Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Portland, ME and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $3,262 in Portland, ME, rent and utilities included – about $23,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

158

Cost of Living Index in Portland, ME
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Portland, ME Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Portland, ME

🇺🇸 United States

$3,262

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Portland, ME and in Phuket

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Portland, ME and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,262 in Portland, ME versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Portland, ME $3,262
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,710 in Portland, ME versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Portland, ME $4,710
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,158 in Portland, ME versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Portland, ME $6,158
Phuket $3,154

Living in Portland, ME is roughly 155% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Portland, ME is 140% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.87 $24.87

$4.47 ฿151

456.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$120 $120

$32.41 ฿1,094

270.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.86 $14.86

$8.81 ฿297

68.67%

Cappuccino

$6.12 $6.12

$2.83 ฿95.5

116.25%

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

$3.01 $3.01

$0.87 ฿29.43

245.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 $2.47

$0.49 ฿16.67

404.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

$2.56 ฿86.4

214.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.04 $8.04

$3.68 ฿124

118.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 $1.10

$1.66 ฿56.0

-33.73%

White Bread (500g)

$4.64 $4.64

$1.46 ฿49.35

217.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$8.56 $8.56

$1.50 ฿50.6

470.67%

Eggs

$3.92 $3.92

$2.09 ฿70.5

87.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.77 $18.77

$19.07 ฿644

-1.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.33 $10.33

$3.30 ฿111

213.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.45 $16.45

$10.91 ฿368

50.78%

Apples (1kg)

$4.63 $4.63

$2.93 ฿99.0

58.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 $1.70

$1.69 ฿57.1

0.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.85 $5.85

$2.25 ฿75.8

160.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.84 $6.84

$2.08 ฿70.1

228.85%

Potato (1kg)

$6.36 $6.36

$1.51 ฿51.0

321.19%

Onion (1kg)

$3.80 $3.80

$1.38 ฿46.56

175.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.19 $3.19

$1.07 ฿35.99

198.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.54 $2.54

$0.52 ฿17.52

388.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.12 $12.12

$4.20 ฿142

188.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.06 $15.06

$18.79 ฿634

-19.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 $1.88

$1.82 ฿61.5

3.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 $2.54

$2.84 ฿95.9

-10.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.98 $1.98

$1.45 ฿49.03

36.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.5 $60.5

$56.7 ฿1,913

6.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.02 $2.02

$3.02 ฿102

-33.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$1.02 ฿34.36

54.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.80 $10.80

$3.69 ฿125

192.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$1.47 ฿49.81

-29.25%

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

$27.6K $27.6K

$26.8K ฿904.3K

2.89%

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

$26.1K $26.1K

$26.7K ฿901.3K

-2.16%

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

$224 $224

$96.4 ฿3,254

132.24%

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

$69.5 $69.5

$11.26 ฿380

517.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$76.4 $76.4

$16.85 ฿569

353.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.8 $51.8

$67.2 ฿2,270

-23.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$39.22 $39.22

$10.73 ฿362

265.52%

Cinema Ticket

$13.96 $13.96

$7.50 ฿253

86.13%

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

$1,263 $1,263

$476 ฿16.1K

165.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.4K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.7 $52.7

$62.4 ฿2,106

-15.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$81.2 $81.2

$28.41 ฿959

185.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 $102

$94.3 ฿3,184

8.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 $133

$85.8 ฿2,898

54.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 $2,102

$716 ฿24.2K

193.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,703 $1,703

$491 ฿16.6K

246.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,156 $3,156

$1,927 ฿65.1K

63.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,524 $2,524

$1,431 ฿48.3K

76.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,509 $5,509

$4,175 ฿141.0K

31.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,978 $3,978

$3,045 ฿102.8K

30.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,598 $4,598

$502 ฿17.0K

815.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.5

5.57

16.70%

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

Last update for Portland, ME: October 26, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Portland, ME

$1.7K 52.2%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 71.2% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Portland, ME

$470 14.4%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 43.4% $204

Eating Out

Portland, ME

$395 12.1%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 69.2% $274

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Portland, ME

$370 11.3%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 66.3% $245

Clothing & Footwear

Portland, ME

$166 5.1%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 26.5% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Portland, ME

$80 2.4%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 3.2% $2.5

Getting Around

Portland, ME

$78 2.4%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 9.9% $7.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,102 in Portland, ME and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Portland, ME pays about 9.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $120 in Portland, ME vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $470 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Portland, ME

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

15:02 3:02 PM

02:02 2:02 AM

11 h ahead of Portland, ME

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

652,503

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 33.77 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.59 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Portland, ME Phuket 14,170 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Portland, ME
Phuket

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

Portland, ME vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. The 155% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Portland, ME is about 9.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,102 in Portland, ME versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,263 in Portland, ME versus $476 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 77% higher in Portland, ME. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $3,262 in Portland, ME, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Portland, ME. The gap between the two cities makes Phuket the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Phuket is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Portland, ME, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Portland, ME and Phuket are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Phuket gentler on the wallet – expenses run 61% less than in Portland, ME. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.