Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Portsmouth, NH and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Phuket: $1,278 a month against $2,763 in Portsmouth, NH, rent and utilities included – about $17,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

135

Cost of Living Index in Portsmouth, NH
Learn more

Portsmouth, NH Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
Learn more

Phuket Living Index

Jump to prices

Portsmouth, NH

🇺🇸 United States

$2,763

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Portsmouth, NH 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 Portsmouth, NH and in Phuket actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,763 in Portsmouth, NH versus $1,278 in Phuket.

Portsmouth, NH $2,763
Phuket $1,278

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,026 in Portsmouth, NH versus $2,216 in Phuket.

Portsmouth, NH $4,026
Phuket $2,216

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,289 in Portsmouth, NH versus $3,154 in Phuket.

Portsmouth, NH $5,289
Phuket $3,154

Living in Portsmouth, NH is roughly 116% more expensive than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Portsmouth, NH is 103% above, Phuket is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.24 $20.24

$4.47 ฿151

352.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$102 $102

$32.41 ฿1,094

213.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.96 $8.96

$8.81 ฿297

1.70%

Cappuccino

$4.11 $4.11

$2.83 ฿95.4

45.23%

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

$2.64 $2.64

$0.87 ฿29.42

203.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 $1.53

$0.49 ฿16.66

212.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.08 $7.08

$2.56 ฿86.3

176.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.33 $7.33

$3.68 ฿124

99.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.66 ฿56.0

-23.49%

White Bread (500g)

$5.12 $5.12

$1.46 ฿49.32

250.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.12 $4.12

$1.50 ฿50.5

174.67%

Eggs

$3.48 $3.48

$2.09 ฿70.5

66.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.17 $11.17

$19.07 ฿643

-41.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.93 $12.93

$3.30 ฿111

291.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.86 $16.86

$10.91 ฿368

54.54%

Apples (1kg)

$5.27 $5.27

$2.93 ฿98.9

79.86%

Banana (1kg)

$2.06 $2.06

$1.69 ฿57.0

21.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.58 $4.58

$2.25 ฿75.8

103.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.35 $4.35

$2.08 ฿70.1

109.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 $1.61

$1.51 ฿51.0

6.62%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 $2.62

$1.38 ฿46.54

89.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.55 $2.55

$1.07 ฿35.97

138.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.00 $3.00

$0.52 ฿17.51

476.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.49 $13.49

$4.20 ฿142

221.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.13 $16.13

$18.79 ฿634

-14.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 $1.75

$1.82 ฿61.5

-3.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 $2.04

$2.84 ฿95.9

-28.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.00

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.85 $5.85

$3.02 ฿102

93.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.82 $4.82

$1.02 ฿34.34

372.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 $0.91

$1.47 ฿49.78

-38.10%

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

$28.0K $28.0K

$26.8K ฿903.7K

4.41%

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

$26.1K $26.1K

$26.7K ฿900.8K

-2.22%

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

$192 $192

$96.4 ฿3,252

99.46%

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

$52.9 $52.9

$11.26 ฿380

369.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.5 $52.5

$16.85 ฿569

211.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.45 $25.45

$67.2 ฿2,269

-62.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

Cinema Ticket

$12.37 $12.37

$7.50 ฿253

64.93%

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

$832 $832

$476 ฿16.1K

74.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.8K $33.8K

$11.3K ฿380.1K

200.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$24.52 $24.52

$62.4 ฿2,105

-60.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.34 $37.34

$28.41 ฿959

31.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.9 $51.9

$94.3 ฿3,182

-44.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.0 $81.0

$85.8 ฿2,896

-5.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,145 $2,145

$716 ฿24.2K

199.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,570 $1,570

$491 ฿16.6K

219.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,185 $4,185

$1,927 ฿65.0K

117.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,494 $2,494

$1,431 ฿48.3K

74.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,895 $4,895

$4,175 ฿140.9K

17.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,078 $3,078

$3,045 ฿102.8K

1.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,986 $5,986

$502 ฿17.0K

1091.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.1

5.57

9.52%

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

Last update for Portsmouth, NH: October 25, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Portsmouth, NH

$1.6K 56.8%

Phuket

$491 38.4% 68.7% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Portsmouth, NH

$423 15.3%

Phuket

$266 20.8% 37.1% $157

Eating Out

Portsmouth, NH

$305 11%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 60.1% $183

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Portsmouth, NH

$298 10.8%

Phuket

$124 9.7% 58.2% $173

Clothing & Footwear

Portsmouth, NH

$88 3.2%

Phuket

$122 9.5% 39.1% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Portsmouth, NH

$50 1.8%

Phuket

$82 6.4% 63.8% $32

Getting Around

Portsmouth, NH

$30 * 1.1%

Phuket

$71 5.5% 136% $41

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 $2,145 in Portsmouth, NH and $716 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Portsmouth, NH pays about 12 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $102 in Portsmouth, NH vs $32 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $423 vs $266 per month, with Phuket cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Portsmouth, NH

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

05:58 5:58 AM

17:58 5:58 PM

12 h ahead of Portsmouth, NH

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

95,535

79,308

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 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 November 2, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.896 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Portsmouth, NH Phuket 14,240 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Portsmouth, NH
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

Portsmouth, NH vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Phuket is about 54% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Portsmouth, NH is about 12 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: $2,145 in Portsmouth, NH versus $716 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $832 in Portsmouth, NH versus $476 in Phuket. 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 $102 in Portsmouth, NH. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,278 in Phuket versus $2,763 in Portsmouth, NH, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Phuket but tight or insufficient in Portsmouth, NH. 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 Portsmouth, NH, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Portsmouth, NH and Phuket are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Phuket wins on affordability, Portsmouth, NH on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.