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

🙂 Solo nomad: Pietermaritzburg is 4% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 17.1% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Pietermaritzburg is 0.3% cheaper than Phuket without rent, and 34.9% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$7.96 R 130
$4.59 ฿147
73.42%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$43.18 R 704
$46.83 ฿1,497
-7.79%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.51 R 89.8
$8.70 ฿278
-36.67%
Cappuccino
$2.12 R 34.57
$2.92 ฿93.5
-27.40%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.87 R 14.16
$0.68 ฿21.86
27.94%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.69 R 11.29
$0.40 ฿12.66
72.50%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.63 R 26.61
$2.51 ฿80.2
-35.06%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.42 R 39.49
$3.80 ฿122
-36.32%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.07 R 17.46
$2.16 ฿69.1
-50.46%
White Bread (500g)
$0.80 R 13.07
$1.88 ฿60.1
-57.45%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.50 R 24.48
$2.16 ฿69.0
-30.56%
Eggs
$2.25 R 36.69
$2.22 ฿71.0
1.35%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.04 R 115
$19.57 ฿626
-64.03%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.69 R 76.4
$3.80 ฿122
23.42%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.02 R 114
$13.41 ฿429
-47.65%
Apples (1kg)
$1.66 R 27.14
$3.26 ฿104
-49.08%
Banana (1kg)
$1.76 R 28.75
$1.61 ฿51.5
9.32%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.00 R 32.67
$2.31 ฿73.8
-13.42%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.67 R 27.16
$2.06 ฿65.8
-18.93%
Potato (1kg)
$1.48 R 24.06
$1.61 ฿51.3
-8.07%
Onion (1kg)
$1.78 R 28.98
$1.44 ฿46.13
23.61%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.28 R 20.92
$1.03 ฿32.91
24.27%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.96 R 15.69
$0.48 ฿15.34
100.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.90 R 47.29
$4.50 ฿144
-35.56%
Wine (Bottle)
$3.61 R 58.9
$19.18 ฿613
-81.18%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.45 R 23.62
$1.82 ฿58.3
-20.33%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.78 R 28.94
$2.69 ฿86.0
-33.83%
🚌 Getting Around
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.70 R 44.03
$1.38 ฿44.04
95.65%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$18.09 R 295
$11.76 ฿376
53.83%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.64 R 26.71
$3.11 ฿99.3
-47.27%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.53 R 8.59
$1.00 ฿32.09
-47.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.97 R 64.7
$13.74 ฿439
-71.11%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.24 R 20.29
$1.30 ฿41.49
-4.62%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$24.0K R 391.2K
$27.4K ฿874.5K
-12.26%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$22.6K R 368.0K
$33.0K ฿1.1M
-31.63%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$237 R 3,857
$125 ฿3,993
89.47%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$30.12 R 491
$13.74 ฿439
119.21%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$58.2 R 948
$18.61 ฿595
212.52%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$38.31 R 624
$60.6 ฿1,936
-36.73%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$17.15 ฿548
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.08 R 82.8
$9.01 ฿288
-43.62%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$149 R 2,427
$698 ฿22.3K
-78.66%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,742 R 77.3K
$16.1K ฿515.1K
-70.57%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$61.1 R 996
$59.2 ฿1,893
3.16%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.43 R 626
$34.86 ฿1,115
10.24%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$181 R 2,947
$114 ฿3,651
58.29%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$73.5 R 1,197
$85.8 ฿2,743
-14.38%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$208 R 3,398
$619 ฿19.8K
-66.30%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$185 R 3,018
$437 ฿14.0K
-57.62%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$518 R 8,449
$2,075 ฿66.3K
-75.02%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$381 R 6,212
$1,509 ฿48.2K
-74.75%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$756 R 12.3K
$3,764 ฿120.3K
-79.92%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$445 R 7,247
$2,694 ฿86.1K
-83.49%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Pietermaritzburg
Phuket
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$884 R 14.4K
$528 ฿16.9K
67.28%
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: April 12, 2026

Last update for Phuket: April 13, 2026

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

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