggs
$2.25 R 39.95
$2.23 ฿72.1
0.90%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.19 R 128
$19.31 ฿625
-62.77%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.83 R 85.9
$3.77 ฿122
28.12%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.1 R 126
$13.05 ฿422
-45.59%
Apples (1kg)
$1.58 R 28.16
$3.28 ฿106
-51.83%
Banana (1kg)
$1.77 R 31.5
$1.63 ฿52.6
8.59%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.01 R 35.73
$2.4 ฿77.7
-16.25%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.74 R 30.87
$1.99 ฿64.3
-12.56%
Potato (1kg)
$1.53 R 27.17
$1.53 ฿49.62
-
Onion (1kg)
$1.84 R 32.79
$1.49 ฿48.11
23.49%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.24 R 22.07
$1.02 ฿32.87
21.57%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.98 R 17.37
$0.48 ฿15.61
104.17%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.85 R 50.6
$4.32 ฿140
-34.03%
Wine (Bottle)
$3.31 R 58.9
$21.68 ฿702
-84.73%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.45 R 25.76
$1.77 ฿57.3
-18.08%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.7 R 30.2
$2.79 ฿90.4
-39.07%
🚌 Getting Around
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.67 R 47.54
$1.35 ฿43.74
97.78%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$18.3 R 326
$11.76 ฿380
55.61%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.63 R 29.01
$3.15 ฿102
-48.25%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.52 R 9.27
$1 ฿32.3
-48.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.91 R 69.6
$13.64 ฿442
-71.33%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.24 R 22.13
$1.3 ฿42.2
-4.62%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$23.4K R 416.2K
$27.4K ฿885.2K
-14.46%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$22.9K R 407.7K
$33.9K ฿1.1M
-32.38%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$230 R 4,094
$123 ฿3,970
87.62%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$30.34 R 540
$13.93 ฿451
117.80%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$56.9 R 1,012
$18.24 ฿590
211.84%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.89 R 674
$60.8 ฿1,966
-37.63%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$17.11 ฿554
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.12 R 91
$9.07 ฿294
-43.55%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$150 R 2,666
$694 ฿22.5K
-78.41%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,782 R 85K
$15.9K ฿514.4K
-69.92%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$61.7 R 1,097
$57.5 ฿1,861
7.25%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.2 R 679
$34.51 ฿1,117
10.69%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$181 R 3,222
$115 ฿3,727
57.30%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$76.1 R 1,354
$84.8 ฿2,743
-10.22%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$209 R 3,716
$611 ฿19.8K
-65.81%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$190 R 3,376
$442 ฿14.3K
-57.08%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$513 R 9,129
$2,014 ฿65.2K
-74.52%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$386 R 6,863
$1,460 ฿47.2K
-73.56%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$719 R 12.8K
$4,244 ฿137.3K
-83.05%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$416 R 7,405
$2,886 ฿93.4K
-85.57%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$862 R 15.3K
$697 ฿22.5K
23.76%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.5
5.33
115.76%

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

Last update for Pietermaritzburg: October 29, 2025

Last update for Phuket: October 29, 2025

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